Bubble Team

Fan House tries to formulate a 64 team Super League.

By using attendance as a predictor of TV ratings (a rational theory), ISU is in the conversation for averaging 40K-ish each year.

Peter

Dollars

Want to keep Nebraska and Mizzou in the family? Replace the worst TV deal in college sports with something that gives cash to someone other than Texas.

The right deal might even attract more schools in. Big 16, anyone?

Peter

Outside Looking In

ESPN does a big "What If" of the new college landscape, using the term MEGA where I used Super. It pretty much lines up with what I posted previously.

Sure enough, ISU is not considered "MEGA", and is a leftover:

Teams Left Out: Cincinnati, Baylor, Boise State, Texas Tech, Louisville, Iowa State, Fresno State, Houston, Memphis, San Diego State and Wyoming. One thing is for sure, Cincinnati, Louisville and Texas Tech would be a great addition for any conference to grab.

There's 11 schools right off the bat. Add another leftover (Colorado State? Air Force? Memphis?) and you have a league ISU can compete in.

Since ESPN drives the narrative, and has a financial interest in the MEGA system, look for it to happen.

Peter 

Tenure

The fact that Hoiberg has little interest in any other college job is an underrated recruiting trump card.

Hard to use the "He's using ISU as a stepping stone" argument. What job would he find more attractive?

Peter 

64

Heard a discussion on sports radio Thursday that I agree with: BCS football will gel into 4 "Superconferences" of 16 teams each.

Each conference champ will go into a Super Playoff. One Big Winner.

The downside is that the BCS conferences have 65 teams. Then you start adding the other schools likely to be in the discussion- Notre Dame, BYU, TCU, Utah, maybe a Boise State or East Carolina- and some present BCS schools are going to be left without a chair when the music stops.

I suspect ISU will be one of those left standing.

At the same time, that could be a good thing. ISU has neither the financial nor emotional resources for Big Time Football in its present form, and would go 2-10 each year as a Super. A drop to UnSuper would stick emotionally, but we would find ourselves amongst a bunch of peers financially.

Assume the TV money would be token, so athletics would be dependent on ticket sales only. I like our chances in the money wars competing with Memphis and Colorado State instead of Nebraska and Texas.

There's an interesting league in ISU, KSU, Baylor and Tech mixed in with the UnSuper parts of Conference USA and the Mountain West. If the Mountain West can fund its own TV network now, the new expanded league would be TV worthy, too. The Supers would have only so many ads to sell.

The transition will be hard, but winning, even as a Mid-Major, will make up for it.

Peter

Surprise!

You are always a surprising guy, Mr. Pollard.

Fortunately for Fred this is the only window where this kind of hire can be made. You don't throw a rookie into a job when the program has momentum, but when it needs a full reboot.

The talking heads have it right- his staff will be the key. There is probably a semi-retired head coach out there who wouldn't mind being the brains of the staff for a few years, able to mentor a young buck with potential.

We're pulling for you, Fred. We're all in this together.

Peter

Wow

That isn't the rabbit I expected- way to surprise us, Greg!

I have to agree with Keeler on this one. Mac just didn't fit at ISU. I hope he's awesome at Creighton.

And the search begins.

Peter

Hat, Meet Rabbit

When you look at the data in this fine Clone Chronicles post, Mac has to pull one heck of a rabbit out of his hat to be coach in September 2011.

The fail rate of DI coaches has to be north of 75%, and we're about to add to that.

Peter

New Guy

Maybe the new guy in Iowa City will be a big winner. Maybe not. Lots of hot Mid-Major coaches are now TV analysts or hawking sneakers, too.

Like recruiting, hiring coaches is a total crapshoot. 2/3 don't work out.

Peter

Cash

CU has no cash to fire Hawkins, but enough to can the WBB coach.

Then again, the buyouts are different by a factor of 20, but the income difference is a factor of 50.

Gotta look like you are trying.

Peter

Opportunity

Bring on Goliath.

Peter

Hustle trumps Talent

I guess having 3 McDonald's All-Americans isn't enough to beat Northern Iowa. I'm sure KU will just go out and find a couple more.

They have a funny habit of either making the Final Four or flaming out early. There's a sportswriter metaphor about having a tank full of racing fuel and instability, but I'm not going to work too hard for it.

I shed no tears for KU. Better fire Self, clearly he's in over his head.

Good thing they have football to fall back on.

Peter

Goblas

Keeler nails SUI hoops.

Too bad we're on the cusp of needing our own Johnny Orr. Again.

Peter

Brackets

Since I have a soft spot for basketball Schools that don't play Big Time Football, here are my Final Four teams:

Butler
Temple
Villanova
Kansas (wah-wah-wahhhhhh)

It's been a few years since I've been able to make that joke.

Peter

"Hello, My Name Is"

Good thing Greg and Co. buys name tags by the gross.

Can you play right away? Call now- operators are standing by.

Peter

Money=Success

Money helps in hoops, too:

NYT: Big East Winners Spend More Than Losers

Some of those numbers aren't far from lots of DI football budgets.

I must be old, because I remember when DePaul and St. Johns were basketball powers.

Peter

Big News

ISU finished last 7 of the last 8 years in the B12 All-Sports rankings. This year we're fifth, so its all good, apparently.

While I think Jamie has done a good job on the whole, does data like that get brought up at his annual review? What should our expectation be? I guess when you have the smallest budget last place isn't surprising.

Anyone who doesn't think the rest of the league would dump us in a second should consider that little factoid.

BTW- We're also keeping our basketball coach.

Peter

Anti-Choke

A heck of a win for a team that had given up on its lame duck, in-over-his-head coach.

Peter

Sorry Fellas

That was a choke.

Rather symbolic of the season as a whole, unfortunately.

Peter

Snakebit

Shoot 45%? Check
Crush your opponent on the boards? Check.
Make some threes? Check.

Look at the ISU half of the box score and one would think they won. Wrong.

Of course CU would be outplayed in every possible way, but shoot an impossible percentage to eek out a home win.

Figures.

Peter