Breaking News - UST Ousted From MIAC

I may have been a bit late catching this news this evening with all the different things I had going on but was absolutely floored nonetheless when I saw the story that UST will "involuntarily" leave the MIAC but will continue to compete in the conference through the spring of 2021.  In a four-sentence statement, the news was released earlier today and the MIAC President's Council stated that athletic competitive parity as the overriding decision for the move.

Oftentimes, when I'm really upset or emotional about something, I try and give myself time to cool down just a bit; to absorb all the facts and think about them objectively.  This time, however, I'm not going to do that.  I'm going to lay it all out on the line - right here and right now.

THIS IS AN ABSOLUTE HORSESHIT MOVE BY THE CONFERENCE AND MEMBER PRESIDENTS.  Do you have ANY idea of what you've just done?  You have effectively ended ANY chance of the once-mighty MIAC continuing to be one of the top conferences in Division III in the nation that it has been - thanks largely in part to UST.  You have effectively rewarded and have sent a clear message that mediocrity is acceptable; in fact, even desirable.  And the conference will now lose all the prestige it once had with a UST carrying the flag.  And who's going to replace that for you?  GAC?  Bethel?  Concordia?  CSB/SJU?  Forgive me if I'm not holding my breath here.

And here's the other thing.  These other schools that were supposedly suffering the most from UST's "dominance" - St. Olaf, Macalester, Carleton and perhaps Augsburg - aren't going to see their position improve dramatically from all this either.  If they think that, now without UST in the conference that they're suddenly going to be in position to compete for a conference title, uh, well, if you believe that, then I've got some oceanfront property in Arizona to sell you.  Their position is not going to improve one iota from this.  I honestly can't believe that supposedly highly-educated "professionals" in positions of power within not only the conference but the other member schools themselves did not sit down and seriously think out the long-term ramifications that an ouster of UST would have on the conference.

Don't get me wrong here......I know that the big emphasis was football and when UST absolutely destroyed St. Olaf down in Northfield 97-0 a few short years ago, hey, even I knew that was wrong.  And I'm sure it rubbed a lot of people in the MIAC and other member schools the wrong way.  But really now.....If it was a matter of UST doing something unethical or committing major violations of NCAA rules and policy, then I wouldn't have any problem with the conference taking the action that it did today.  However, this wasn't the case here.  What's worse is that this action - no matter how you slice it or dice it or cut it - seems to punish the student-athletes at UST more than anything.  This is one of the things - along with the acceptance and embracing of mediocrity by other member schools - that I find so incredibly wrong with all of this.

I suppose I could warble on about this sad, sordid affair but I do have to get my beauty rest tonight for yet another day of work at Canadian Pacific Railway tomorrow.  I do, however, want to touch on what this could mean for the future - for UST, the MIAC and other conferences.  First, for UST, they have a decision to make:  Do they stay at the DIII level and try to get into another conference; presumably the WIAC?  Do they make the jump to DII and join the NSIC?  Or do they even consider an even more radical move of eventually going to D1?  Without delving into all of the movable parts here, I think the best, long-term decision for UST (and the one that would most likely make the most financial sense anyway), would be to stay at the DIII level and join the WIAC where I don't they would be a terrible fit.  True, their travel costs would go up but they would go up even more if they were to go to DII and join the NSIC.  Plus they would still be in a good position to compete for conference titles and NCAA Tournaments by staying at the DIII level.  No such guarantees would be there for them at the DII level; much less D1.

The bigger question I take from this mess that the MIAC and its member presidents created earlier today is that I think this bone-headed move effectively is the key that opens the door to future conference realignment.  So, if you're Commissioner Dan McKane right now, you have to be thinking in terms of who you could get to replace (perhaps fill the vacant spot that you created is a better way to phrase it here) UST?  Obviously there are some options here.  The one school that would be the most obvious and best fit for the MIAC would be Northwestern.  But there's other schools as well that should at the very least be in the discussion.  Bethany Lutheran in Mankato, Martin Luther in New Ulm and St. Scholastica up in Duluth would have to be included in the conversation.  For that matter, I suppose one could throw in UW-Superior as well.  As you've likely read in my blog before, I've advocated more than once about having schools like Northwestern and St. Scholastica become a part of the conference that would allow the MIAC to split into two divisions - North and South.  But keep in mind as well that this idea that I floated INCLUDED a strong and healthy UST and the MIAC and the conference presidents effectively pissed away that possibility earlier today.

But here's another angle that hasn't been explored either - and may have to be now.  What if the MIAC's position down the road becomes so precarious (not an outlandish proposition without a strong and healthy UST to fly the flag) that it forces some schools to ponder the possibility of bolting a floundering MIAC for greener pastures elsewhere?  I mean, it's not all that outlandish to ponder the idea of, say, Carleton, St. Olaf and Macalester bolting for the Midwest Conference with the likes of Grinnell.  By the same token, it's certainly plausible to consider the idea of SMU deciding to hop across the River to become a part of the WIAC and they'd be an excellent fit for that conference.  Then again, it could mean the beginning of the end for the UMAC as schools such as Northwestern and St. Scholastica (and perhaps others) now see a clear path to get into the MIAC.  I just don't think you can discount the possibilities here.

But one thing is for certain here.  This was perhaps the worst move the MIAC and its members could make and they made that decision today.  And I suspect that the shitteth hath only begun to hitteth the fan.