So, with the 4th of July typically being viewed as the proverbial midpoint of the summer season, I thought it might be a good time to look at a couple of interesting developments that have taken place so far this summer.
First, you may have seen early this week that Macalester has now filled the vacant spot left by Katie Kollar's resignation. Athletic Director Donnie Brooks announced on Monday this week that AD Donovan has been hired as the new Head Coach for the Macalester Women's Basketball program. Donovan comes to Macalester after three seasons at DII Alaska-Fairbanks where she compiled a rather dismal 14-64 record. But, as we all know, it's a little unfair to project or speculate on the circumstances that led to her ouster at Alaska-Fairbanks. Now, Donovan gets a fresh start in the lower 48 in the MIAC but as she settles into this new position, she'll undoubtedly find what a difficult endeavor it will be to recruit top athletes to an institution with such rigorous academic standards as Macalester. And with the MIAC as tough and competitive as it is already, that will not make Donovan's job any easier. But the Macalester faithful have to be a bit patient here and give Donovan a chance to implement her system and bring in the kinds of players she wants to have in her program. It should be interesting to watch.
But I think the more striking development took place a month ago when Luther made the unexpected announcement that it was bolting the American Rivers Conference (ARC) to join the Midwest Conference (MWC) beginning in the 2026-27 academic year. I have to confess here that this one caught me totally off-guard; was just so unexpected. Consider: Luther was a charter member of the former Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference dating back to late 1922 during the Harding Administration and despite all the changes that have taken place since then, Luther was one of the "old-guard" institutions in today's ARC along with Buena Vista, Central and Simpson. So, when this announcement was made, my knee-jerk response was, "What's in it for Luther to make this switch - and why now?" Per the Luther website, it was noted that "an important factor in the decision to join the MWC was Luther's membership in the academic consortium of like-minded liberal arts colleges, the Associated Colleges of the Midwest (ACM)."
I don't know.......Just color me - whatever - here. Again, you're talking about a charter member - one of the original old-guard institutions - of the IIAC here, just walking away from an affiliation it's been a part of since the Harding Administration, to join an upstart MWC - of its own volition no less after the offer was extended from the MWC. It's really difficult for me to see what the long-term advantages/benefits are in the offing for Luther to do this. First, if you're Luther, why would you walk away from a conference you've been in that long for - to join a relatively far-flung upstart conference that's still arguably trying to make a name for itself on the athletic front? Second, why would you possibly want to throw away your long-standing rivalry with Wartburg that has history and tradition for schools in the MWC that you have no real connection or history with whatsoever? There's just a lot about this that I do not like whatsoever and I'm having a very difficult time putting my arms around this one.
But now here's where things get interesting with the dirty deed now being done. With Luther's departure after the 2025-26 academic year, the ARC will be reduced from a nine-team conference to an eight-team conference. From a pure scheduling standpoint, that may actually make things easier on everyone with an even number of teams. No problem there. However, that in and of itself isn't necessarily etched in stone for the long-term either because here's the thing: While things may be fine in an eight-team setup, what if one of the remaining member schools decides to see if the grass may be greener on the other side of the fence, so to speak? In the ever-changing world of college athletics, you just never know. I'm not suggesting that anybody in the ARC is doing that. I'm just saying that, as a conference, the ARC has to do its due diligence here. And if the ARC is indeed looking to fill the void left by Luther, where do you look to? I think these are hard questions that need to be asked here because, at some point, this is something that could have a domino-like effect here in MIAC country.
Well, enough of my ramblings. Hope to see you all over at the Midtown YWCA Women's College Summer League. And a happy and safe Fourth of July to everyone!
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