Oakland to leave Summit League for Horizon

[darell1976]

http://pressrowsnotsafe.wordpress.com/2013/04/28/punched-in-signing-off-on-oakland-to-horizon-ufc-159-westbrook-and-more/


PantherU.com‘s Jimmy Lemke is reporting that multiple sources have confirmed that Oakland University will indeed be leaving the Summit League for the Horizon League, and a move is expected to be announced in the coming weeks.

Summit: The obvious loser in this scenario. Coupled with North and South Dakota State, Oakland has been a staple of the forerunners within the league. Travel distance aside, the Summit might have looked the better conference for the long run had Oral Roberts not left the stable for closer pastures, if not greener in the Southland Conference. Adding Denver, which figures to be a strong program next year, was a good move but didn’t tighten the footprint of the league. Will the bleeding stop at Oakland, though? If the Horizon is still looking for other strong programs to add, my first recommendations would be the aforementioned NDSU and SDSU. For a conference that has been taking steps in the right direction in spite of the departed, that would be a death knoll for respectability, if nothing else.

Would the HL take the SU's? Could SDSU leave USD in the SL? Also what other options is there for the Dakota 3? Big Sky? WAC? I guess time will tell, but if Oakland is gone as of now then next season the SL may not be an AQ in baseball.

[Twentysix]

http://pressrowsnotsafe.wordpress.com/2013/04/28/punched-in-signing-off-on-oakland-to-horizon-ufc-159-westbrook-and-more/



Would the HL take the SU's? Could SDSU leave USD in the SL? Also what other options is there for the Dakota 3? Big Sky? WAC? I guess time will tell, but if Oakland is gone as of now then next season the SL may not be an AQ in baseball.

Who knows.

[frozennorth]

usd (or denver) starts baseball. Problem solved.

[MplsBison]

Here is the new Horizon League:

Oakland – Detroit Mercy
Cleveland St – Youngstown St
Wright St – Northern Kentucky
IUPUI – IPFW
Valpo – Chicago
Green Bay – Milwaukee

Pretty tight set of travel partners and a pretty tight geographical footprint for the conference. No chance in a May's blizzardy hell that Dakota schools would get an invite to that conference.


Summit will have to invite Chicago St in an emergency just to cling to life as an AQ conf to the men's bball tournament.

[MplsBison]

usd (or denver) starts baseball. Problem solved.

Yep and adding Chicago St would get them back to six if the Indiana schools leave as well (NDSU, SDSU, USD, UNO, WIU, Chicago St).

Softball might be screwed though as neither Denver nor Chicago St have that sport. Denver has such a weird athletic dept, I don't expect that they'll add baseball or softball. It'd be up to Chicago St to add that sport and be the sixth there.

Women's soccer and volleyball would be ok. Men's soccer I don't really care about, but they'd be one short as well - and that's assuming Oral Roberts and Eastern Illinois would stay on as affiliates. Denver has it but Chicago St does not.

Rest of the sports qualify to the NCAA's as individuals.

[darell1976]

usd (or denver) starts baseball. Problem solved.

Chip in money into their athletic department for them to start those sports and the problem will be solved.

[OhioHen]

Here is the new Horizon League:

Oakland – Detroit Mercy
Cleveland St – Youngstown St
Wright St – Northern Kentucky
IUPUI – IPFW
Valpo – Chicago
Green Bay – Milwaukee

Pretty tight set of travel partners and a pretty tight geographical footprint for the conference. No chance in a May's blizzardy hell that Dakota schools would get an invite to that conference.


Summit will have to invite Chicago St in an emergency just to cling to life as an AQ conf to the men's bball tournament.

With the addition of Oakland, Northern Kentucky would seem to be a natural addition to pair with Wright State for travel. However, the Wisconsin schools vetoed the addition of NKU when the Norse made the transition to Division I this year (thus NKU in the Atlantic Sun). Haven't seen any speculation about IUPUI or IPFW to the Horizon in recent times.

[Gil Dobie]

Here is the new Horizon League:

Oakland – Detroit Mercy
Cleveland St – Youngstown St
Wright St – Northern Kentucky
IUPUI – IPFW
Valpo – Chicago
Green Bay – Milwaukee

Pretty tight set of travel partners and a pretty tight geographical footprint for the conference. No chance in a May's blizzardy hell that Dakota schools would get an invite to that conference.


Summit will have to invite Chicago St in an emergency just to cling to life as an AQ conf to the men's bball tournament.

3-7 inches of snow predicted for Minneapolis today, hope that is not an omen of things to come.

[MplsBison]

With the addition of Oakland, Northern Kentucky would seem to be a natural addition to pair with Wright State for travel. However, the Wisconsin schools vetoed the addition of NKU when the Norse made the transition to Division I this year (thus NKU in the Atlantic Sun). Haven't seen any speculation about IUPUI or IPFW to the Horizon in recent times.

Don't get me wrong, I pulled it out of my butt. Just a guess.

But it gets them three decent sized markets that are right smack dab in their footprint: Cincy, Indy and Fort Wayne. And yes NKU would be a great partner for Wright. I guess the IU-PU schools could be optional.


Just saying if those three leave the Summit, they'll be up a you know what creek and have to add Chicago St as an emergency.

[clenz]

Yep and adding Chicago St would get them back to six if the Indiana schools leave as well (NDSU, SDSU, USD, UNO, WIU, Chicago St).

Softball might be screwed though as neither Denver nor Chicago St have that sport. Denver has such a weird athletic dept, I don't expect that they'll add baseball or softball. It'd be up to Chicago St to add that sport and be the sixth there.

Women's soccer and volleyball would be ok. Men's soccer I don't really care about, but they'd be one short as well - and that's assuming Oral Roberts and Eastern Illinois would stay on as affiliates. Denver has it but Chicago St does not.

Rest of the sports qualify to the NCAA's as individuals.Denver had no interest in adding sports for admission to the MVC (re: baseball, softball, mens/womens track/cross country.)

I'm not sure why they'd do it for the Summit.....

[UNDBIZ]

And it's official....

http://www.horizonleague.org/blog/oakland-university-to-join-horizon-league-in-july.html

[Thundar]

And it's official....

http://www.horizonleague.org/blog/oakland-university-to-join-horizon-league-in-july.html

No matter what I'm still glad I can drive to SDSU and USD and be home on Sunday or the same night. hope it holds together

[MplsBison]

No matter what I'm still glad I can drive to SDSU and USD and be home on Sunday or the same night. hope it holds together

I assume you're talking about football. The Summit has nothing to do with that.

[Twentysix]

I assume you're talking about football. The Summit has nothing to do with that.

In a summit league thread he/she is probably referring to basketball. Even the ORU away game we went to two years ago had 150-200 bison fans in attendance. People do travel for basketball, its just nothing like football.

[344Johnson]

In a summit league thread he/she is probably referring to basketball. Even the ORU away game we went to two years ago had 150-200 bison fans in attendance. People do travel for basketball, its just nothing like football.

People on the way to Frisco yeah?

[chargeradio]

Wasn't Chicago State one of the schools Denver didn't want to be associated with in the WAC?