Illinois State(football) signs a home and home with Ball State

[AKBison]

5 yr moratorium on switching divisions/sub-divisions starts this year. So if Ill St leaves the Valley in 2012 they'd be without a conference until 2014. And that's assuming the NCAA acts on moving up at that time. (no guarantees there either). I think you'd better look at your crystal ball again, yours' appears to be a bit cloudy.

I thought the moratorium began in 2008 and ends in 2012?

[Hammersmith]

I thought the moratorium began in 2008 and ends in 2012?

Unless they enacted a new moritorium while I wasn't looking, it was for four years and it expires in 2011. It's running from Aug 2007 to Aug 2011. The 2011-12 season is the first anyone can move.

[Hammersmith]

Sounds like there is more to the story here. It is no secret that ISU has wanted to go FBS for quite some time. The fans on their board are convinced that the reason Ball State is coming to Hancock is that ISU will be a transitional member of DI at the time and will join the Mac as a football only member in 2014 to even out the divisions. I am not sure what the reaction would be out of Mo-State and SIU but it wouldn't be hard to guess as both have FBS dreams. Anyways, looks like Illinois State is leaving the Valley in Football in 2012. Someone put Lakes on suicide watch, because USD and UND are about to get a major break...a la WKU.

I'm not totally convinced that this indicates ISU is going FBS. I think we are just seeing an unlikely set of circumstances. There aren't many places in the country where you've got a weak FBS school with poor attendance numbers and a shaky financial situation that is a very short distance from a medium-strong FCS school. Considering the short bus trip and the lack of need for hotel rooms, Ball State will likely come out ahead on this deal compared to most other FBS scheduling choices they could have made. I wouldn't be surprised if we see a few more of these happen, but no more than a half dozen total. The set of circumstances are too rare for more than that.

If ISU does go FBS, I hope the core of the MVFC strongly considers moving up as a group like we wanted with the old NCC. If ISU, MSU, SIU, UNI, NDSU & SDSU were all to commit, it might work. We'd need two more schools to get to the required eight, but I bet they could be found. I'd love for the two to be Indiana State and Wichita State, but I don't know if ISU(blue) can finish its turn-around in time and if WSU can afford to add football in the current economy.

[BisBison]

I thought the moratorium began in 2008 and ends in 2012?

you may be right. In that case 5 years would go from '08 to '12 so they may be able to move up oin 2013 in that scenario. I think the sue made their move just a month or two b-4 the moratorium was imposed.