Ay-Ziggy-Zoomba.com

This was posted on the Daily Word from ESPN.com writer Andy Katz:

"The MAC meetings are going on in Chicago, and according to a coach in attendance, there was more talk about expanding the league to 14 teams with adding Temple (Atlantic 10 for all sports but football) and Western Kentucky (Sun Belt) as full members. Temple plays a MAC schedule in football and has added MAC nonconference games for basketball. This kind of decision would be made for football, but if they did ever join the league in hoops, it would make this league even tougher and potentially put it in position to earn multiple bids (which hasn't happened since 1999)."

If it happened, you'd probably have something that looked like this:

MAC East
Kent State
Miami
Ohio
Bowling Green
Temple
Buffalo
Akron

MAC West
Western Kentucky
Toledo
EMU
CMU
WMU
Ball State
NIU

Temple is a geographic stretch, but both Temple and WKU would be great programs to join the conference if they decide to expand. Not sure that's the thing to do, but if the are going to do it, I'd have no qualms about either team.

What IS a qualm anyhow??

Oh God. We might have to go to Bowling Green TWICE in a season?

ZiggyZoomba wrote:Temple is a geographic stretch, but both Temple and WKU would be great programs to join the conference if they decide to expand. Not sure that's the thing to do, but if the are going to do it, I'd have no qualms about either team.

What IS a qualm anyhow??

I don't think that word means what you think it means.

Rightupinthere wrote:

ZiggyZoomba wrote:Temple is a geographic stretch, but both Temple and WKU would be great programs to join the conference if they decide to expand. Not sure that's the thing to do, but if the are going to do it, I'd have no qualms about either team.

What IS a qualm anyhow??

I don't think that word means what you think it means.

qualm Audio Help /kwɑm, kwɔm/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[kwahm, kwawm] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation
–noun 1. an uneasy feeling or pang of conscience as to conduct; compunction: He has no qualms about lying.
2. a sudden feeling of apprehensive uneasiness; misgiving: a sudden qualm about the success of the venture.
3. a sudden sensation or onset of faintness or illness, esp. of nausea.

I don't think the addition of Western Kentucky is realistic. They have been in the Sun Belt for basketball for quite some time, and it's not like they have to leave that conference to play Bowl Subdivision football. Rather, I think the MAC would be better suited to continue the eastern trend, and add a team that has been a powerhouse in the Championship Subdivision in football that wants to move up, and also plays pretty good basketball. This would give Temple a natural rival in the league, and also another chance for Buffalo to go east instead of west. I know that's spread out, but I'd see it as an opportunity to spread the influence of the conference to new places.

The first school that comes to mind is UMass. If UConn can move into the Bowl Subdivision and have success, so could they. I guess the league would hypothetically look like this:

EAST
Akron
Buffalo
Kent State
Miami
Ohio
Temple
UMass

WEST
Ball State
Bowling Green
Central Michigan
Eastern Michigan
Northern Illinois
Toledo
Western Michigan

I don't really mind the idea of adding a team in terms of balancing out the league. But with that said, I also wouldn’t mind seeing one of the current teams go away (the newcomer) to balance the league out as well either. I was never excited to see Temple join in the first place, let alone, only for football. While I do think the Owls are and will do much better in the MAC than they did in the Big East, I thought 12 teams was a good fit before they entered the conference. I understand the logic for adding them due to the Philly market, adding non-conference basketball games, expanding the league, etc. I’m just still not excited about the move several years later.

My main concern is BG jumping divisions again. If a team is added and resides in the Eastern part of the league, you can bet BG will be shifted for the third time. I love being in the MAC East, and frankly, I have no desire to ever go back to the West. We were placed in the East from the start, then moved to the West, then moved back to the East. Just leave us alone already. Move Miami next time or something, Oxford is technically more “west” than Bowling Green anyway. I actually like the idea of adding a team such as UMass better than WKU myself too, but for the reason of moving to the other division alone, I hope if we do add a team that it is a team from the Western part of the league no matter who it really is. Let it be WKU, ISU, SIU, EIU, etc.

Rightupinthere wrote:I don't think that word means what you think it means.

I agree...BGSU better remain in the MAC East for a long, long time.

It's all about breaking out of the one-bid rut. First, we brought a guy in (Rick Boyages) almost exclusively to lobby the committee and that hasn't panned out. Now we're grapsing at straws and trying to expand a league that's too bloated if anything.

This smacks of Rick Chryst trying to make a splash in hopes of getting noticed by the BCS conferences the next time a commisioner vacancy pops up.

Falconfreak90 wrote:I agree...BGSU better remain in the MAC East for a long, long time.

I'm with you 100 percent 'Freak!!!

Rightupinthere wrote:

ZiggyZoomba wrote:Temple is a geographic stretch, but both Temple and WKU would be great programs to join the conference if they decide to expand. Not sure that's the thing to do, but if the are going to do it, I'd have no qualms about either team.

What IS a qualm anyhow??

I don't think that word means what you think it means.

Jerry McGuire...my ambassador of qualm

I think it was quan.

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=quan

cw08 wrote:I think it was quan.

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=quan

Actually, I believe it was quang. I've never really been able to nail down the exact word. Oops, scratch that. You already provided the definition. Didn't realize that before I posted. I was just getting ready to look it up, but I guess the point is probably moot now.

They can call 1A anything they like, and 1AA whatever they care too. But I'm not playing stupid name games with the matter.

WKU would be a nice addition for football, decent for basketball.

I say dump Temple at any cost. I don't think they have brought any value to the MAC at all, and it would be a total farce to pretend they fit with a full membership.

Temple should flush football.