Horizon League Expansion / Conference realignment
Jan 27, 2017 9:55:14 GMT -6
phoenixphan87 likes this
Post by phearthephoenix on Jan 27, 2017 9:55:14 GMT -6
I know Robert Morris has been mentioned before for Horizon League expansion so I just thought I would post this here. They're building a new $50 million events center for their basketball and volleyball teams including a brand new 4,000+ seat arena and practice facility.
RMU believes new arena is next step in ambitious, but patient, plan to become mid-major power
RMU believes new arena is next step in ambitious, but patient, plan to become mid-major power
When Robert Morris University announced a contract extension for head men’s basketball coach Mike Rice in April 2010, president Gregory Dell’Omo also made public his vision for the university’s national profile. He saw Robert Morris eventually following the path of the likes of Gonzaga, Xavier, Butler and other small private schools that used basketball to increase the institution’s national profile.
While Rice left for Rutgers a month later and Dell’Omo is now the president at Rider University, Robert Morris’ goals are still the same. University officials insist Robert Morris can be a mid-major force and that the newly announced $50 million UPMC Events Center will be a significant part of the equation.
“Basketball is not the end-all of this,” Robert Morris athletic director Dr. Craig Coleman said. “But if basketball is a way to get people to look your way and know you’re there and look a little further – especially in this day and age where they just have to make a couple clicks – why not? That’s still what we’re chasing. This is a huge, huge step.”
New Robert Morris president Dr. Chris Howard, recently appointed to the College Football Playoff Committee, shares his predecessor’s vision and referenced some of the same model schools.
“We’re going to set our own path and define excellence in our own way,” Howard said. “But there are some names out there – the Xaviers, Gonzagas, Wichita States, Butlers – and why can’t we be mentioned in that same breath?”
Robert Morris officials are hopeful the new facility will bolster the athletic department’s foundation, as it would ideally improve scheduling and recruiting. That, in turn with sustained success, would improve attendance and bolster the school’s profile.
“This will have a direct impact on the type of athletes we can recruit here – and not just on basketball and volleyball,” Coleman said. “It’s a physical landmark that stakes the commitment you’re making to athletics.”
Men’s basketball coach Andy Toole is optimistic that not only will his scheduling be easier – Robert Morris has played just six of its last 26 non-conference games at the Sewall Center, though it also played two games at PPG Paints Arena this season - but that it might be easier to retain players. Robert Morris’ slide since its 2015 NCAA Tournament appearance can be partially attributed to the loss of Lincoln Park graduate Elijah Minnie (Eastern Michigan) and guards Marcquise Reed and Rodney Pryor. Reed, the 2015 NEC Rookie of the Year, is now a sophomore at Clemson while Pryor leads Georgetown in scoring as a graduate transfer.
“Maybe some guys will feel comfortable staying, saying this is as good of a facility you’re going to find across mid-major basketball and a lot better than some majors have,” Toole said. “Maybe there will be no reason for them to look elsewhere.”
With a new arena secured and with an administration full of ambition, the next natural question is whether the Northeast Conference is the proper fit for Robert Morris
“We’re happy in the NEC. The NEC is a good fit for us. We compete well there,” Coleman said. “We’re not scouring, looking around for a place to go. In the long-term future, who can tell? I can’t even tell what the NCAA is going to look like in the future, let alone the conference.”
While the university’s ambitions may seem at odds with the NEC’s small stature, any move outside of the conference would likely consist of multiple logistical challenges. The hockey programs have homes in the Atlantic Hockey Conference and College Hockey Amera, but the rest of RMU’s sports would need appropriate fits. That includes football, which has few options available. While leagues like the MAAC and Horizon League seem like theoretical fits for most, if not all, of Robert Morris’ sports, neither sponsors football.
When Monmouth (N.J.) left the NEC for the MAAC in 2013, it tried to retain status as an associate member of the NEC in football. The NEC rejected the application and Monmouth is now a geographical oddity in the Big South. With travel already a concern thanks to Robert Morris’ status as the westernmost member of the NEC, any conference change is likely to take time and be considered very carefully.
Robert Morris’ patience is at the core of its growth process. The administration is ambitious, but rational. It took 991 days for plans for a new arena to go from an idea to a public announcement. And the coaches know that no matter how ambitious the administration may be, the foremost ingredient to growth is success.
“We’ve got to get back to competing for a championship every year. That’s first and foremost,” Toole said. “Then we’ll see where it can go from there. Our goals have remained the same: Try to (win) NEC championships, try to get to the NCAA Tournament and try to push this program higher and higher.”
While Rice left for Rutgers a month later and Dell’Omo is now the president at Rider University, Robert Morris’ goals are still the same. University officials insist Robert Morris can be a mid-major force and that the newly announced $50 million UPMC Events Center will be a significant part of the equation.
“Basketball is not the end-all of this,” Robert Morris athletic director Dr. Craig Coleman said. “But if basketball is a way to get people to look your way and know you’re there and look a little further – especially in this day and age where they just have to make a couple clicks – why not? That’s still what we’re chasing. This is a huge, huge step.”
New Robert Morris president Dr. Chris Howard, recently appointed to the College Football Playoff Committee, shares his predecessor’s vision and referenced some of the same model schools.
“We’re going to set our own path and define excellence in our own way,” Howard said. “But there are some names out there – the Xaviers, Gonzagas, Wichita States, Butlers – and why can’t we be mentioned in that same breath?”
Robert Morris officials are hopeful the new facility will bolster the athletic department’s foundation, as it would ideally improve scheduling and recruiting. That, in turn with sustained success, would improve attendance and bolster the school’s profile.
“This will have a direct impact on the type of athletes we can recruit here – and not just on basketball and volleyball,” Coleman said. “It’s a physical landmark that stakes the commitment you’re making to athletics.”
Men’s basketball coach Andy Toole is optimistic that not only will his scheduling be easier – Robert Morris has played just six of its last 26 non-conference games at the Sewall Center, though it also played two games at PPG Paints Arena this season - but that it might be easier to retain players. Robert Morris’ slide since its 2015 NCAA Tournament appearance can be partially attributed to the loss of Lincoln Park graduate Elijah Minnie (Eastern Michigan) and guards Marcquise Reed and Rodney Pryor. Reed, the 2015 NEC Rookie of the Year, is now a sophomore at Clemson while Pryor leads Georgetown in scoring as a graduate transfer.
“Maybe some guys will feel comfortable staying, saying this is as good of a facility you’re going to find across mid-major basketball and a lot better than some majors have,” Toole said. “Maybe there will be no reason for them to look elsewhere.”
With a new arena secured and with an administration full of ambition, the next natural question is whether the Northeast Conference is the proper fit for Robert Morris
“We’re happy in the NEC. The NEC is a good fit for us. We compete well there,” Coleman said. “We’re not scouring, looking around for a place to go. In the long-term future, who can tell? I can’t even tell what the NCAA is going to look like in the future, let alone the conference.”
While the university’s ambitions may seem at odds with the NEC’s small stature, any move outside of the conference would likely consist of multiple logistical challenges. The hockey programs have homes in the Atlantic Hockey Conference and College Hockey Amera, but the rest of RMU’s sports would need appropriate fits. That includes football, which has few options available. While leagues like the MAAC and Horizon League seem like theoretical fits for most, if not all, of Robert Morris’ sports, neither sponsors football.
When Monmouth (N.J.) left the NEC for the MAAC in 2013, it tried to retain status as an associate member of the NEC in football. The NEC rejected the application and Monmouth is now a geographical oddity in the Big South. With travel already a concern thanks to Robert Morris’ status as the westernmost member of the NEC, any conference change is likely to take time and be considered very carefully.
Robert Morris’ patience is at the core of its growth process. The administration is ambitious, but rational. It took 991 days for plans for a new arena to go from an idea to a public announcement. And the coaches know that no matter how ambitious the administration may be, the foremost ingredient to growth is success.
“We’ve got to get back to competing for a championship every year. That’s first and foremost,” Toole said. “Then we’ll see where it can go from there. Our goals have remained the same: Try to (win) NEC championships, try to get to the NCAA Tournament and try to push this program higher and higher.”