ESPN: Muskies looking for consistency

[tacitus]

I would also add St. Joseph's through 2004. Rhode Island went to the Elite 8 ten years ago... UMass to the Final Four 12 years ago.

Since you are so focused on the present, what about this year? That's as present as it gets. There is no doubting that the A10 is not middle of the road this year.

Also, isn't it a coincidence which of those teams are coming to life this year: those with traditions. All teams have bad stretches. Has Kentucky ever been mid major? They've had their share of down stretches.

Fine, the last ten years of the A10 have been somewhat lopsided, fortunately, in our favor. But if there is no competition in our conference, why have we not been conference champs every year? Why is it still a big deal to get that trophy? Why have we not gone undefeated? etc.

I agree that we are at the top of the A10, since we entered the conference (with the exception of a couple years.) But the top half of the conference deserves more credit than it gets. Especially this season.

I also understand why there has been debate about this the last ten years. Many of the teams in the A10 have had down years and Xavier has stolen the show. Not to mention that a few schools just aren't willing to invest in Basketball what we have. I can live with you not calling them majors. But the conference has always been competitive, and it seems that several teams are making a move toward their past stature. Lets hope that is a trend.

[LA Muskie]

I think we're going to have to agree to disagree on this one tacitus. For the last several years, many folks on this board have been clamoring to get the hell out of the A-10. And I think for pretty good reason. The teams may change, but premiere conferences should always have at least 4, preferably 5 Top 50 teams year-in and year-out. I don't have the stats in front of me, but I would guess that the A-10 hasn't been that way in quite a while. This year notwithstanding (and the season's not over yet).

I don't like the mid-major moniker at all. But history shows that the BCS conferences, for whatever reason, don't just get into the tourney. Their top teams advance and win. The same just can't be said, on a generalized basis, for the A-10, CUSA, WAC, MVC or the WCC.

Maybe a better way to put it is this: If the Big East, Big 10, ACC, or SEC came calling, would we jump at the opportunity? I certainly hope so, even if it meant we wouldn't dominate our conference anymore.

[tacitus]

Point taken.

For the record, I do agree in a general way, that the A10 has been down the last ten years. But several of its teams are not mid major from a historical standpoint, and (I am hoping that) they are coming back to life. Also a number of the teams have been known to run with the best of them during good recent years. The A10 has gone through several face lifts in the last two decades. I honestly have very little knowledge on the A10 before attending Xavier (after we had already been there for a couple years). All I know is that the likes of Temple, Umass and Rhode Island were known basketball schools while I was growing up. They have also been in the A10 for quite some time, whether I knew that then or not. The A10 has picked up schools along the way for various athletics and non-athletics reasons. One of those reasons must have been to make basketball more competitive. Unfortunately, for example, when Charlotte and St. Louis joined, the were that great of additions, in spite of "being on the rise" or whatever. Xavier, however, has proven to have been the best addition to-date. Dayton was a decent one too, whenever that was... I think also in the 90s.... We have actually been fortunate to have joined when we did. As a result of timing, we are the premier team in the A10 at the moment... hands down. Now that we have national recognition (in addition to sports writers and coaches) and quality recruiting networks, not to mention being on the Forbes list... lets hope those other teams return to prominence. All the teams I have referred to have quality D-1 talent every year, due to their names, they just haven't been getting it done. But with young coaches in the league and recent media attention with Xavier and St. Joes a few years back and with this very good season in terms of RPI... I am just anxious for the slump, which started a few years after we joined... and around 10 years ago, comes to an end. This way there isn't even a poll on ESPN as to whether they should come to the XU-Dayton game. Essentially, I'm sorry for the subjectivity I brought to this discussion... subjectivity rooted in wishful thinking.

[LA Muskie]

No apology necessary, tacitus! My hope would be to be in a more prominent conference, but that's for largely selfish motives. Frankly we may be better off as the big fish in a relatively large pond (maybe a Great Lake?) than in the oceans that are the BCS conferences. I just don't know.

At any rate, you are right that the A-10 was once on very prominent basketball conference, with UMass and Temple in particular very well known, national programs. With the economics the way they are in college athletics, I'm not sure the A-10 can ever get all the way back, but this year is very heartening.

When Xavier moved from the MCC (now the Horizon league), it was a major step up for all of Xavier's sports. In Men's Basketball, it's been tough watching conferences like the CUSA (for a while), the MVC, and the WAC surpass (or at least challenge) the A-10. They weren't really close to the A-10 14 years ago.

This year the A-10 appears to be on the rise, and at least some of the programs seem primed to maintain their heightened stature with good recruiting, good young coaches, and dedicated administrations. The Charlotte and SLU additions ultimately will be significant -- both schools are dedicated to their programs. It's just unfortunate that they didn't make the splash that we all expected, given their immediate-past performances.