VanDelaySports.com > MAC Basketball > Western Kentucky (WKU) would be a great fit for the MAC

Western Kentucky would be a great fit for the MAC

A commentary on adding WKU to the MAC

In the past few years, talks of MAC expansion and conference-hopping have been quite popular on the Internet. After changes in the ACC & Big East a few years ago, Marshall and UCF made a parallel move to join the better geographic fit of Conference USA. Temple was accepted shortly thereafter as a football-only member to join the Mid-American Conference. While rumors on MAC and Sun Belt boards had Western Kentucky with interest in joining Division I-A (now ridiculously called the Football Bowl Subdivision) and joining the MAC as a full member, nothing eventually came of the rumors. As a result, WKU agreed to terms to join the Sun Belt, the conference they already played in for basketball, and will kick off the 2009 college football season as a full member of the Sun Belt Conference and eligible for postseason play.

After watching the Hilltoppers take down #5 seed Drake in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday, I could not help but wonder why the heck WKU is not in the MAC. To start with, the MAC has 13 football members; a 14th would help even out the schedules. For those that do not know, WKU has one of the winningest histories in all of college basketball. In 2003, they decided to expand and improve their football stadium in an effort to move to what is now the Football Bowl Subdivision. Geographically, they are located in Kentucky, just a few short hours south of Cincinnati. Put it all together and it makes sense, but does it make too much sense? Let's take a deeper look at these points.

Currently with 13 teams in football, the MAC features a unbalanced schedule for the MAC East teams which causes all kinds of headaches. Last season's MAC East Champion, the Miami RedHawks, were 6-6 heading into the MAC Football Championship game after a 4-2 record against MAC East opponents. In the past, the MAC's divisional champs were determined by an eight-game conference slate, a much better way to determine a champion. The addition of a 14th team, assuming Temple is planning to stay for a while, would even things out and eliminate the crazy, unbalanced schedule that MAC football teams are forced to play today.

If you want to talk about a commitment to facilities and a program, take a look at Western Kentucky's basketball tradition. The Hilltoppers have had four straight 20+ win seasons, 38 seasons with 20+ wins in the school's history, 19 NCAA Tournament appearances, 13 NIT appearances, 39 conference titles and I am sure any die-hard WKU fan would be happy to add to this impressive list. In 2003, WKU announced a $38 million improvement and expansion project for their football stadium, L.T. Smith Stadium, as part of their effort to join Division I's Football Bowl Subdivision.

From the basketball scheduling side of things, a 13-team league is not much different than a 12-team league. While UCF was a football-only member, Marshall competed in the MAC as the conference's 13th team. Logistically, the MAC would have to add an additional game to the MAC Tournament on Wednesday (assuming Temple will not leave the Atlantic 10), but the only other major change is that only the top three get byes as opposed to the top four getting byes in the 12-team league today.

Geographically, WKU would be the MAC's southern-most member should they join, but being just a few hours south of Cincinnati, the trip to Bowling Green, Kentucky, would not be bad in comparison to Northern Illinois traveling to Buffalo or Central Michigan traveling to Ohio. We're not talking about adding Central Florida (UCF) here - a team in Kentucky makes geographical sense.

In the end, there's an awful lot that makes sense with bringing WKU to the MAC, and I hope we have not missed our chance. Unfortunately, the MAC lacks enough programs as committed to athletic excellence as Western Kentucky is. Their basketball history exactly what we need in the MAC and their recent success can only be rivaled by Kent State if you compare current MAC teams to WKU. Teams like WKU makes their opponents better, and given the Mid-American Conference's recent lack of success getting multiple teams in the NCAA Tournament or even winning once we get there, a program like WKU could breathe new life into MAC basketball. Add in the other factors, including an improved commitment to football at a higher level, and I firmly believe that Western Kentucky would be a great fit for the MAC.

By Luke Jernigan
VanDelay Sports