Post by Big D on Mar 22, 2014 20:01:18 GMT -5
Now that it is the off season, I think it is time for the HL to focus on the future of the conference and come up with a priority list of things that need to happen if we are to ever make the next step as a conference.
1. HL expansion:
The number one priority of the HL has got to be conference expansion. The HL finished it's first new look season with Oakland replacing Loyola. The HL really needs to make the next move and add 1-3 quality teams to solidify this conference. It will ease scheduling, help travel costs by bringing back travel partners, and hopefully keep current conference members from looking to make a move of their own. We have a huge thread already dedicated to HL expansion so I won't go into more detail here but LeCrone needs to get moving on this or we need to look for new leadership for the HL.
2. Gain more exposure for the conference:
LeCrone has basically accepted whatever ESPN has offered us over the years being glad to get any games on TV he can. I know we are not in a position to get paid for our TV rights like the BCS conferences get, but we should be able to negotiate a better TV deal. We should have our entire conference tournament live on one of the ESPN networks. We should continue to get our HL game of the week on ESPN2 or ESPNU. We should also be able to get one of our home OOC games a year per school on an ESPN network. That one extra game a year per team will gain exposure for us and also help with scheduling. The really nice thing this year is that ESPN now has competition. Fox started their all sports network: Foxsports1. That means ESPN isn't the only game in town and we don't have to just take what they offer us anymore. We can negotiate with the competition and try to get the best deal possible. If anyone paid attention during championship week, Foxsports1 doesn't have contracts with many conferences yet. While ESPN was broadcasting game for every mid-major conference, Foxsports1 had on motor cross racing. I think they would be willing to give us more airtime to get their foot in the door with another conference.
3. Scheduling guidelines:
I have been advocating a scheduling guideline for the HL for years. The A-10 and MVC have guidelines for scheduling that you have to have a certain SOS average for the prior 3 seasons in order to get your share of their conference's NCAA tournament money and TV contract money. I would take it a step further and reward the schools that are doing it right in the HL and punish the teams that are not helping the conference. The 2 things the HL has to offer it's members right now is NCAA tournament money and TV games on ESPN that are part of our contract with ESPN. Currently, each HL team is guaranteed 1 game a year on an ESPN network as part of that contract.
I think the HL should enforce a simple scheduling guideline where all HL schools play a full D1 schedule and have an average SOS of 175 or lower. That is roughly the top 1/2 of college basketball, so it shouldn't be that hard to obtain. If you achieve that you should get your basic share of our NCAA money and be allowed to play a game on ESPN as part of our contract. I think the teams that are not achieving that should forfeit their NCAA money and not get their TV game on ESPN. I think we should use that extra money and TV games as a reward for teams that exceed expectations. The teams that are scheduling right and winning should get to split the money forfeited by the underachieving teams and get the extra TV games they also forfeited.
Let's face it, we lost our identity as a conference when we lost Butler. We need to sell our conference to the basketball world at large. We shouldn't be wasting potential exposure on major networks on teams that aren't trying to elevate their game. I would much rather put our best teams on TV and try to build our brand that way.
4. Now that we have established scheduling guidelines the conference needs to help teams schedule games:
There are many ways the HL can help with individual member's scheduling.
--I already mentioned above we need to finish out HL expansion. More conference teams means we don't have to schedule as many OOC games.
--I already mentioned we need to get OOC games on TV as part of our next TV contract with ESPN or Foxsports. It will make scheduling much easier if we can tell a potential opponent that their game against us will be televised.
--Start a conference challenge vs a similar ranked conference: Many major conferences have yearly challenge game. The ACC/Big 10 challenge is the most popular. The HL should push to start a challenge weekend with another mid-major conference and get it sponsored by Fox-sports or ESPN.
--We should also encourage conference members to work together in scheduling. If we go to 10 or 12 teams in the HL, we will have travel partners again. We should encourage those travel partners to try to schedule at least one common opponent a year. For example, a team might not be willing to travel to Detroit to just play Oakland. It might not be worth it in their travel budget. If Oakland and Detroit worked together, they might be able to convince that team to travel to Detroit to play both teams over a 3 day period. It would be cheaper for that team and also make their scheduling easier arranging for 2 games at once. They would also get 2 return games the following years.