This is a bummer for us, but it’s an even bigger disappointment because the likelihood of us having other Valley teams cancel on us in-conference seems inevitable. Hell, the NFL already moved 3 games back because of Covid testing. I have a bad feeling when everyone hits conference play and are playing two games a week, it’s gonna have a ripple effect through leagues. Teams will be canceling games left and right.
I’m hoping Watson is ready to start frantically making phone calls NOW to try and get us a Q1 or Q2 road or home games on short notice when we get cancelled on. First call should be to all of our new conference members in the A-10 if one of their members goes down the same week we lose out on a game to a Valley member. Watson should be calling the A-10 ADs NOW at Davidson, St. Louis, Saint Bonaventure, Dayton, VCU, Rhode Island and Richmond, and try to work out provisional agreements if things go south. It would help any of them AND help us if crap hits the fan, so I I hope we have agreements in place to schedule each other first before looking to other schools to play short-notice games. We should do the same with Northwestern too since they might be a bubble team and playing us might be the difference if they are in or out at the end of the year.
Bottom line is - we look like we may be on the cusp of an at-large bid with the trajectory we were on prior to this bad news. We can either sit and be sorry for ourselves, or be proactive in the next two weeks and start making phone calls so - if things hit the fan in conference play and we miss out on a Drake or Missouri State game - we can get an opportunity to boost our resume. This team is too talented not to invest in them and make calls to quality programs and tell them we will be ready and willing to play and should be first on their list to call if we both lose out on a game to Covid testing.
I suggest proactively calling the A-10 members and anyone within reasonable driving distance - Butler, northwestern, Indiana, Michigan, Purdue, Marquette, Illinois, Oakland, Toledo. Etc. Any Q1 or Q2 team.
Once we tipped our hand to the MVC last month, I became very worried about the conference officiating at Arch Madness. It does not help the Valley, long term, for us to take the 1 bid this year. We NEED an at-large if at all possible, and I hope our AD does anything and everything to try and make it possible, given the circumstances with these variant outbreaks.
I hope our players are well and will be ready to get back to work in January.
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