Many people were shocked when Loyola got the nod to join the Missouri Valley Conference. After all, the Ramblers have had only one 20-win season in their flagship sport over the past 27 seasons.
But the invitation to join one of the most venerable and respected conferences in college sports came after several years of groundwork and investment, which just happened to be timed correctly to enable Loyola to take a significant step up in competition.
A long-overdue $100 million upgrade in athletic facilities was completed in 2011, just as a new athletic director assumed control of Loyola sports. Several non-revenue sports increased their coaching staffs in number and quality, thus upgrading the scouting, recruiting, training, teaching, and in-game coaching abilities.
As a result, Loyola vaulted from a lower-level Horizon League sports team to challenge for the all-sports trophy leadership—despite not competing in baseball, tennis, and swimming. In 2013, Loyola reached the title game in women’s basketball and men’s soccer; the Ramblers won conference championships in men’s and women’s cross country, men’s and women’s indoor track and field, and a share of the softball regular season championship. After seven attempts to win the MIVA conference title in Men’s Volleyball, Loyola broke through in 2013 to make the Final Four.
The 2012-13 men’s basketball team registered an eight-game improvement in wins over 2011-12, even while losing seven games by three points or fewer. The Ramblers lose four experienced but oft-injured players for 2013-14, and return many players who impressed as freshmen and sophomores, including dynamic small forward Christian Thomas, who may well be a player built for the MVC style of game.
With the loss of Creighton and rebuilding programs at Illinois State, Drake, and Southern Illinois, the Ramblers figure to challenge for a spot in the low-middle of their new conference. A sixth-place finish or better would put Loyola in line to participate in the heat of one of the greatest conference championship events in all of college basketball, Arch Madness, in which the Missouri Valley Conference just about takes over St. Louis in a superbly-orchestrated frenzy of college hoops.
The opportunity has been presented for Loyola and its fans to meet this new challenge. Now the fans have to get out to the Gentile Arena and make some noise on the road to show we belong at this higher level.
