Comments on: Michigan Going D1 In Lacrosse Has Bigger Implications

By: dude

dude — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 18:20:00 +0000

There isn’t. If Michigan goes D1, and therefore has an NCAA program, they cannot have an MCLA team. If they still want a club team they would have to join the NCLL. The MCLA is for school that DO NOT have a varsity program. Varsity meaning that it is school backed, supported, and funded. (So any NCAA level, NAIA, junior college, etc) The NCLL is for club teams for schools that do have varsity programs or can’t join the MCLA for field, financial, etc. issues. That’s why if you look at the list of NCLL club teams, most of them are in the east coast b/c those teams already have a D1,D2, D3 team. Most of the MCLA teams are in the Midwest, South, or West part of the country. Simply where lacrosse is not picked up as a varsity sport.

YOU PEOPLE NEED TO EXPAND YOUR MIND AND THINK FOR A BIT!!!!!

By: Adam Edg

Adam Edg — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 15:16:00 +0000

More pseudo confirmations about Michigan going D1:
“Two programs likely to be in the mix for ECAC expansion are Michigan and High Point, and officials within both programs have confirmed that they’ve expressed interest to the league. The NCAA confirmed Wednesday that first-year programs are eligible to join conferences and participate in postseason play.”
http://insidelacrosse.com/news/2011/04/27/ecac-expansion-likely-horizon-could-include-michigan-high-point#comment-513481
Just formally announce it already!

By: LaxFan13

LaxFan13 — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 18:45:00 +0000

SO will Michigan still compete in the MCLA tournamnet? I don’t see why they should. I was always under the impression that they had to play a certain number of D1 teams before they made the official move.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 17:46:00 +0000

1) I would not want Cottle to run my program. I know he’s done a LOT in the sport, but I’d stick with JP over Cottle. Byrne is another story I think… but I still like JP to get 2 seasons there.

2) see Swank’s answer.

3) Yes. OSU isn’t struggling for any reason other than the school has not committed to the team enough. Michigan will be a different story, I believe. If a school like UMich makes the sport a priority, they can succeed quickly (with the right coach). If Michigan CAN do this is another question, but right now, I like their chances and starting point.

By: Swank Lax

Swank Lax — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 17:38:00 +0000

To answer #2:

Quality academics like the Ivy League? Or the ACC schools? What about the Patriot League schools?

There are plenty of strong academic programs at the DI level already and adding some more will have no bearing on the NESCAC

By: Some Michigan Reactions from Around the Web | Great Lax State

Some Michigan Reactions from Around the Web | Great Lax State — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 15:14:07 +0000

[...] Connor Wilson thinks the Michigan move could put pressure on other BCS Football schools to form varsity lacrosse programs: Assuming Michigan can bring the heat relatively quickly (within 5 years make a Final Four, [...]

By: Tim

Tim — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 14:56:00 +0000

This isn’t the first place I’ve seen it, but… why is there such a movement to allow Michigan to maintain an MCLA team? It seems a ton of people support this, and I haven’t been able to figure out why. Is it just because you like the concept of a Michigan team in the MCLA? Or is there some angle I’m not seeing here?

(btw, that paragraph sounds really accusatory, but I don’t intend for that to be the case. I’m just honestly asking).

By: Adam Edg

Adam Edg — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 13:41:00 +0000

“Having them add teams would be big, but nowhere near as big as is schools like USC, Oregon, and Florida State.”
USC is at least looking into it. I’m fairly certain that they will be the NEXT BCS school to announce after Michigan.
http://dailytrojan.com/2010/10/18/usc-to-add-d-i-lacrosse/
USC President C.L. Max Nikias: “..in the next three to five years I think we are going to be in a position to also introduce a men’s lacrosse team.”

By: Adam Edg

Adam Edg — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 13:38:00 +0000

I like the TCU suggestion. Being a private school, they would have a somewhat easier time. Nike’s recent heavy support of TCU athletics would certainly help too.
I had not considered TCU before, but the Frogs make a lot of sense since they have been working hard to raise their national profile. Being a member of the Big East is just icing on the cake. I still think Texas has a strong shot because that school prints money, just like Michigan, and has its own network coming. Regardless, whichever Texas program jumps first will have a lot of weight on their shoulders as the flag bearer for the state. But I would say that a second Texas program wouldn’t be far behind.

By: chrismeade

chrismeade — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 01:13:00 +0000

A few questions…

1) Does Michigan take Cottle over keeping Paul? Or would you rather have Gerry Byrne as the head coach?

2) Is the addition of Division 1 programs with quality academics the end of the NESCAC? or does it primarily hurt schools like Stevenson, Cortland and Salisbury?

3) Can Michigan really push for a final four in 5 years? OSU isn’t close. ND has taken 30 years. (I know Michigan has a foundation that ND didn’t have)

By: T. Dalglish

T. Dalglish — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 00:47:00 +0000

This is a great article and I agree with everything. This is just the first step of a big movement. I am confident that you will see more teams moving from the MCLA to NCAA D1 in the next 10 years; the amount of teams I think may depend on the success of Michigan in its first couple of years. Luckily like it was mentioned, Michigan has the coaching and the facilities already. They also have a solid base of players. Maybe not as big and as fast as the top D1 teams, but they know and love the sport, and will work hard to prove a point. Recruiting can just build upon that in the next couple of years. I do not think it will take them as long to reach a high level of success as it did for Notre Dame.

It would be great if we started seeing the west coast teams start making the switch, but at this point any new D1 teams would be great. ACC is a powerhouse conference, but with just 4 teams, the ACC tournament is not quite as exciting. It would be nice to see FSU and/or BC to make the switch to grow the conference. I am not sure what BC is working with, but FSU does have the facilities for lacrosse already.

Overall, completely agree, Michigan making the switch to D1 is great for the sport on all levels. I hope to see other MCLA teams make the jump soon. I feel that Oregon, CSU, CU, ASU, BC, FSU, and BYU are not far from making the jump.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Sun, 24 Apr 2011 18:40:00 +0000

I remember reading on the collegelax forums a while back that Michigan is one of the few NCAA D1 schools that are Title IX compliant.

By: Jay Card Believes in Unlikelihoods - 412 Lax

Jay Card Believes in Unlikelihoods - 412 Lax — Sun, 24 Apr 2011 18:15:11 +0000

[...] Connor Wilson tackles the Michigan scenario [...]

By: Jogn37

Jogn37 — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 23:12:00 +0000

congrats! hope they dont end up as the same type of program mercer is..

By: David Cooney

David Cooney — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 18:45:00 +0000

Haha trust me, I know that football is king. As a matter of fact, I am going up their in a couple of weeks! Haha. Actually I think that it was just 2007, 2008, and 2009 that you were referring to when football was not up to par. Check back at the previous seasons if you would like!