Steady Hand in the Sea of Change

MVC Commissioner Jeff Jackson

(St. Louis, MO) – The sea of change in college athletics involves conference realignment and court settlements. Jeff Jackson maintains a steady hand. While programs move from one conference to another, the Missouri Valley Conference Commissioner believes the Valley is well positioned during turbulent times.

Five MVC men’s basketball programs are led by new head coaches and Missouri State is spending its final season in the Valley. Jackson sees the glass very full. Six Valley programs won at least 19 games, with Indiana State’s 32-win, NIT title game appearance season as the highlight.

During this ‘portal pandemic’ era MVC teams have maintained a high level of success. Nine of the twelve conference teams enjoyed in-game attendance increases and Jackson says the league is about to announce an extension of its broadcast agreement with ESPN.

But there are storm clouds. Twelve of the league’s top sixteen players left through the portal. Two of those five coaching changes were departures of opportunity rather than ineffectiveness. The NCAA settlement could still prove problematic and conference realignment doesn’t seem to be settling down any time soon.

Missouri State’s Departure

Jackson says Missouri State’s decision to leave the Valley for football reasons was not a surprise. That move does open the door for other questions. Will the league look for a new twelfth team? How does the league stay strong in the midst of the sea of change?

The fifth year commissioner says he’s excited about the upcoming season. Jackson notes, the key to continue to build a strong and thriving conference is to be focused on the student-athlete experience.

 

Jackson says eleven isn’t a negative number, but expansion is always possible. The successes that followed adding Belmont, Murray State and Illinois Chicago also show the league has an ability to grow in a healthy way. Jackson admits that few people know what college athletics will look like once the NCAA’s court cases are finally settled.

 

Jackson says the final landing place for college sports will still be ‘reverse engineered’.

 

Steady Hand – ESPN Partnership

Television revenue and media rights are in each sports related website. While the Valley’s TV revenue isn’t anything like that of the ‘money conferences’, its partnerships with national, regional and local outlets is enormous.

Jackson says the league is about to announce an extension of a partnership with ESPN. During a time when broadcast hours are being gobbled up by the ‘power four’ conferences, this is a pivotal partnership for the Valley.

Broadcasts of Valley content on ESPN’s various platforms has been a huge selling point for the league both financially and perception-wise. Regional broadcasts are made in conjunction with the ESPN partnership and Valley fans and potential recruits are able to see every MVC league contest.

While every Valley team will participate in some multi-team event, Jackson says it is key that several league members will participate in ESPN-sponsored events.

 

What’s Next?

We are waiting for full schedules to be released and more MTE information to be announced.  Conference teams have filled their rosters with players that look ‘Division 1’ ready. Five new head coaches have had to revamp rosters and coaching staffs. Those teams seem to have landed a significant amount of talent.

The official announcement related to ESPN and then regional affiliates will be the next significant news.

We’ll be evaluating roster and lineup development in the upcoming days.

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