Re: Arizona State Moving To D1
Take it FWIW, but I'm a donor to Michigan's program and I've heard through the grapevine recently that Arizona State is in fact going to be added to the B1G as an affiliate member for hockey. There were discussions on group trips for alumni/donors to AZ for games. The same scenario where Johns Hopkins was added as an affiliate member to create the B1G's sponsorship of lacrosse.
Also that another full-time B1G member school is seriously looking to add hockey now that they have a facility that's in the works.
If this true, then Nebraska is the most
obvious addition. I've said earlier in thread that the Big 10 should not and doesn't need to add affiliates in a "major" sport (a subjective term, for sure, where hockey is concerned in the NCAA) and the rationale for why I don't think they would, or, should. If they do it, I, for one, will very surprised. All the Huskers would need to do at Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln is buy the actual ice making equipment. The necessary plumbing is already in the building.
Further, the Breslow Ice Arena, currently under construction right next door to Pinnacle Bank Arena (which would clearly be the practice ice for any Husker program), is well over 50% complete. I have not been in Lincoln and seen it for about a month, now, but the roof was on the arena the last time I saw it.
Nebraska, which is already under water on its ratio of men's-to-women's athletic scholarships, is going to have to add women's scholarships, if they are indeed "the school". One would hope they'd add women's hockey, too, as this would make for one-for-one on the scholarship side of things.
However, another player would seem to have surfaced:
http://www.press-citizen.com/story/...coralville-arena-team-tours-midwest/32555413/
http://www.press-citizen.com/story/...ille-arena-tied-new-irl-development/31652023/
But this isn't breaking ground until June of 2016 and the anticipated completion date is spring of 2018--if it gets built. And that is provided that the Universityof Iowa has the finances available to add a men's hockey program and the women's scholarships they'd also have to add. Plus, the articles above describe this as a single sheet ice facility
and not being University owned. Where would a hypothetical University of Iowa team practice when this venue is being used for other things? To say nothing of the potential for the university to not be in control of all the revenue streams in this facility. What kind of lease could they get from the City of Coralville? Part of the problem for UNO at the CenturyLink Center was that the finances of just this sort of arrangement were financially untenable and, competitively untenable, for recruiting reasons. To give you an idea, in the 4 days leading up to UNO's Frozen Four appearance last season in Boston before they left town, they had to practice in 4 different facilities here in Omaha. A different one each and every day!
Nebraska is way ahead in this overall race. They have a giant, giant piece of the puzzle already in place. The facilities. A place to play
and a place to practice. Really, what other school, anywhere, that doesn't already have D-1 hockey, can say that? I reserve the right to be wrong about this but my guess would be that there are none.
