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Column: The time is now for the Redhawks to soar out of the OVC
Tuesday, September 28, 2021
Southeast Missouri State University football players and coaches hoist the Ohio Valley Conference championship plaque after winning the league title against Murray State during the 2019 season at Houck Stadium.
Southeast Missourian file
As it turns out, about a lot of things in life, your parents were correct when they advised us all as youth that we are known by the company that we keep.
That is applicable in social circles, education, business, and politics. And it is true in intercollegiate athletics, as well.
In the case of Southeast Missouri State and its membership in the Ohio Valley Conference, the Redhawks need to take note of what a parent would say about its current environment and look for a new circle to run in – like, yesterday.
The OVC is apparently crumbling at a rate topped only by Houck Stadium.
In football, the league lost its most dominant program in Jacksonville State last summer, as well as Eastern Kentucky, both to the Atlantic Sun Conference.
Earlier this month, it was Austin Peay’s turn to bail for the ASUN, which coupled with Jacksonville State, makes the last seven OVC football champions (SEMO tied Austin Peay in 2019) now no longer part of the conference.
"We have received notification from Austin Peay that they will be leaving the OVC effective June 30, 2022,” OVC commissioner Beth DeBauche said in a recent release. “We appreciate their many contributions to the conference over the years and are committed to providing their student-athletes with an exemplary Championships experience this year.
“We are clearly in a time of change for intercollegiate athletics, and the Ohio Valley Conference embraces this moment, committed to the institutions and student-athletes whom we serve and confident in our future.”
That makes one of her.
Recently published reports regarding other schools leaving, or contemplating leaving, came to fruition on Tuesday, as Belmont University announced that it was leaving the league and joining the Missouri Valley Conference.
"Joining the Missouri Valley Conference represents a natural step forward for our already high-achieving and well-respected programs," Belmont President Dr. L. Gregory Jones said in a release. "Given the collective accomplishments of the conference and the prominence of its member institutions, we believe this is a great move for Belmont and sets us up for even greater success in the future."
The OVC ship is in peril and SEMO should not want to go down with it.
Belmont's departure eliminates the best men’s basketball program (Belmont has won 20+ games in 11 consecutive seasons and qualified for five NCAA Tournaments during that span), as well as take a prominent brand out of the only major market (Nashville) the league has a stake in.
Belmont’s women’s basketball program has also been dominant, qualifying for five NCAA Tournaments since 2016.
And the athletic storm clouds aren’t dissipating.
Murray State, which SEMO claims as a key rival, recently gave a non-committal commitment regarding its future.
“Murray State University remains actively engaged in a thoughtful and thorough vetting process as it relates to conference realignment,” Racers athletic director Kevin Saal said. “Murray State is a nationally recognized brand and promising discussions about the future of Racer Athletics are ongoing.”
If your spouse gave you that pledge, it might make sense to go get some blankets and head down to the sofa in the basement.
To be fair, Saal did continue by saying “whether within or outside the Ohio Valley Conference, Murray State University is considering all options in order to position our athletics program in a thriving environment and offer a first-class student-athlete and fan experience.”
It's a dubious stretch to think the OVC is “thriving” at this juncture.
Extra Points mentioned that the OVC is contemplating adding Western Illinois, and on Monday, the University of Southern Indiana announced that it is “exploring” a move to the NCAA Division I level. That type of university and athletic program would fit the profile of the OVC, and the Screaming Eagles would bring a competitive men’s basketball program on day one. Ask the ASUN teams how Bellarmine fared in its initial season last winter if you don’t believe so.
In adding the Leathernecks – particularly in wake of losing the aforementioned programs – the OVC would be adding a football-playing member, but bringing in WIU is truly a sign of just adding bodies at that point. A road trip to Macomb, Illinois is not going to excite any athlete or coach.
The Redhawk leadership is inundated with situations to resolve at this point, some of its own doing. When it kicked the Houck Stadium can down the road for decades, SEMO has only itself to blame that it now has to come up with truckloads of concrete AND cash overnight.
The fact that the OVC is in shambles only adds to those tasks. However, SEMO can’t afford to put this dilemma off for another day. If it does, much like the stadium dilemma, it will find itself in a very unenviable position as being the best of a very mediocre group.
And no Redhawk fan (or prospective athlete) should want to run in that circle.
Tom Davis is the regional sports editor for Semoball.com.