Mavinnovation

An innovative idea produced and implemented by members of the MSU Department of Athletics during the course of the 2009-10 basketball season has been adopted by the NCAA.  A story regarding MSU's Don't Cross the Line tape appears in the latest issue of NCAA Champion magazine and is available online here.

It's great to be a Maverick.

Happy Birthday to "The Voice"

Casey Lloyd (left), pictured here with NSIC commissioner and former MSU men's basketball coach Butch Raymond, has been calling MSU basketball and football since 1971. 

Minnesota State Athletic Communications would like to wish a very happy birthday to young Casey Lloyd today (7/21).  Despite the fact that we haven't found the rock tablet that has his birth certificate on, Facebook has confirmed that today is Casey's birthday.

Be sure to drop him a note (yes, he's on Facebook) or shoot him an email (ac503@earthlink.net) to pass along your greetings.

Piling On

Not unlike the mutation of an amoeba, the reshaping of Division II conferences continue as schools ponder league affiliation.  The latest news has the University of Central Oklahoma and Northeastern State (Okla.) potentially moving to the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA).

The departure of UCO and Northeastern would leave the Lone Star with 11 schools. 

And, along these lines, word has it the Lindenwood and Nebraska-Kearney are also potential new members of the MIAA, which would give that league 16 teams.  Lindenwood, a member of the NAIA, will become a full-fledged NCAA Division II institution in 2013-14.  UNK is currently a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletics Conference (RMAC).

It's great to be a Maverick.

Not just the big schools

Sure, sure, we can talk about realignment amongst the Big Ten, the Pac 10, the Big 12, the Mountain West et al.  And while we've posted extensively about possible expansion in the Northern Sun here on MavBlog, other NCAA Division II conferences are making moves as well.

Nine DII schools in Arkansas and Oklahoma, who currently are members of the Lone Star Conference and the Gulf South Conference, have applied to the NCAA to form a new to-be-named league. 

Arkansas-Monticello, Arkansas Tech, East Central University, Harding, Henderson State, Ouachita Baptist, Southeastern Oklahoma State, Southern Arkansas and Southwestern Oklahoma State are the schools involved and in order to meet a deadline so that the league can become reality by next year (2011-12), it must submit a strategic plan, conference constitution and conference bylaws to the NCAA by Dec. 1.

In the event the plan does come to fruition (a likely possibility), the Lone Star would still have 11 teams, but the departure of the six Arkansas schools from the Gulf South would leave that league with seven teams (Alabama-Huntsville, Delta State, North Alabama, Valdosta, West Georgia and West Alabama). We all know what happened when the North Central Conference went to six teams after losing North Dakota, North Dakota State, South Dakota, South Dakota State, Northern Colorado and Morningside and we've heard some concern from the Gulf South about the league's future viability.

Here's the statement from the GSC website about this recent development.  Lone Star commissioner Stan Wagnon comments about the new league appear here.

By the way, just 48 days until Minnesota State hosts Northern Michigan in a nonconference match-up on the newly-planted grass at Blakeslee Stadium on Sept. 2.

It's great to be a Maverick!

It was Frank Zappa who said "Without deviation from the norm, progress is not possible"

Black Hills State and South Dakota School of Mines have both been awarded membership in NCAA Division II.  Both schools, who are both members of the Dakota Athletic Conference (DAC) and the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), will remain in the NAIA and the Dakota Athletic Conference for the 2010-11 season, followed by a year of candidacy and then a year of probation before gaining official NCAA Division II status.

Here are the releases from the BHSU site and the SDSMT site.  Other stories regarding this development appear in the Rapid City Journal, the Sioux Falls Argus Leader and KELO TV.

Jackman Signs With Flames

Former Minnesota State men's hockey forward Tim Jackman has signed a free agent contract with the Calgary Flames.

Jackman, who played for the Mavericks for two seasons (2000-01 and 2001-02), holds the distinction of being the first MSU player to play in the National Hockey League.

Drafted in the second round (38th overall) by Columbus in 2001, Jackman made his NHL debut Dec. 20, 2003 with the Blue Jackets in a game played in St. Paul, Minn., vs. the Minnesota Wild.  Since that time he has seen action with Phoenix, Los Angeles and the New York Islanders.  Jackman's career numbers are available here.

It's great to be a Maverick.