Monday, December 11, 2006

The "what if" game: Davidson/Winthrop

OK, on the heels of seeing Winthrop ranked so high in the Mid-Major Top 25, I present this issue for open discussion in the comments section.

With the success that both Winthrop and Davidson have had in the past number of years at the mid-major level and the proximity of the two schools, it would seem that Winthrop and Davidson would have begun a series, or at least played a "showdown" type of game. However, to my recollection, this has not happened.

What if we played Winthrop every year in a rivalry type game? Would this benefit either school? Would it be a good rivalry between two strong mid-major programs? Would it make sense for the two schools to schedule each other, or should both schools continue to try to schedule bigger schools for the benefit of their RPIs? Would it not make sense becuase the losing team would ultimately be hurt by taking a loss to a mid-major, rather than a high-major team? Has the possibility of this game been investigated by either school's AD? Do both schools simply have bigger fish to fry?

Discuss.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

In a lot of ways, Winthrop would make a better rival than Charlotte. Similar school, small town, great coach, mid-major success. It would make for a great "bracket busters" matchup.

Stan said...

Until each school gets the national reputation that Gonzaga has, it looks like a lose/lose to me. You have to play a really, really good team and you get no credit if you win.

Plus, it doesn't help in recruiting. I don't think many kids in Chicago, Dallas or Denver are going to be impressed that they can come to DC to play Winthrop. They'd be more impressed that they can play a Penn St, Missouri or Az St.