Local talent is staying home

I think there is always an urge for kids who have an opportunity to break free from their parents. Some kids want to go achieve on their own, some just want to get some independence. When it comes to college choices, there are those who want to get a new start and, I don't know, go to Purdue, away from any of their other high school classmates or family But this completely random example is not the norm, I am told. 

While there is an urge to spread wings, most don't want to go too far. A weekend drive home, closeness to friends, comfort with a region, things like that drive that desire. Who knows where that has put the regions athletes throughout the last 50 or so years. Sure, you could go play for the Gophers, otherwise your options were in lower levels or further from home. 

Minnesota for the longest time, had only the University as an option for D-1 athletes. The next closest D-1 school to the Metro was Wisconsin, who rose to prominence about as Minnesota faded. This was certainly aided by help from athletes from the Twin Cities, some of whom may not have really wanted to stray from home.

The Dakotas were even more remote and it's top athletes had to travel even farther. There were no D-1 Schools until the "States" made the football leap. Now there are 4 D-1 Dakota schools. All of the football teams are above average for FCS standards, thanks to being able to attract the best athletes in a broad region without much D-1 competition. Most are pretty decent on the court as well.

Now that the best players from the Dakotas (save for the stray player that ends up at Alabama) or outstate Minnesota have more local destinations if they don't want to leave the region, but also want to play at the top level of their sport. It almost seems like lately, Minnesota has been too obvious a choice, with St. Thomas on the rise, along with neighbors to the west. 

Granted, the Gophers compete in the Big Ten, and it's tough to attract talent at a national level to compete with national level programs, but at a regional level, local talent can compete in mid-major conferences. Obviously the North and South Dakota State success stories are evident on the football field. On the basketball court, the Dakotas and St. Thomas occupied 4 of the top 5 spots in the standings in the Summit League. This is generally an apt description for the Summit League standings.

There aren't other major conference options in Minnesota outside of the Gophers, and they aren't yet a national draw for talent, and a lot of the top tier talent leaks out to other programs. The mid-level talent is now already staying at home, just not with the Gophers, who are likely overlooking those athletes with more ambitious recruiting goals. In the last couple of decades, though, regionally relevant players have been given more D-1 options, and are taking those opportunities.