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. 

St. Thomas is here

Obviously, St. Thomas has always been here, but specifically I mean that St. Thomas has a Division One college institution. They've started playing their first games as an FCS football team, and even had their first hockey games against in-state rivals St. Cloud State. Of course. St. Cloud isn't really a rival, because St. Thomas in all other sports is a D-1 institution, and St. Cloud is only D-2 (and significantly better at hockey).

Pardon my giggling, but I've always thought that the state of Minnesota needed another D-1 institution. It was strange that Hawai'i, Wyoming and Vermont were the only other three states with but one D-1 school, especially given Minnesota's size, both population and physical. The real lift for me, personally is in college basketball, and I am enthusiastically looking forward to the Tommies taking the court and joining the Summit League. Sure, it will be 6 years until they are post season eligible, but heck, they still might be the next Minnesota team to reach the Big Dance.

The Tommies' basketball schedule is out, and I intend to catch at least a couple of games, if I can. I was curious to see if they would have any Major conference foes in their first year as a D-1 establishment, and the answer is no, they will not. They have three mid-Majors on the calendar though. Fordham out of the A-10 comes as their third game and provides the team with a trip to New York City in year one. The only local school to play the Tommies in a non-con game is Drake, who play in the Missouri Valley. 

The Tommies do play in an invitational, headed to Youngstown State along with Niagara and Southern Illinois (also from the Mssouri Valley) in November. This will be part of a very long road trip to start the season, with stops in Chicago, New York and Seattle before coming home to play Crown College. Not a D-1 school, but their first home game as a D-1 institution. 

Their first game at all in D-1 is at Chicago State, which as been one of the worst teams in college basketball since they moved up. It's a real opportunity for the Tommies to start with a win. They aren't playing many top tier teams, but the travel will be grueling early on, which may be enough to put them behind the 8-ball before the conference schedule gets underway.

They have one D-1 non conference opponent (Montana State) before they start Summit League play, and a few sub-D-1 opponents. Conference play will be interesting. The Summit League is home to all 4 teams from the Dakotas, including North Dakota State and South Dakota State, the strongest of the bunch. Also, Oral Roberts, Cinderella of the 2021 tournament, will come to St. Paul in February. 

The Tommies might be pretty bad this year and for a few more to come, but in 6 years, they very well could be running the Summit League, ready to make the Big Dance. Enjoy the growing pains and every small win this year. It's fun. Small schools are fun.