Yo Mama's A Mid-Major...

Way back when, when I was 6 years old, I said a bad word. My mother made me stand in front of the bathroom mirror with a bar of soap in my mouth. The word that I said? Never mind that, but there's a word in the college basketball world that gets vilified nearly as much as what I said.

Mid-major.

It's pretty clear that people don't really understand what mid-major truly means. It has become a derogatory term, a supposed categorizer that houses the "have-nots" in a corner opposite the "haves."

EDUCATION ALERT

Mid-major is nothing more than a definition of a college basketball team's school/athletic department. That's it. And it CERTAINLY is not a negative term. There's nothing wrong with being a mid-major as much as there's nothing wrong with having brown hair.

A girl with brown hair is a brunette. But what exactly is a mid-major?

A mid-major is a school that plays NCAA Division I basketball that doesn't have revenue-generating college football. Period.

"I'm not sure you can call Butler a mid-major anymore."

Um, yeah. Butler is and always will be a mid-major. A private school of 4,400 in the 11th best (of 32) conference and an athletic budget in the neighborhood of $10 million. That is about as much of a mid-major as a mid-major can be. Mid-Majority's Kyle Whelliston covers this a lot. Go to this site, and the scroll down and see his RED LINE on the right hand side. That'll give you an idea.

Or you can click on this link right here and really have some fun.

STICKS AND STONES

Being a mid-major is not a bad thing. To the contrary, there are many pros to playing the mid-major game and there is some great basketball to be found. So, yes, Gonzaga. You are a mid-major. And unless you add D-I football and join the Pac 10, you always will be. So will you, Xavier. And of course, our beloved Butler Bulldogs.

And to be clear, it's not that there's anything wrong with that.

SHADES OF GRAY

True, it's not cut and dry where mid-major status starts and stops. In most cases, it's something you can "smell and taste." Clearly, the big 6 conferences (known in football as the BCS) are not mid-majors. In basketball, schools in those 6 conferences are known as HIGH MAJORS. (BCS is football, kids, high majors is basketball).

I think a rule of thumb is: If you don't have revenue-generating football, you are a mid-major school. Period.

Where the gray area lies is the Mountain West, Conference USA, WAC and Mid-American. I would consider the Mountain West HIGH MAJOR. The MWC schools have big-time football, place teams in the BCS (and touch the coveted BCS $$$) and draw 5 figures for basketball. Have you ever been to The Pit in Albuquerque?? The MWC is also littered with coaches who have touched Final Fours in their basketball lives (Steve Fisher, Steve Alford, Jim Boylen, Utah when they had Majerus). That, kids, is a high major.

I believe the WAC and C-USA are also high majors. Why? They can go and play football and make an $800,000 guarantee. Butler, Youngstown, Fordham and Valparaiso can't. All of those conferences have budgets in the 20-30 million range. C-USA has Memphis and other legit programs Tulsa, Houston and UAB. UAB came to Butler and Hinkle nearly sold out. Why? A "name" coach and a "name" school. A high major.

Where I draw the line is the MAC. Other than the fact that it's garbage, the key term you have to remember is REVENUE GENERATING football. The MAC is in dire straits financially. ESPN has them by the (...), forcing the MAC to pay million to play football on every night of the week. Yes, they can get the same $800,000 guarantee for football, and they have comparable budgets to the WAC and C-USA, but consider this:

The best a MAC school can do is win 12 games and go play in the Motor City Bowl or the GMAC Bowl. A WAC, MWC or C-USA team's ceiling is a bowl game on ABC. A Mountain West team has made the Final 4 (see Utah, UNLV) multiple times, as has C-USA teams (Memphis). A MAC school can go deep in the tourney as well, but it can't sustain success. And that's there own fault. They have chosen to aim for 9-3 in football and play in the International Bowl instead of trying to put 3 teams in the NCAA Tourney and getting 4-5 tournament units ($$$) every year.

MID-MAJOR RANKINGS

As a follower and on and off colleague of Butler basketball, I am a firm promoter of and believer in the system they have there in Indianapolis. It's the perfect program. Considering what they accomplish with mid-major resources, it's no wonder that they've sent 3 coaches to the big leagues and the current coach is as hot as anyone in the sport.

The system has spawned sustained success. Imitation is the purest form of accomplishment. All of the mid-majors (schools without D-I football and/or not playing in the top 6 conferences) strive to be like Butler. Any team can build a team and have a good season, but few can claim the consistency of Butler basketball.

With that said, here is how I would evaluate and rank the top 25 mid-major programs in the country. Please note that this isn't a top 10 ranking for this season. I'm talking about the overall program: the culture, success, tradition, recognition and clout within the world of college basketball.

1. Gonzaga - Tons of NBA guys, big time schedule every year and the clout to get to the Dance every year, regardless if it wins its conference.

2. Xavier - A couple of Elite 8 runs, 3 coaches in a row finding success in the big leagues, several notable NBA players, big time arena that is packed every night.

3. Butler - Consistent 25 wins a year, postseason success, tons of mystique located in one of the US's prime basketball cities. Tons of history in the olden days as well. And the Bulldogs are JUST NOW getting the clout needed to get home games on ESPN, schedule big time and get top 100 players signed. And that is scary for everyone else.

4. Dayton - Quietly wins 22 a season, rolls with Xavier, has a big time atmosphere and significant fanbase.

5. Creighton - Consistent success, big time arena that draws 5 figures every night. How many Butler fans would love a 4-game set with Creighton?

6. George Mason - A consistent winner, attracts solid talent despite being located among the wolves with Maryland, Virginia, Va Tech, GW and other schools who poach Baltimore talent every year. But let's face it: they made the Final 4. They did something everyone else on this list hasn't done.

7. Western Kentucky - Always the best team in the Sun Belt and has consistently made it to Round 2, great fanbase and atmosphere. Again, how sweet would it be for a 2-home, 2-away with Butler vs. Western Kentucky?

8. College of Charleston - Has had more exceptional seasons than Davidson, has Kresse and now Cremins, two big time coaches. You wouldn't know it, but C of C has won 22+ games 10 times in the last 15 years, with only one losing season.

9. Siena - Only 5 losing seasons since 1983, consistent upset pick in the Dance, plays a big-time schedule, consistently 1st or 2nd in the MAAC.

10. Kent State - Trip to Elite 8, consistent winner, strong list of coaches (Stan Heath, Gary Waters, Jim Christian). Disagree? Check this out.

Honorable Mention (no order): Virginia Commonwealth, Davidson, Weber State, Vermont, Niagara, Northern Iowa, St. Mary's, Illinois State, Bradley, Temple, St. Joseph's.

That's a pretty good list of teams. All mid-majors, and that is by definition (with slight shades of gray), not by a product of play and success. A mid-major label has nothing to do with how good you are, it's about how much money, clout and resources you have. And the mid-majors who consistently are that much more impressive.

And there's no reason to wash your mouth out with soap if you say so.

NEXT POST

We'll break down scheduling, Horizon League edition. Butler's schedule is sweet, likely the best in school history. I have devised a scoring system for mid-major scheduling, and you'll see who schedules like a high roller and which teams lay low.

GOOD FOR A LAUGH

I was murdered!! (Sorry, the coding wasn't working...)

Keep Cool My My Babies....

That headline is a lot funnier if it were spoken by this guy. He's one of the best around (although I miss him on Late Night).

The season is rapidly approaching (one week of practice in the books!). I'm way behind on where I wanted this blog to be. During the offseason, I found some downtime and, unfortunately, spent some time on the Butler basketball message board. It's hands down the best board in the Horizon League (compliment?) and it was valuable for me, because where I live, there is little coverage of Butler basketball. (Strangely, many people with decent college sports knowledge confuse Butler with this random school.)

Actually, I should lighten up. It's a group of knowledgeable and passionate fans, supporting a team that I have an interest in. But, enough with the bickering....

But the message board is also helpful (in addition to keeping a long-distance Dawg informed) in learning what the fans want to talk about. Interesting topics are broached out of the discussions. And that's why this blog was born. I'm here to help stir the discussion, mixing in straight science, some comedy all the while helping Butler fans understand what a fantastic program is on the Hinkle floor every night.

I wanted to cover more topics in the preseason, but 'twas not to be. We'll get to everything in due time, as things make sense. Here are some things I'll get to sooner rather than later:

• Scheduling (Why it's a bitch for Butler - but getting better)
• Breakdown of Horizon League teams' schedules (I have a science on how to evaluate schedules that I can't wait to share)
• TV (Where have we been, where are we now and why, where can we go from here?)
• Keep Your Sights Raised (Why BU will NEVER leave the Horizon, and why that is a good move)
• Horizon League teams breakdowns (What does Butler have to beat)
• Horizon League predictions (The caste system behind Butler)

Here are a few items we'll hit on in this space later rather than sooner:

• Attendance (It is actually really really good)
• XMG Syndrome (Butler isn't Xavier, Memphis or Gonzaga. And that's a good thing)
• Big Dance Revolution (Why the seeding made sense and why Butler will have a VERY good NCAA seed the next 2 years)

NEXT POST (Later this week, hopefully by Friday)

• The Mid-Major Label. What is it really and why doesn't anybody understand it?

GOOD FOR A LAUGH

The Curious Case of Butler Basketball

Sometimes, it can sound cheesy talking about Butler basketball. Teamwork, accountability, half-court defense, free throw shooting, taking care of the ball. Saturday day games with the sun shining through the windows. Undersized kids from Indiana going to the private school, making Academic All-America and draining 3s in their peach basketball that hangs in what was once the largest college basketball arena in the nation.

Add in the part where all of those things equal 25 wins a year I guess I can see how other teams in the Horizon League would hate Butler.

The fact of the matter is Butler basketball is a beautiful thing. Basketball in the purest form. True amateur student-athletes playing for their team, their school, their tight-knit program and campus community...and it works. You'd think more small schools with meager resources would figure this out as well. Alas.

Before I give you an idea on what this blog will be about, I want to cover some of the main reasons why Butler basketball is what it is, and what it isn't. That's the basis for all of this.

I. Team Above Self

It's amazing how the teamwork thing works when you really believe in it. Butler basketball players believe in putting the success of the team before individual accomplishments. Every programs SAYS that: in interviews, locker room speeches, posters on walls. But Butler players demonstrate that mentality every day. Gordon Hayward doesn't disappear in games, like many say. It's just that he doesn't force things if they're not their to "get his." True team player. Butler basketball.

II. Mental Toughness

Rarely will Butler be weaker mentally than the other team. There are so many games where the shots aren't falling, people are in foul trouble, or worse. Yet Butler is ALWAYS in a position to win at the end of each game. Never has Butler gotten down and folded in a game. Never. Just as a small example, let's look at the NCAA Tourney losses to Tennessee (2008) and LSU (2009). In each game, Butler took a haymaker, got tough, and battled back. With the game on the line, don't you always feel like Butler is going to win in the end? That's mental toughness.

III. Intelligence & Character

As qualities, intelligence and character are VERY different. One can have good character but no intelligence, or can be intelligent but have poor character. Butler basketball players (the ones who play on successful teams anyway) are intelligent, on and off the court. You have to be intelligent to play in a system like this. You have to be able to think and execute while you're tired. You have to be intelligent to defeat superior athletes on a regular basis.

The Butler basketball staff has made a priority of getting high-character kids who fit into a system. It's nice to never read about your team having to do this. Or the coach having to do this. Or reading about players in this light. Butler basketball has character.

IV. Family Culture

This is what Butler has that many of its peers do not. Former players in the gym, constantly, with the current players. Alums at the games. Unwavering support for life. Just look at former Butler coaches gone big time, Coach Matta and Coach Lickliter. Look at their benches. Former Butler players. Family. Butler's current staff, multiple former Butler players.

In Butler basketball, you will never see:

-- chest thumping for the cameras

-- players in the gym dressed like this

-- and nonsense like this

So, those are just some high points we'll hit on in this debut post. We'll get to more when things become obvious when Butler is rolling people this season.

THIS BLOG

As for this blog, it'll be a place where you can learn about basketball, Butler basketball in particular. In between, perhaps we'll have a laugh or two. No rules. Just fun...Butler basketball, good discussion, knowledge and so forth. I promise that I won't post anybody "staying on topic." This blog will be so good, it'll be tough to want to go off topic in the first place.

I apologize for not having more at this point in the fall, there is a lot to cover. In the upcoming weeks, we'll hit a lot of topics: scheduling, TV, the new preseason poll and how I voted, the Horizon League, some predictions and some breakdowns.

I'll have more tomorrow, perhaps a schedule for upcoming posts. Hopefully, I can keep up and not let anybody down. That wouldn't be the Butler Way.

GOOD FOR A LAUGH