An Example of Comedy Gold

First, I am not a proponent of UND trying to join the Big Ten Conference in Hockey. I see it thrown around from time-to-time as mere speculation. I am of the mindset that it's a pipe dream of some and just not interesting to me. Not one bit.

Outside of UND playing Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Michigan two-to-four times a year, the thought of being a member of the B1G bores me. I wouldn't want to see UND playing MSU or OSU on a regular basis. The games this past year against MSU were at best boring. Sure UND won, but I would rather see UND play someone else.

What I find even more entertaining is watching Gopher fans lecture UND fans on why adding UND to the B1G is really no benefit to the league. Because, they league only cares about football and basketball. Yeah, because UMN is really good in football and basketball, right? Well, maybe basketball. Here's an entertaining example of this mind set.

Sure, North Dakota hockey would improve the BTHC....but that's where the benefit for the conference AS A WHOLE ends. Keep in mind, hockey is (and always will be...) an afterthought for the Big 10. The primary revenue drivers are football and basketball. Hockey is viewed as something mildly interesting that fills the hours of Big 10 network programming that can't otherwise be filled with football, men's basketball, women's basketball, talking about football and basketball, playing reruns of classic football and basketball games, and, recently lacrosse.

North Dakota has NO tradition of success in football or basketball that it can point to as beneficial for the Big 10. Additionally, it doesn't bring a measurable TV market; and, let's be honest here, isn't the "ND" people think of when they are thinking about schools that have a truly national following.