ESPN has done a lot of good in generating exposure in recent years for mid-major conferences like the Mid-American Conference.
During the fall, at least once a week a MAC football game could be found on one of the ESPNs. Even though most of the games are scheduled during the middle of the week, shown on the black hole that is ESPNU and used as just a three-hour commercial for the big game on the weekend, the effort is there.
When ESPN started its Bracket Buster weekend tradition with 18 teams five years ago, it probably thought it was doing a good service to the little guys in Division I college basketball, which it generally was. Now that the two-day extravaganza has grown to more than 100 teams from all parts of the country, ESPN has simply become a nuisance.
But wait, how could exposure at the national level hurt a program like Ohio?
Sure, getting some national exposure is never a bad thing, but the costs of trying to gain it can be far worse than the benefits.
After what will be arguably its toughest road test of the season at Akron, the Bobcats will have a couple days off before they travel 1,756 miles to Las Cruces, N.M., for their Bracket Buster matchup with New Mexico State.
Let's assume the Bobcats aren't driving because, according to Google Maps, the drive would take one day and two hours. That means the Bobcats will have to dip into their already depleted athletics' budget to fly the team out there and put them up in hotels for a couple days.
Next time, instead of hanging president Roderick McDavis out to dry at a town meeting, let's have someone from ESPN come and try to explain why this is a good idea to members of Ohio's men's swimming and track teams and the lacrosse team.
For just a second, let's assume ESPN is footing the bill ' they're even throwing in one of those half-zip fleeces for everyone. What benefit does national exposure have, when the likely result is a loss?
It's no secret that the Bobcats struggle on the road, and that's when they only have to travel within the Great Lakes Region. What's going to happen when they have to adjust to Mountain Standard Time before playing New Mexico State, a team much better than anyone in the MAC?
Last year, Akron received a similar hosing from The Big One when they had to travel to Reno, Nev., to face a highly-respected Nevada squad. Like most that flock to the Silver State for its legal gambling, the Zips left losers. Big losers. 27-point losers.
In all likelihood the Bobcats will leave Las Cruces losers as well. And even if they do win, how much does it mean in the grand scheme of things? It surely won't lead to a possible at-large berth to the NCAA tournament, something a few of the better teams in the Bracket Buster field have a possibility of achieving.
How the Bobcats fare in their pivotal conference games afterward will be the most interesting thing to see. Ohio will be traveling five times farther than any other MAC school that weekend.And they don't even get the perk of being able to gamble legally.
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Andrew Gribble
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