Friday, June 25, 2021

June 25 Update: Signs of Life

Signs of Life

It's almost July but finally their is a spark in teams releasing non conference schedules. Coming into this week there had been a stalemate with just two schedules this week but this week saw five new schedules released along with a lot of game reporting in the twitter-verse. Colorado, Purdue and Tennessee highlighted the releases complimented by Brown (it sure is nice to see an Ivy League team with games on the schedule again) and New Orleans.

Colorado's schedule didn't offer up much in terms of surprises, the biggest game to be revealed was with New Mexico. Aside from that every game was low-major and mid-major filler to compliment big games against Tennessee and Kansas.

Purdue's schedule hit in very much the same way, nothing headline-grabbing that wasn't already in the public domain. Although fans of the Sycamores will be salivating at the chance to get a win in Mackey Arena when Indiana State visits Purdue on the first Friday of the season.

Tennessee's schedule is no joke. The Vols released an 11-game non-conference schedule and Jon Rothstein reported a match-up later in the day with USC Upstate which has yet to have a date nailed down. Former assistant Desmond Oliver will bring East Tennessee State into Thompson-Boling Arena during the first weekend of the season. Aside from a handful of filler games, Tennessee is showing a lot of ambition with the likes of Texas Tech, Memphis, Villanova, Arizona and Texas all on their docket. Tennessee will also face one of Purdue or North Carolina in Connecticut during an MTE.

Brown has a schedule compiled of many games against their northeast contemporaries, complimented by buy games against North Carolina and Maryland. New Orleans released a schedule with few surprises, with The D1 Docket obtaining several contracts last week. The Privateers will hit the road for seven buy-games but also will host Central Arkansas, Presbyterian and VMI in an MTE.

Also revealed in New Orleans schedule is an ambitious move by the Southland to make-up for massive losses in the latest round of conference re-alignment. It would appear that all eight teams will meet-up in early January for a 12-game tournament. Details about seeding were not released, but one would assume that the Southland's best 2 teams would find their way to the finals creating a statistical feedback loop boosting both team's resumes for when it comes time to seed the NCAA Tournament.

June 25th Contract Duffle Bag

Cincinnati Bearcats

Aside from solidifying the November 13th date for their home tilt with Georgia and the Hall of Fame Classic much of what Cincinnati has in the books is their filler games. This program took quite a dip in the last couple of seasons so I would not expect a very ambitious schedule as new Coach Wes Miller and his staff get their feet under them after leaving UNC Greensboro.

North Dakota Fighting Hawks

North Dakota have 10 games in the books with 9 dates set. The Fighting Hawks will extend their trip in the Miami Area following their MTE at Florida Atlantic with a game at FIU. North Dakota will also collect checks for playing guarantee games at Kansas State and Cal Baptist. A home & home was scheduled to begin at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi last season, a game which ended up not happening due to impact of COVID on scheduling. The obtained documents do not include any amendments which specify ultimately where this series will begin.

Grambling Tigers

To no one's surprise at all Grambling has a slew of buy-games lined up already for the upcoming season. The biggest reveal from Grambling's contract is that the Tigers, along with Grand Canyon are two of the three participants in the MTE hosted by Texas Tech.



Friday, June 18, 2021

Week 3 Update: Barren Release Landscape but the Cup, it Overflows with Contracts

Schedule Release Purgatory

Here we are in mid-June, new recruits are arriving for summer classes and practices but in the realm of basketball schedules we've only just seen two teams, West Virginia and Kansas, release their complete non-conference schedule. Over the six previous off-seasons to 2020 there had been an average north of 21 teams would be expected to have released a non-conference schedule. The post-COVID world is very different, especially for Athletic Department budgets. Sources have relayed to The D1 Docket that guarantee prices are not at the levels they used to be, so many schools are in a stalemate holding out for better payments to balance their books.

George Mason

One of the teams that could be on the short list to pull the trigger next is George Mason. The D1 Docket struck gold late last week in its request for documents from George Mason turned up whopping 10 contracts were included in the responsive documents. This week the Patriots were announced as participants in the 2021 Crossover Classic, raising their total number of competitions to 13, the maximum allowed with an 18-game conference schedule.

One of George Mason’s games, a home tilt against Morgan State, was already uncovered in a request from the latter institution. The details of the Crossover Classic are unclear, but if the event is three games that would signify the George Mason has completed its non-conference schedule. However, if the event is just two games, then the Patriots would have one game left to fill, still an envious position at this point of the offseason.

Aside from playing in a competitive multi-team event Patriots fans have much to look forward too on the schedule. Matchups against in-state contemporaries and former CAA rivals Old Dominion, in Fairfax, and James Madison, at their new arena in Harrisonburg, will put bragging rights on the line.

The Patriots are set to collect two guarantee checks, first by crossing over DC to play at Maryland the second week of the season, and a post-exam trip to Athens for a game against Tom Crean’s Georgia Bulldogs.

The rest of George Mason’s schedule is filled with home guarantee games, overwhelmingly with teams from the Mid-Atlantic, with no opponent travelling from further way than Long Island.

 

Texas A&M

Texas A&M is right behind George Mason in terms of completing their schedule, so far the Aggies have 12 games scheduled. The trip to Malibu is the highlight of schedule complimented well by a game against TCU in Houston. Texas A&M will also host Tulane at Reed Arena in the opening bout of a home & home just a few days before travelling to Corvallis to begin another home & home with 2021 Elite 8 team Oregon State. The rest of the schedule is filled in with buy-games in College Station.



Texas Tech

Texas Tech is another team with their schedule closing in on the finish line. The Red Raiders have six games firmly in place, including their meeting with Gonzaga in Phoenix and visit to Providence during the Big East-Big 12 Battle. Texas Tech will also meet Incarnate Word along the Texas Gulf Coast on South Padre Island. A handful of regional guarantee games fill in the schedule along with a 3-game MTE anchored by the Red Raiders, documents indicate that the opponents for this event are yet to be lined up.



UT Arlington

Staying in the Lone Star State, UT Arlington has 8 games in the chamber. Most notably the Mavericks will pay a couple of visits to the Sooner State for games against Oklahoma State and Oklahoma. Nevada also comes to town to close out a multi-year series, likely the same trip in which they are set to face North Texas.


New Orleans

Next door in the Bayou State, Southland Conference co-members New Orleans and Northwestern State have a total of 14 non-conference games lined-up. New Orleans opens up the season at Ole Miss while also collecting checks from visits to Northwestern, Ohio State and Utah State. The Privateers will also be hosting their own Round-Robin MTE featuring Central Arkansas, Presbyterian and VMI.



Northwestern State

Northwestern State will join UT Arlington in the state of Oklahoma on opening night, but against the Sooners. Other Guarantee games for the Demons include trips to SMU, LSU and Texas A&M. Northwestern State will also begin two 4-year series with Stephen F. Austin and UL-Monroe.


San Jose State

Out on the West coast we drop in on the San Jose State Spartans have six games in place. Aside from an early December from North Dakota the Spartans are sticking with in-state opponents for now.



I still have many more contracts to process and games will be trickling out on Twitter, it's an exciting time as more and m

Thursday, June 10, 2021

Week 2 Update + Multiple Contract Unloads

The last two weeks The D1 Docket has been busy in the FOIA kitchen and things are starting to come out of the oven at a healthy rate. Kansas joined fellow Big XII member West Virginia on the other side to reveal a typically challenging schedule for the Jayhawks.

Along with the mainstay season opener in the Champions Classic, this year facing Michigan State, Kansas will face 4 other power conference teams with at least two of those games, Colorado and St. John’s, on the road. Kansas and Missouri rekindle their rivalry for the first time since Missouri left the Big XII in 2012 on December 11th. Kansas opponent and site has yet to be determined for the Big XII-SEC Challenge.

Harvard was lined-up to play at Allen Fieldhouse last season before the Ivy League cancelled the 2020-21 Athletics’ season but will now play that game in late December. Kansas will see if it can ward off Stephen F. Austin’s reputation as giant killer as the last home game before Christmas. It looks like UTEP was able to negotiate a semi-neutral site game this season as part of their agreement to play Kansas during the make-up game week in March, the Miners and Jayhawks will play in Kansas City on December 7th.

Along with an appearance in the ESPN Events Invitational, Kansas will have every opportunity to build a resume worthy of a high seed in the non-conference season.

In stark contrast to Kansas’s schedule is Idaho State’s slate of games so far. The Bengals are signed up for five guarantee games on the road, collecting $385,000 in guarantees along the way, such as life in the Big XII

Idaho State Non-Conference Game Contract Details

Date

Opponent

Terms

Nov 9th

Eastern Oregon (Non-DI)

$3,000 Guarantee

Nov 12th

@ Pepperdine

$60,000 Guarantee

Nov 14th

@ Seattle

$80,000 Guarantee

Nov 19th

@ Nebraska

$90,000 Guarantee

Nov 27th or Nov 28th

@ Air Force

$67,500 Guarantee

Dec 8th

@ California

$87,500 Guarantee

Dec 18th

Bethesda (Non-DI)

$3,000 Guarantee

 Up next are Sun Belt Conference and in-state rivals Georgia Southern and Georgia State. The Eagles do not have many games on the books just yet but will be heading to the Bronx for a match-up with Fordham.

*The contract for the Fordham game was signed in 2019, with Fordham's participation in an event at Madison Square Garden that day it is apparent the terms of that initial deal have been changed or terminated. Notices of cancellation were also requested but none were provided.

Georgia Southern Non-Conference Game Contract Details

Date

Opponent

Terms

TBD

@ Fordham

$80,000 Guarantee

Dec 15th

@ Campbell

First game of Home & Home

 Georgia State has a few more games on the books, with the only home game secured so far being a return game from Mercer.

Georgia State Non-Conference Game Contract Details

Date

Opponent

Terms

Nov 16th

@ Richmond

$75,000 Guarantee

Nov 20th

vs. TBD (High Point, NC)

Multi-Team Exempt Event

Nov 21st

vs. TBD (High Point, NC)

Dec 4th

Mercer

Fourth game of 4-year series

Dec 14th

@ Mississippi State

$70,000 Guarantee

Dec 21st

@ Georgia Tech

Second game of 3-year series

 Georgia State will make rounds and collect checks from NCAA tournament contenders Mississippi State and Richmond. The Panthers will go into the Christmas break by returning to the scene of their 4OT victory over cross-town rivals Georgia Tech on opening night of last season. This is the 2nd of 3 games in the series, the finale taking place at Georgia State during the 2022-23 season.

The Panthers visit High Point for an Exempt event organized by Gazelle Group. Aside from Georgia State and the hosts, High Point, a source has confirmed to The D1 Docket that the other participants are slated to be Howard and William & Mary.

William & Mary will play in above mentioned event, before visiting Navy the first weekend of December. The gameday will be determined by whether or not Navy earns the right to host the AAC Championship Game on December 4th.

William & Mary Non-Conference Game Contract Details

Date

Opponent

Terms

Nov 20th

vs. TBD (High Point, NC)

Multi-Team Exempt Event

Nov 21st

vs. TBD (High Point, NC)

Dec 4th or Dec 5th

@ Navy

First game of Home & Home

 

 

 

TBD

Fairfield

2nd game of Home & Home

TBD

@ Richmond

First game of 4-year series

 Florida Atlantic has nearly completed their non-conference slate, including a return game from Miami-FL and hosting a 3-game MTE in Boca Raton.

The Owls were quick to answer the phone and hit the road last season, pivoting three 11th hour scheduling additions into home games during the 2021-22 season.

Florida Atlantic Non-Conference Game Contract Details

Date

Opponent

Terms

Nov 10th

@ New Mexico

$70,000 Guarantee

Nov 16th

Miami-FL

Second game of Home & Home

Nov 19th

North Dakota/UT-Martin/Troy

Multi-Team Exempt Event,

$48,000 total in guarantees

Nov 20th

North Dakota/UT-Martin/Troy

Nov 21st

North Dakota/UT-Martin/Troy

 

 

 

TBD

vs Florida Gulf Coast

Third game of 4-year series

TBD

James Madison

Second game of Home & Home

TBD

Stetson

Second game of Home & Home

TBD

North Florida

Second game of Home & Home

 The Maine Black Bears will also be filling the schedule with guarantee games, collecting $315,000 for four games currently secured. The games against Virginia Tech and Colorado were originally scheduled for last season but the teams were able to agree to terms for rescheduling the games.

Maine Non-Conference Game Contract Details

Date

Opponent

Terms

Nov 9th

@ Virginia Tech

$85,000 Guarantee

Nov 12th

Maine-Farmington (Non-DI)

N/A

Nov 15th

@ Colorado

$85,000 Guarantee

Nov 19th

Maine-Fort Kent

N/A

Nov 27th

@ Bradley

$75,000 Guarantee

Dec 29th

@ Rutgers

$70,000 Guarantee

 

Until next time, this is Charles from The D1 Docket signing off…


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