In case you missed the big news of the day in the lacrosse world, the Big Ten Conference announced it was adding both mens and womens lacrosse as the 27th and 28th official sports beginning in 2015.
As part of the announcement, Johns Hopkins was made an affiliate Big Ten member for mens lacrosse. The Blue Jays become the first such member of the conference in any sport which is a pretty big statement.
The Big Ten Lacrosse Conference will feature Maryland, Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State and Rutgers in both mens and womens competition. Hopkins will be also be participating on the mens side, while Northwestern will do the same on the womens side.
“We are excited to announce the launch of Big Ten men’s and women’s lacrosse and the addition of Johns Hopkins as a sport affiliate member,” said Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany in a press release. “Johns Hopkins is an outstanding institution with a legacy of success in men’s lacrosse that is simply unmatched in intercollegiate athletics. Lacrosse is an emerging sport among our current schools and is a long-held passion among our East Coast institutions. With the addition of Maryland and Rutgers in all sports and Johns Hopkins for men’s lacrosse, we will have the requisite number of institutions to make men’s and women’s lacrosse official conference sports, building upon our tradition of broad-based sports competition. We look forward to the start of the first Big Ten men’s and women’s lacrosse seasons in 2015.”
It is far too early to properly evaluate what the move means for the game itself, but here are a few quick thoughts.
THIS IS BIG NEWS FOR MIDWEST LACROSSE
We already know that lacrosse is rapidly growing in the Midwest region.
According to the 2012 US Lacrosse Participation Survey, Ohio now has the tenth-most youth lacrosse players in the country with over 12,000. As of 2012, governing bodies at the high school level have sanctioned lacrosse in Illinois, Minnesota, and Missouri.
Meanwhile, teams like Culver Prep in Indiana have established themselves in the national high school conversation by playing traditional East Coast powers. This season, the Eagles defeated Pennsylvania power the Episcopal Academy and took national contender Boys Latin to the cusp before falling 11-9.
With the Big Ten adding lacrosse, younger players will have schools they are familiar with to follow, like they may with football or basketball. Yes, the schools are already playing, but adding the Big Ten moniker and grouping them together can have a powerful effect on fans. Mix this into an area where the sport is already growing, and you may see the sport become even more popular.
MORE EXPOSURE
It goes without saying that having the Big Ten sanction lacrosse will get more eyes on the game a household name-type of conference such as the Big Ten resonates with even the non-lacrosse fan.
With such a powerful conference comes more outlets for the game such as the Big Ten Network and across its established digital network. While Commissioner Delaney was vague in a conference call today discussing the move about the BTN and lacrosse, it is probably a safe assumption that a handful of games – at least – will be shown on the channel, getting more eyes to see the sport both nationally and regionally.
The notoriety of such a move is also important. This may be a leap, but I feel casual fans or those who dont know the game may consciously or unconsciously associate the move with legitimacy. You can now point to a power-conference in big time sports like football or basketball when discussing lacrosse that is not based on the East Coast.
The reach of the conference is something that cannot be underestimated either. A non-lacrosse fan is more likely to stumble upon the game now – be it through the BTN or online. As of right now the Big Ten twitter handle has over 55,000 followers. Getting more folks to see the game is step one in creating more interest.
STARTING STRONG
The schools that will be playing in the Big Ten, on both the mens and womens side, will establish the conference immediately.
On the mens side, adding Hopkins alongside annual contenders like Maryland already vault the conference to national conversation. On the womens side, Maryland and Northwestern are around almost every year come Championship Weekend.
Starting a conference strong and exposing casual and first-time viewers of the game to some of the best action is a good way to establish a fan base.
A BIG TEN CHAMPIONSHIP WEEKEND?
You have to think Lucas Oil Stadium will be the choice to play the Conference Championship games.
The venue is central for fans across the area, and with the adjacent Convention Center as a space for youth clinics, demos and showcases, there is a ton of potential to create an exhibition-type weekend for lacrosse.
Lucas Oil Stadium has housed some of the biggest events in the world, from the Super Bowl to the mens basketball Final Four to everything in between. The NFL holds its annual Scouting Combine there.
Having personally worked in the venue numerous times for the AFC Championship Game, Super Bowl and the aforementioned Combines, it is an ideal spot to create a big weekend centered around the championships. Everything is walkable, there are excellent restaurants in the area, and the people are first-class.
DOMINO EFFECT?
There are far too many variables when it comes to big schools adding sports: Title IX, athletic department budgets – the list goes on.
Having said that, adding lacrosse to the Big Ten could be a jumping point for schools with club programs to think about elevating. Schools with club programs Indiana, Illinois, Purdue et. al. may not want to fall behind Michigan, Ohio State or Penn State in a conference setting.
Again, there are far too many variables when you discuss adding varsity sports, but schools tend to be copy-cats when it comes to situations like these look no further than the constant conference realignment as proof. So while this is probably far off, it is something that could happen.
Going even farther into this hypothetical, if Big Ten lacrosse starts growing as the youth participation has and continues to, it may be a blueprint should the sport take more root in places like SEC country. Yes, I am getting ahead of myself with that point, but thats the idea here.
What do you think of the announcement?
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