Say what you will about the raucous at Michigan State this past weekend; unless you’re stating that this is a complete embarrassment you’re dead wrong and potentially a complete buffoon. Scratch that, you are a complete buffoon. As a former Michigan State student myself I am beyond ashamed.
The riot this past weekend does not find its roots in any celebration of athletic success nor does it find its roots in celebration of academic success. Something tells me these folks weren’t assembled to celebrate last semesters selection to Dean’s List. Just a hunch. No this riot finds its roots in the belief that an event that was banned in the City of East Lansing in 1987 should be reincarnated. Hey! If it was a bad idea 21 years ago and there were serious issues then what in the world makes you think it is a good idea now?!? To give you an idea of how bad it truly was here is a video depicting the events of this past weekend’s melee (note: vulgar language and acts of violence are prevalent in this video):
Since when does the assemblage of 3,000 to 4,000 students, a majority of whom are probably more than inebriated, make sense in a non-controlled environment? It’s not like this is the first time there have been issues in the Cedar Village area after all; recent memory alone should serve notice to that. The following information was taken from a Wikipedia entry dedicated to MSU riots
September 6, 1997: 500 partygoers in the Gunson Street neighborhood confronted police, throwing bottles and damaging police vehicles.
May 1, 1998: An estimated 3,000 students protesting the ban on alcohol at Munn Field tailgate parties resulted in police firing tear gas at the crowd.
March 27, 1999: Following a loss by MSU’s basketball team to Duke in the NCAA Final Four, thousands of students and non-students (estimates range from 5,000 - 10,000 people) gathered around the Grand River Ave. area of East Lansing. Eventually this mass of people rioted; breaking windows, overturning cars, and starting bonfires in the streets. Local police called in reinforcements from as far away as Howell, MI to help quell the unrest and utilized tear gas and riot gear to control the crowds. By the time local law enforcement regained control, over $150,000 in damage had been done to the campus and surrounding city.
April 2, 2005: An estimated 2,000 students and non-students took to the streets immediately following the men’s basketball team’s loss to UNC in the final four, causing an estimated $8,275 in damage to the city of East Lansing and costing area law enforcement an estimated $190,389 in expenses. The April 2 event was marked by accusations of police abuse and mismanagement. Though large segments of the disturbance were documented on video, no specific acts of violence were seen until after tear gas was launched at the students.
The issue here seems to be that there is a culture of rioting at MSU. It has been said that some of those present at the melee were chanting, ‘tear gas us, tear gas us’ as if this was some rite of passage. That by somehow being tear gassed in a riot on Cedar St. is some sort of throwback to the past.
It is time for Michigan State University, the City of East Lansing, students, and the citizenry to find the means to ensure this rioting ceases completely. I am not overwhelmingly concerned with what dialogue needs to take place just that it does take place. Ohio State took significant actions following the riots of 2002 after the football Buckeyes defeated Michigan to head to the BCS Championship Game. I haven’t heard of couch burning in Morgantown for some time either.
The fact of the matter is this - in a little more than 10 years there have been 5 significant disturbances in East Lansing. While it might be said that the revelers for the most part are not Michigan State students this certainly doesn’t excuse the behavior of those who do call themselves Spartans and find themselves amongst the chaos. One Spartan being arrested during these types of disturbances is one too many and all involved must take the action necessary to ensure that if there is a next time that the number of arrests of MSU students equals zero.
Oh my God, the world is crashing. The end is near! A Big Ten team did not advance out of the Sweet Sixteen of this year’s Men’s NCAA Basketball tournament; this somehow has equated into the Big Ten becoming irrelevant in both football and men’s basketball. Nevermind that a member, excuse the fact that it’s the same member, played for the football championship the last two seasons and for the men’s basketball title last season.
I believe it is safe to say that the SEC is currently the kings of college football; the conference has won consecutive national titles, they’ve won the most BCS games, and possess the most BCS titles with four.
While it is easy to pinpoint the current superpower in football it is less so in regards to men’s basketball. The ACC has won the most championships in the last 10 years, however, the Big East is right on their heals. While the Big Ten hasn’t won a championship in men’s basketball since Michigan State did so in 2000 the conference has played in only one less Final Four and one less championship game than the ACC.
Yet, with all of this said people want to question the relevancy of the biggest revenue generating sports for most (if not all) universities in the Big Ten? Really?!? Yes, really.
Say what you will about the embarrassment of the past two Ohio State blunders in the BCS Championship game. Say what you will that its been since 2002 since the conference has won a championship in either of these sports (Ohio State over Miami in the 2003 Fiesta Bowl). Quite frankly, you can make any assertion you like. The proof, as usual, is in the pudding.
Take into account the past ten years of the men’s basketball tournament:
Conference
Number of Bids
ACC
47
Big East
58
Big Ten
54
Big 12
53
SEC
58
Pac 10
44
Conference
Number of Final Fours
ACC
9
Big East
5
Big Ten
8
Big 12
5
SEC
4
Pac 10
4
Conference
Number of Championship Games
ACC
5
Big East
3
Big Ten
4
Big 12
1
SEC
3
Pac 10
2
Conference
Percentage of bids to play for Title
ACC
10.64%
Big East
5.17%
Big Ten
7.41%
Big 12
1.88%
SEC
5.17%
Pac 10
4.54%
After looking at these statistics it ought to become quickly evident how relevant the Big Ten remains in NCAA men’s basketball. The fact of the matter is that out of the ‘elite six conferences’ the Big Ten ranks: 2nd in Final Fours, 2nd in title games played in, 2nd in percentage of teams in to play for a title, and 3rd in total bids. That would be in the upper half of all of those categories. The fact of the matter is the Big 12 and the Pac 10 have not won championships in men’s basketball in the past ten years; however, you hear no mention of these leagues no longer being relevant even though they essentially rank even with the Big Ten in football championships over that same time period.
The strength and relevancy of the Big Ten remains evident in football to date as well. You can make the argument about inferior conference play till you’re blue in the face and perhaps the depth of that argument can stand on some levels. Since this argument is seeking relevancy … I’m not so sure it stands here. In the BCS era the statistics are:
Conference
Rank by wins
SEC
11
Big 10
8
Pac 10
6
Big East
6
Big 12
6
ACC
1
Conference
Rank by losses
Pac 10
4
Big East
4
SEC
4
Big 12
8
ACC
9
Big Ten
9
Conference
Rank by losses
Pac 10
4
Big East
4
SEC
4
Big 12
8
ACC
9
Big Ten
9
Conference
Rank by titles won (played for)
SEC
4 (4)
Big 12
2 (4)
ACC
1 (3)
Big East
1 (2)
Big Ten
1 (3)
Pac 10
1 (2)
Judging the relevancy of a conference in these two sports is largely an exercise in futility and apparently an exercise I was willing to undertake (one of few I might add). The fact of the matter is this, the Big Ten has won more men’s basketball championships in the past ten years than 2 conferences and has won as many as 3 of the other conferences during that same stretch. The Big Ten has played in more BCS games than any other conference, a clear testament to the conferences pre-conference and conference sustainability. The fact that the Big Ten is nearly on par with the ACC in terms of Final Fours played in and title games contested in men’s basketball the past 10 years screams of their relevancy. This is a conference standing up to another conference with perennial basketball powers Duke and North Carolina.
And if that isn’t good enough for you since 1939 the number of total championships own in both sports (note: multiple winners in football were counted up until 1998).
Conference
Rank by titles won
Big Ten
28
SEC
26
Pac 10
23
Big 12
22
ACC
19
Big East
11
Yeah, that’s right, I took one straight out of Michigan’s book … historical records baby!
