Photo: Students from the University of North Dakota and North Dakota State University examine cornhole beanbags for consistency.
In an unprecedented meeting of rivals, students from North Dakota and North Dakota State met privately at the Mayville, North Dakota VFW to discuss the Summit League’s sports offerings. With the near certainty that UND will be joining the Summit League (see article), the students worked to identify and propose a new, lower cost sport to the Summit League.
Both Universities face tight state budgets.
After four hours of debate, the students narrowed their selection to three sports – lawn mower racing, cornhole, and squirrel launching. After intense debate and four rounds of voting, cornhole emerged as the winner.
The group plans to secure a donor commitment to finance the sport before approaching the Summit League with a formal written proposal.
Squirrel launching, while extremely popular in the Dakotas, came in a distant second.
The meeting ended with the committee going out and playing – you guessed it, a cornhole tournament.
I’ve actually been quite impressed with how UND was able to keep its sports programs despite the budget crisis they face. I think having them come to the Summit League will not only enhance their rivalries with the other Dakota schools, but also broaden their rivalries with DU and Omaha beyond the hockey rink.
Yah the travel costs that women’s and men’s sports incur right now in the Big Sky are huge. The Summit offers the guarantee of some bus trips versus none in their current conference. Plus, the rivalries with NDSU, the South Dakota schools, UNO, and DU make it a much better fit. They just need to find a home for football being the Summit doesn’t offer that sport.
p.s., where’s the write up on this weekend’s hockey series between the Pios and the Hawks???? -one of my favorite things as a UND fan is reading the funny stories you guys come up with! Big series in Grand Forks for both teams.
I’ve actually been quite impressed with how UND was able to keep its sports programs despite the budget crisis they face. I think having them come to the Summit League will not only enhance their rivalries with the other Dakota schools, but also broaden their rivalries with DU and Omaha beyond the hockey rink.
Yah the travel costs that women’s and men’s sports incur right now in the Big Sky are huge. The Summit offers the guarantee of some bus trips versus none in their current conference. Plus, the rivalries with NDSU, the South Dakota schools, UNO, and DU make it a much better fit. They just need to find a home for football being the Summit doesn’t offer that sport.
p.s., where’s the write up on this weekend’s hockey series between the Pios and the Hawks???? -one of my favorite things as a UND fan is reading the funny stories you guys come up with! Big series in Grand Forks for both teams.