Coaches divided on Big Ten volleyball tourney

When the Big Ten Conference announced it would have a men's basketball postseason tournament, it left two Big Ten sports without any postseason activity sponsored by the conference -- football and women's volleyball.

"I believe that a postseason tourney would be a positive thing for the conference," Minnesota head coach Mike Hebert said. "First of all, it provides a season-ending 'reason for being' for every team in the conference -- not just the contending teams playing on that final weekend. Second, it provides an enhanced made-for-television opportunity beyond that which the present round-robin schedule provides."

But other Big Ten coaches, like Penn State coach Russ Rose, feel a tournament will prolong an already tough conference season. The current schedule for the Big Ten allows each team to play a round-robin schedule of 20 matches. Rose does not want a tournament to add even more matches to the long season.

"There has been a real push to do that, but I'm not in favor of (a tournament)," he said.

Rose said while he may support a shorter 16-to-18 match schedule with the top four or six teams advancing to the tournament, he generally does not favor conference tournament activity.

Hebert identifies with Rose's displeasure with having a tournament, but feels the benefits will outweigh the problems.

"I know that Russ Rose is opposed to the tourney," Hebert said. "He may be thinking that the event would take too much out of his team prior to entering the NCAA tourney. This fear may or may not be grounded in fact. In any case, the conference-wide positives should outweigh any individual program's concerns."

Rose also said with football season still around and basketball season starting, there might not be a good enough venue availability for a four-day conference tournament that will bring in fans from all across Big Ten country.

"There are not a lot of schools with available facilities to host a tournament," Rose said.

But Hebert feels the tournament can succeed during this busy time, especially over the Thanksgiving break.

"The concept of playing a Big Ten Championship over Thanksgiving weekend provides a major volleyball event during a holiday -- thereby enhancing the possibility of increased attendance," Hebert said. "Athletes would also miss no class time."

The Big Ten has been considered the toughest conference in the country, with five teams qualifying for last year's NCAA tournament. Most players, especially on the Lady Lions, said adding a tournament at the end of a grueling season would make the season more difficult.

"I don't want a tournament," redshirt sophomore Amanda Thomas said. "We already have a tough season, and I like it the way it is."

The possibility of a Big Ten volleyball tournament is far from reality, but it is on the minds of a few coaches. Since several strong conferences like the Pac-10, Big 12, and the Ivy League also do not have postseason tournaments, the rush to add a tournament is not important to some officials.

"There has been some discussion, but it hasn't been evaluated yet," Penn State athletic director Tim Curley said.

As for now, Big Ten coaches are preparing for the upcoming season, but the tournament remains a hot topic among them.