Northern Iowa to FBS picking up steam...

[unigriff]

take it for what its worth, but the conversations seemingly are longer and more often.

http://thegazette.com/2012/09/10/uni-football-weighing-jump-to-fbs/

[MplsBison]

If MAC football-only is on the table, you leap at it. That's my opinion on the subject.

And I hope that you have the opportunity to take some MVFC with you. NDSU - IL St - UNI - Youngstown would do well in the MAC and make it to bowl games.

That leaves the MVFC with: SDSU-USD, WIU-SIU, ____ - IND St, MO St - _____

I put blanks there because I'd then expect the MVFC to go hard after EIU and SEMO.

[BisonBacker]

I still say the conference issue is the biggest hurdle and I don't see a conference right now that UNI fits in.

[unigriff]

the MAC is still the obvious choice. I can't imagine they would try to stoop to low to the Sun Belt...hey the Big 12 still needs two more...i'd take that conference and have a few years of beat downs to Texas and Oklahoma to get some nice checks to get the program started :)

[asumike83]

Geographically, MAC is the only real option. Of course, just like every other FCS school, it does not matter how interested UNI is. The conferences hold all the cards but I certainly wish you guys luck. No question it is a better program than many schools already playing FBS football.

[DSUrocks07]

Trade UNI for EMU xnodx

I'm sure the MAC would do that in a heartbeat.

[ysubigred]

the MAC is still the obvious choice. I can't imagine they would try to stoop to low to the Sun Belt...hey the Big 12 still needs two more...i'd take that conference and have a few years of beat downs to Texas and Oklahoma to get some nice checks to get the program started :)

I just don't see how UNI can afford the jump to 1FBS. Your gym...um Dome doesn’t meet the criteria for a 1FBS school for starters. So you'll all need a lot of those big paydays to get it going. :D

[MSUBear42]

Trade UNI for EMU xnodx

I'm sure the MAC would do that in a heartbeat.

That almost makes too much sense

[darell1976]

If UNI gets a conference invite...Idaho would be so jealous.

[laxVik]

Why? Look at UMass, UTSA, SA, et all. They're 10 years away from making any noise. Considering how bad the lower lever FBS teams are (how many were beaten by FCS since week one) who the hell would want to move? Took UCF 15 years to make any noise. I can't think of any recent (ie last 15 years) FCS team that has made any noise in FBS besides Boise State. Maybe UCF. The love affair with moving to low level FBS is mind boggling.

[Gringer1]

Why? Look at UMass, UTSA, SA, et all. They're 10 years away from making any noise. Considering how bad the lower lever FBS teams are (how many were beaten by FCS since week one) who the hell would want to move? Took UCF 15 years to make any noise. I can't think of any recent (ie last 15 years) FCS team that has made any noise in FBS besides Boise State. Maybe UCF. The love affair with moving to low level FBS is mind boggling.

http://images.wikia.com/fairlyoddparents/en/images/7/73/TimmyWithDollarEyes.jpg

People think that it is easy to win at the bottom of the FBS. Winning at the bottom=bowl games=moving up to a better conference=better bowl games=more money. They think that 5 years into moving up, they'll be nationally relevant and much better off financially. The interesting question is this: who are those terrible FBS teams they plan on beating as a stepping stone on the way up? They're the older FCS move ups. Funny how they followed the same path the current generation of FBS dreamers want, yet they are still terrible.

[NoDak 4 Ever]

http://images.wikia.com/fairlyoddparents/en/images/7/73/TimmyWithDollarEyes.jpg

People think that it is easy to win at the bottom of the FBS. Winning at the bottom=bowl games=moving up to a better conference=better bowl games=more money. They think that 5 years into moving up, they'll be nationally relevant and much better off financially. The interesting question is this: who are those terrible FBS teams they plan on beating as a stepping stone on the way up? They're the older FCS move ups. Funny how they followed the same path the current generation of FBS dreamers want, yet they are still terrible.


Even worse, they're talking about getting more money to play big boys. Higher priced cannon fodder.

[Professor Chaos]

I can understand UNI wanting to position themselves for the move if realignment continues at a fever pitch but keep in mind they still need to come up with an extra $5M per year to make this move.

http://twitter.com/DomIzzoWDAY/status/245230526951211008


UNI AD Troy Dannen: "Like to see us move up(to FBS) but would be an extra 5 million a year to budget to be in MAC,moving up not feasible"
That's a 30% increase over their current budget. Sure, they'll make extra money playing guarantee games at the big boy's places and they'll make extra money on TV but I still don't see how they plan to finance this.

[MTfan4life]

Geographically, MAC is the only real option. Of course, just like every other FCS school, it does not matter how interested UNI is. The conferences hold all the cards but I certainly wish you guys luck. No question it is a better program than many schools already playing FBS football.

These days, I don't think the word 'geographically' takes any impact on conference realignment.

[BisonBacker]

Not only that but this is what you are going to be playing for should UNI make the move. Directly from the MAC website.

MAC and Bowl Agreements
In the spring of 2010, the MAC announced for the first time in its 64-year history five bowl relationships—three (3) primary and two (2) secondary—through the 2013 season. The MAC’s three primary bowl agreements are with the Little Caesar’s Pizza Bowl (Detroit, Mich.), GoDaddy.com Bowl (Mobile, Ala.) and the uDrove Humanitarian Bowl (Boise, Ida.).

In addition, the MAC has secured two secondary agreements over a four year span with the BBVA Compass Bowl in Birmingham, Ala. (2010-2013), the TicketCity Bowl in Dallas (2010 and 2012) and the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl/San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl/New Mexico Bowl (2011 and 2013).

Sorry but none of those excite me. Seriously the San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia bowl or the uDrove Humanitarian bowl? :(

I'll take a playoff system and championship anyday.

[BucBisonAtLarge]

Stop chucking YSU onto the MAC pile. Think critically. The MVFC and the Horizon likely are not their first choice. The Penguins would be in the MAC if they were wanted at all. Kent and Akron seem very invested in keeping YSU out. YSU football should stop having to listen to the whining of MVFC fans about their membership. It seems like a premium football program that any FCS conference might want. The CAA next year will be shorter travel than almost all of the MVFC. An MVFC without UNI and YSU.... will be knocking at the UND door, harassing Drake, cultivating Wichita State and raiding the OVC to enhance its drop in top-to-bottom relevance.

[Laker]

cultivating Wichita State.

BBAL: How serious are they about bringing football back to WSU? I have heard that they are adding club football but what are the chances that it will go further? It would be nice to have them back- I remember the plane crash that ruined the program.

[MplsBison]

Why? Look at UMass, UTSA, SA, et all. They're 10 years away from making any noise. Considering how bad the lower lever FBS teams are (how many were beaten by FCS since week one) who the hell would want to move? Took UCF 15 years to make any noise. I can't think of any recent (ie last 15 years) FCS team that has made any noise in FBS besides Boise State. Maybe UCF. The love affair with moving to low level FBS is mind boggling.

Does it matter how much noise you make in I-AA if no one is listening?

[MplsBison]

Not only that but this is what you are going to be playing for should UNI make the move. Directly from the MAC website.


Sorry but none of those excite me. Seriously the San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia bowl or the uDrove Humanitarian bowl? :(

I'll take a playoff system and championship anyday.

DII has a playoff and championship too.

[MTfan4life]

Does it matter how much noise you make in I-AA if no one is listening?

Yes. This is a pretty easy answer. Who cares most about NDSU football or Montana football? Their respective fan bases. Regardless of the level they're playing, it matters to them if their team is making noise. No UNI fan gives a crap about what Tom Thumb from midwestern West Virginia thinks about the success of their football program. They simply care about the quality of the team they cheer for. The only meaningless thing about I-AA football is the fans like you that think it's a big deal that Non-I-AA fans don't care about I-AA football.

[clenz]

I just don't see how UNI can afford the jump to 1FBS. Your gym...um Dome doesn’t meet the criteria for a 1FBS school for starters.
False....****er.

[MplsBison]

Yes. This is a pretty easy answer. Who cares most about NDSU football or Montana football? Their respective fan bases. Regardless of the level they're playing, it matters to them if their team is making noise. No UNI fan gives a crap about what Tom Thumb from midwestern West Virginia thinks about the success of their football program. They simply care about the quality of the team they cheer for. The only meaningless thing about I-AA football is the fans like you that think it's a big deal that Non-I-AA fans don't care about I-AA football.

That's a valid and correct answer, for a lot fans. I know ursus and probably many other Montana fans share the exact same sentiment.

A lot of NDSU fans also held the exact same sentiment when we were still in DII, in regards to moving up to DI. "Can't compete", "We like winning national championships", "Who cares what anyone outside of ND thinks about us?", etc. Yet, NDSU did eventually move up to DI (and I-AA football), except they did it much later than similar caliber teams in the greater region (UNI and Montana, namely).

So I think it's also correct to be beating the other drum. The one that says "let's not get left in the dust this time....in fact, let's lead the charge!"

[clenz]

Yes. This is a pretty easy answer. Who cares most about NDSU football or Montana football? Their respective fan bases. Regardless of the level they're playing, it matters to them if their team is making noise. No UNI fan gives a crap about what Tom Thumb from midwestern West Virginia thinks about the success of their football program. They simply care about the quality of the team they cheer for. The only meaningless thing about I-AA football is the fans like you that think it's a big deal that Non-I-AA fans don't care about I-AA football.
You know....that makes a pretty strong case for being low level FBS as well.


WGAF if we are respected at the FBS level....it can't be any less than we are in the FCS.

[MplsBison]

I think it's also very relevant to point out that NDSU and Montana are at the top in their states while UNI is at the bottom with two huge brothers looking down at them.

No one in ND or MT is saying "Geez, NDSU (or Montana) are bunch of little wimps playing in the minor leagues, who cares about them?"

[clenz]

So I think it's also correct to be beating the other drum. The one that says "let's not get left in the dust this time....in fact, let's lead the charge!"
That is exactly what UNI is trying to do. Dannen was on UNI's daily radio and echoed what a lot of people have been saying (that many FCS first have been calling stupid) in that there is a very strong feeling across the nation there is going to be another big split, like there was in the late 70's. The top 5 or 6 conferences are going to stay what they are, the rest of the FBS, and then the rest. It's going to be easier to gamble on the move up and see how it shakes out than to sit back and beg to get in later if things don't go your way.

[Seawolf97]

That is exactly what UNI is trying to do. Dannen was on UNI's daily radio and echoed what a lot of people have been saying (that many FCS first have been calling stupid) in that there is a very strong feeling across the nation there is going to be another big split, like there was in the late 70's. The top 5 or 6 conferences are going to stay what they are, the rest of the FBS, and then the rest. It's going to be easier to gamble on the move up and see how it shakes out than to sit back and beg to get in later if things don't go your way.

You might be right. I still think the big boys will wind up with 16 team conferences and split into two 8 team divisions. Call it what you want they wont be happy until they get there.

[MSUBear42]

False....****er.

http://www.tailgatewiki.com/assets/uploads/NCAA%20Football/Northern%20Iowa/100001.jpg>>>>>http://football.ballparks.com/NCAA/WAC/Idaho/interior.jpg

[ElCid]

Why? Look at UMass, UTSA, SA, et all. They're 10 years away from making any noise. Considering how bad the lower lever FBS teams are (how many were beaten by FCS since week one) who the hell would want to move? Took UCF 15 years to make any noise. I can't think of any recent (ie last 15 years) FCS team that has made any noise in FBS besides Boise State. Maybe UCF. The love affair with moving to low level FBS is mind boggling.

Agree, big time. I have always been amazed at the delusions of grandeur by some schools when it comes to moving up to 1A/FBS. There were alot of great football programs when they were 1AA, but when they moved up they became crappy 1A programs. There is the odd school that does well, as mentioned (Boise St. or maybe Central Florida), but most are relegated to the junk heap of the Sunbelt or defunct WAC. Even Marshall who started out well in the MAC when they moved up, has become a whipping boy of the BCS schools as part of Conference USA. And the Big East will probably be on par with these conferences shortly. When I hear App St and Ga So or N Iowa thinking of moving, I cringe for their fans and the loss to 1AA/FCS. But hey, if teams want to move up, that's OK, we can all cheer on the good 1AA/FCS teams when they beat the 1A/FBS slugs.

[clenz]

http://www.tailgatewiki.com/assets/uploads/NCAA%20Football/Northern%20Iowa/100001.jpg>>>>>http://football.ballparks.com/NCAA/WAC/Idaho/interior.jpgThe UNIDome actually has a larger capacity than the Kibbie Dome as well.

[Saint3333]

Per capita Iowa could support a third before ND a first.

[MSUBear42]

Per capita Iowa could support a third before ND a first.

Per Capita, it's insane that Missouri only has one. Missouri has double the people that Iowa does and only one FBS team.

Also interesting is that Mizzou is the only SEC school from a state with only one FBS team.

[Professor Chaos]

Per capita Iowa could support a third before ND a first.
Not picking on you Saint cuz I don't know your take on this, and App outdraws NDSU anyway, but this is the exact counter argument I use with fans in the "big" states when they say that the reason NDSU draws better than their team is because they don't have any big schools to compete with.

[dgtw]

The MAC has 12 full members and a 13th in football. UNI would be a geographic outlier in that league with long road trips.

[UNIFanSince1983]

I love how fans of teams always talk down about the move saying "I love competing for championships every year" until their team is the one talking about making a move up.

I really don't think most UNI fans have delusions of grandeur for becoming the next Boise or UCF. I really think most are just excited about the possibility of competing at the highest level. Some of this may stem from the constant crap we get from Iowa or ISU fans every single year. I honestly think there would be more UNI football fans if we were competing at the FBS level, but I may be wrong.

Overall, I really have a hard time believing anything will happen and tend to think Dannen is just stirring the pot to make it look better to the regents. They clearly said they won't do anything until a new president is hired, and the current one isn't retiring for a couple of years anyways. We will just have to see what happens.

[ValleyChamp]

Ben Allen is retiring this coming summer, '83. UNI will be hiring a new new President sometime this year.

[FargoBison]

Maybe the MVFC would just move up if a split happens.

A few months ago there was a news story from Fargo that was eerily similar to the one linked on the first page of this thread.

[UNH Fanboi]

The UNIDome actually has a larger capacity than the Kibbie Dome as well.

Ok, so the UNI-Dome holds 324 more people than the smallest stadium in FBS (which may not even be an FBS stadium in a couple of years...).

[clenz]

Ben Allen is retiring this coming summer, '83. UNI will be hiring a new new President sometime this year.
I believe I read they want to have a new one in place by the end of next June or July. Which makes sense with the new year starting July 1st.

[clenz]

Maybe the MVFC would just move up if a split happens.

A few months ago there was a news story from Fargo that was eerily similar to the one linked on the first page of this thread.
People here, and CS, are completely dismissing the idea that there is going to be another shift and the FCS is going to be left behind, I was one of them. However, the evidence is really starting to mount up. While that may not be the case for all of the FCS schools getting left behind, many AD's don't want to take a chance at it. Trust me, even if your AD hasn't announced their explorations, or have completely denied there is any interest, there is.

Let's put it this way...UNI's AD Dannen is one of the most secretive people I've come across (for good and bad). He doesn't say things for the sake of saying things, he would rather keep his mouth shut about most issues unless there is a very good reason to say something. He may be posturing a bit to get support from the Iowa Board of Regents, but I really do believe there is something looming less than a couple years out.

[clenz]

Ok, so the UNI-Dome holds 324 more people than the smallest stadium in FBS (which may not even be an FBS stadium in a couple of years...).
That wasn't the contention though, was it?

The statement was UNI's arena isn't big enough to meet any FBS standard...which is false, and it wouldn't even be the smallest in the FBS.

[UNIFanSince1983]

Ben Allen is retiring this coming summer, '83. UNI will be hiring a new new President sometime this year.

I don't know why I thought it wasn't for a couple of years. Maybe I just didn't realize that 2013 was next year already...

[UNH Fanboi]

That wasn't the contention though, was it?

The statement was UNI's arena isn't big enough to meet any FBS standard...which is false, and it wouldn't even be the smallest in the FBS.

The implicit contention was that the UNI-Dome is too small and old for UNI to get a MAC invite without an upgrade, which is a reasonable contention. Do you really think UNI could get a MAC invite without a stadium upgrade?

[PantherRob82]

The MAC has 12 full members and a 13th in football. UNI would be a geographic outlier in that league with long road trips.

UMass and Buffalo.

We are 4 hrsish from NIU, 6-8 from the rest of the west division.

We are only 4 hours from 2 MVFC schools. NDSU, MSU, and YSU are all further than MAC West schools.

[PantherRob82]

The implicit contention was that the UNI-Dome is too small and old for UNI to get a MAC invite without an upgrade, which is a reasonable contention. Do you really think UNI could get a MAC invite without a stadium upgrade?

I think the UNI-Dome is nicer than Toledo was when we went to see UNH there last fall.

[clenz]

The implicit contention was that the UNI-Dome is too small and old for UNI to get a MAC invite without an upgrade, which is a reasonable contention. Do you really think UNI could get a MAC invite without a stadium upgrade?
Yes. You probably haven't been to the dome so all you know is the age and likely old photos found on google images.

I can tell you, from being in there this past saturday, the dome looks great. LCD TV's showing the game over every concession stand, the north endzone/concourse/suites were completely redone 2 years ago (which includes locker rooms and weight facility...the people who built it said it was the nicest they'd built outside of 2 or 3 very high level BCS schools), turf that is just 3 years old, a 3 or 4 year old HD video board, the roof was completely redone before last season.

Only 3 "issues" with the dome:
1. Can't be expanded
1a. Limited concourse space
2. Due to the cement interior with metal bleachers the sound system is really iffy
3. ****ty *** seat colors.

Image from homecoming last year...too big to link on the board http://www.midwestsportsfans.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/UNIDome-Homecoming2011.jpg Since this photo a lot of the ads have been replaced, new ads added, conference logos removed from under the suites on the west side, as well as other improvements to the concourse area. Picture from same time frame with video board http://www.flickr.com/photos/visitcedarfalls/4505232525/in/photostream/lightbox/


Then again, most people think of the dome like it was a decade ago

http://mw2.google.com/mw-panoramio/photos/medium/2142247.jpg

[MplsBison]

Yes. You probably haven't been to the dome so all you know is the age and likely old photos found on google images.

I can tell you, from being in there this past saturday, the dome looks great. LCD TV's showing the game over every concession stand, the north endzone/concourse/suites were completely redone 2 years ago (which includes locker rooms and weight facility...the people who built it said it was the nicest they'd built outside of 2 or 3 very high level BCS schools), turf that is just 3 years old, a 3 or 4 year old HD video board, the roof was completely redone before last season.

Only 3 "issues" with the dome:
1. Can't be expanded
1a. Limited concourse space
2. Due to the cement interior with metal bleachers the sound system is really iffy
3. ****ty *** seat colors.

Image from homecoming last year...too big to link on the board http://www.midwestsportsfans.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/UNIDome-Homecoming2011.jpg

And regarding the capacity, I for one would rather have a 16k stadium running 100-105% capacity for average home attendance vs. a 30k stadium running 33$ capacity for average home attendance.

[FargoBison]

People here, and CS, are completely dismissing the idea that there is going to be another shift and the FCS is going to be left behind, I was one of them. However, the evidence is really starting to mount up. While that may not be the case for all of the FCS schools getting left behind, many AD's don't want to take a chance at it. Trust me, even if your AD hasn't announced their explorations, or have completely denied there is any interest, there is.

Let's put it this way...UNI's AD Dannen is one of the most secretive people I've come across (for good and bad). He doesn't say things for the sake of saying things, he would rather keep his mouth shut about most issues unless there is a very good reason to say something. He may be posturing a bit to get support from the Iowa Board of Regents, but I really do believe there is something looming less than a couple years out.

Here is our AD's thoughts, while he doesn't talk about split directly it does seem like he feels something is going on....


“My concern is FCS changes a great deal, App State, Georgia Southerns, Delawares begin to leave and now it's a similar situation to what we faced in Division 2, that concerns me, we can't let these schools leave us again, if you start to see the traditional powers leaves (we)can't be left behind again.”

http://www.wday.com/event/article/id/63709/

[Gringer1]

The endzone walls are what really kills it for me with the Unidome. It just makes it look too much like a car garage or an aircraft hanger. I didn't know that it had a skylight roof though because I've never seen a picture showing the roof like that. Certainly makes it seem nicer in my opinion, since I've never been there, but I can't imaging a cement wall in the endzone looking any better in person.

[clenz]

The endzone walls are what really kills it for me with the Unidome. It just makes it look too much like a car garage or an aircraft hanger. I didn't know that it had a skylight roof though because I've never seen a picture showing the roof like that. Certainly makes it seem nicer in my opinion, since I've never been there, but I can't imaging a cement wall in the endzone looking any better in person.
The walls have only been an issue once...1992 UNI WR Kenny Shedd went head first into one. I wasn't there, but even if I was I wouldn't have been old enough to remember, but those who were there say it is the quietest they've ever heard it. Honestly the walls are set back a couple yards and are never an issue....but they do have padding on them - which is what all the purple stuff is.

The skylight is a pretty sweet deal. Once we get later into the season we have the 4PM kicks, you're able to watch the sky change as it happens and the lighting in the dome changes with it. Pretty neat. Also at night as you're driving into town you can see it from miles outside of town at night if the lights are on.

[Gringer1]

I didn't necessarily mean that the walls were a safety issue, more that they just look bad. Makes the field look like it's in some sort of fallout shelter.

[clenz]

I didn't necessarily mean that the walls were a safety issue, more that they just look bad. Makes the field look like it's in some sort of fallout shelter.
Maybe I'm just used to it, but not really. I can see what you're saying....but is it any worse than YSU's interstate view from their open endzone? Or any of the schools that have an open end zone that just leads to open/un-used area?


Would I like UNI to have an outdoor stadium that is brand new and shiney and bigger? Sure. I'd love to see a 25K seat stadium that looks a lot like what Montana or Nevada's Mackay Stadium (minus the track)? You bet. The reality is that won't happen any time soon. The Dome is far to important to the entire university to go away. Now, we could build a stadium to the west of the dome and turn the dome into an indoor track facility that could still be used for other things....but that is a pipe dream.


UNI isn't what it is today without that dome. Without it we are still D2, possibly without football to be honest.

[Go Lehigh TU Owl]

I think the UNI-Dome is nicer than Toledo was when we went to see UNH there last fall.

You really think the UNI Dome is better than the Glass Bowl? That's a bold statement imo.

I'd rank the MAC Stadiums as...

1. Akron
2. Toledo
3. CMU
4. WMU
5. NIU
6. Kent State
7. Ball State
8. Ohio
9. Miami
10 Buffalo
11. EMU
12. BGSU
13. UMass*

[PantherRob82]

You really think the UNI Dome is better than the Glass Bowl? That's a bold statement imo.

I'd rank the MAC Stadiums as...

1. Akron
2. Toledo
3. CMU
4. WMU
5. NIU
6. Kent State
7. Ball State
8. Ohio
9. Miami
10 Buffalo
11. EMU
12. BGSU
13. UMass*

The Glass Bowl has a cool stone wall around it and history, but the seating, bathrooms and concessions suck. At least on the visitor side. The UNI-Dome is the same on both sides. I like that in a stadium. YSU would be way cooler if it was built evenly, or even close to even.

[ysubigred]

False....****er.

Truth hurts don't it bitch. xblehx

[MplsBison]

You really think the UNI Dome is better than the Glass Bowl? That's a bold statement imo.

I'd rank the MAC Stadiums as...

1. Akron
2. Toledo
3. CMU
4. WMU
5. NIU
6. Kent State
7. Ball State
8. Ohio
9. Miami
10 Buffalo
11. EMU
12. BGSU
13. UMass*

Some of the MAC schools do have some nice facilities.

[Go Lehigh TU Owl]

Glass Bowl
http://specials-images.forbes.com/imageserve/0bT41g50XS8jD/620x434.jpg?fit=scale&background=000000

InfoCision Stadium
http://media.mlive.com/broncos_impact/photo/8984125-large.jpg

Kelly/Shorts Stadium
http://football.ballparks.com/NCAA/MidAmerica/CentralMichigan/interior.jpg

Waldo Stadium
http://image.cdnllnwnl.xosnetwork.com/pics31/640/OA/OAARZSNZUGWLITL.20100316130247.jpg

[Gringer1]

Some of the MAC stadiums are pretty nice, but almost all of them suffer from poor attendance. Nothing looks worse for a stadium than empty seats. EMU's stadium was a lesson in poor facility expansion. They added seats without any thought to symmetry, sight lines, or comfort. The result was an ugly, poorly attended mess.

[MplsBison]

I'd love for NDSU to one day build something like the Glass Bowl, I think it would fit perfectly right in the current 'R' parking lot. Then build a parking ramp where the grass practice fields are. New practice facility to the north of the new stadium where tennis and existing Dacotah practice field is.

A guy can dream...

[BisonBacker]

Per capita Iowa could support a third before ND a first.
Maybe per capita but thanks to Big Oil the State of North Dakota is flush with cash if the powers in the legislature and the SBOHE wanted to push for a FBS school money wouldn't be a problem. But there is more to the story than just cash in ND. Politics is the killer of any move up to FBS and don't get me wrong I'm not saying i'm in favor of any move anyway. I would only be in favor of it if realignments were made that allowed NDSU to continue playing it's peer universities. As it is we are doing that in conference now for the most part. Now if things do change I don't want to see NDSU be left behind like what happened in the 70's again. I only want to see NDSU continue to play the Montana's, SDSU's ect. Playing SOME of the teams in the MAC does nothing for me. If there is a mass exodus of teams like Montana, UNI SDSU ect from 1AA then yes by all means we better be moving. But to move just to say we are now FBS vs. FCS means nothing to me.

[PantherRob82]

Wow, the Glass Bowl is not as nice in person as it is in that picture.

[DSUrocks07]

Wow, the Glass Bowl is not as nice in person as it is in that picture.

The power of CGI xlolx

[89rabbit]

While not directly related it does speak to UNI's financial ability to make any move.

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20120908/NEWS02/309080042/1004/?nclick_check=1

President's residence project would cost UNI $450,000


The University of Northern Iowa has requested approval to perform $450,000 in repairs on the president’s house, according to Iowa Board of Regents meeting documents released Friday. . . .

UNI officials this spring said ongoing budget woes required the elimination of about one-fifth of its academic programs and the closure of Malcolm Price Laboratory School, where student teachers received training.

In its proposal, UNI said it was sensitive to the timing of the request, but said the university has “a responsibility for the preservation of historical and significant campus buildings.” . . . (read more)


Might be hard to argue for a move to FBS when you just cut 1/5 of your academic programs, the purpose for the University.

[PantherRob82]

The power of CGI xlolx

That picture doesn't show what the seating is like, that the concessions are just little stands under the bleachers, or that the whole place needs a makeover.

Wouldn't expect a DSU fan to know anything about nice....lol. ;)

[MplsBison]

While not directly related it does speak to UNI's financial ability to make any move.

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20120908/NEWS02/309080042/1004/?nclick_check=1

President's residence project would cost UNI $450,000


The University of Northern Iowa has requested approval to perform $450,000 in repairs on the president’s house, according to Iowa Board of Regents meeting documents released Friday. . . .

UNI officials this spring said ongoing budget woes required the elimination of about one-fifth of its academic programs and the closure of Malcolm Price Laboratory School, where student teachers received training.

In its proposal, UNI said it was sensitive to the timing of the request, but said the university has “a responsibility for the preservation of historical and significant campus buildings.” . . . (read more)


Might be hard to argue for a move to FBS when you just cut 1/5 of your academic programs, the purpose for the University.

Unless of course the move to FBS is being sold by the AD as a move required to save the athletic department financially!

[UNIFanSince1983]

I wonder what effect the move by Notre Dame to the ACC will have. I know they aren't full fledged football members of the ACC, but they will be playing 5 games and I think when their contract comes up they might get enticed by the rest of the conference to become full football members. This might be the beginning of some more major shakeups.

[clenz]

I'll touch more on this when I'm on a computer,BUT that number of 1/5 is very misleading. They were thing like german teaching, and other things that are better as minors than majors...oh and the number of students affected by the cuts was les than 2%

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk 2

[grayghost06]

Was money the driving force in building a multi purpose arena in the first place? Why are they playing indoors, when Iowa, Iowa State, U of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Drake, Northwestern, Nebraska and South Dakota State all seem to manage just fine playing outside?

It would seem to me that even w/ all of UNI's success at the FCS level, without an FBS size stadium they'll be just like Idaho. Playing in the dome will meet the barest of minimums for maintaining FBS status but they'll never get decent FBS teams to come there.

[MplsBison]

Take Drake and SDSU out of that group for a second. All the rest of the schools you mention are big time schools.

Drake and SDSU, sure they play the games outside well enough but I bet their attendance really starts to drop when it gets cold out. Of course being in South Dakota and Iowa does help quite a bit. Seriously. Pulling off large attendance at an outdoor game in Nov/Dec in Minn or North Dakota is not just reasonable unless you're the Gophers or Vikings.


So that's probably why NDSU, UND, USD and UNI all have domes. I can tell you now, NDSU does not have 18k hardcore fans that go to the homes games. If it was 10 degrees at game time, attendance would be more like 10-12k.

[BisonBacker]

I'll touch more on this when I'm on a computer,BUT that number of 1/5 is very misleading. They were thing like german teaching, and other things that are better as minors than majors...oh and the number of students affected by the cuts was les than 2%

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk 2

Clenz, that sounds like spin to me. You or I may not have seen those programs as important but others may. When you are cutting academics in the name of financial woes and then the President or AD or coaches turn around and say we need to spend more money so we can compete at the FBS level something isn't right. As much as I love college sports academics has to be the first priority of any school. When you are cutting academics folks are going to gripe but begrudgingly accept it as most folks who use common sense understand this. But turn around and tell those same folks yeah not only are we cutting academics were going to spend more money on athletics so we can be FBS???? Good luck with that if you can sell that you can sell an eskimo a refrigerator.

[unigriff]

Take Drake and SDSU out of that group for a second. All the rest of the schools you mention are big time schools.

Drake and SDSU, sure they play the games outside well enough but I bet their attendance really starts to drop when it gets cold out. Of course being in South Dakota and Iowa does help quite a bit. Seriously. Pulling off large attendance at an outdoor game in Nov/Dec in Minn or North Dakota is not just reasonable unless you're the Gophers or Vikings.


So that's probably why NDSU, UND, USD and UNI all have domes. I can tell you now, NDSU does not have 18k hardcore fans that go to the homes games. If it was 10 degrees at game time, attendance would be more like 10-12k.

Actually in that sense (having a dome) it is beneficial for attendance. I think it was 2009 when UNI played Richmond (god what a horrible memory)..a blinding blizzard that day and yet because we had a dome the attendance was still over 12k i believe. Had it been outside, we'd prob have 5k max. It would take a massive construction job, but it could be done to add 10k more seats to the dome. Or just build a new retractable roof dome. :)

[BisonBacker]

Duplicate post. Boards being a bit quirky this am won't let me delete it???

[BisonBacker]

Actually in that sense (having a dome) it is beneficial for attendance. I think it was 2009 when UNI played Richmond (god what a horrible memory)..a blinding blizzard that day and yet because we had a dome the attendance was still over 12k i believe. Had it been outside, we'd prob have 5k max. It would take a massive construction job, but it could be done to add 10k more seats to the dome. Or just build a new retractable roof dome. :)

Are you sure you aren't a UND fan?? xlolx :D

[MplsBison]

Actually in that sense (having a dome) it is beneficial for attendance. I think it was 2009 when UNI played Richmond (god what a horrible memory)..a blinding blizzard that day and yet because we had a dome the attendance was still over 12k i believe. Had it been outside, we'd prob have 5k max. It would take a massive construction job, but it could be done to add 10k more seats to the dome. Or just build a new retractable roof dome. :)

Yep. Everyone hates domes. Until they love them because they'd be freezing their balls off without it.

[UNIFanSince1983]

Clenz, that sounds like spin to me. You or I may not have seen those programs as important but others may. When you are cutting academics in the name of financial woes and then the President or AD or coaches turn around and say we need to spend more money so we can compete at the FBS level something isn't right. As much as I love college sports academics has to be the first priority of any school. When you are cutting academics folks are going to gripe but begrudgingly accept it as most folks who use common sense understand this. But turn around and tell those same folks yeah not only are we cutting academics were going to spend more money on athletics so we can be FBS???? Good luck with that if you can sell that you can sell an eskimo a refrigerator.

Most of the programs had 5 or fewer graduates in the past 6 years or something like that. These were not necessary. Closing the lab school was something that needed to be done like 10 years ago.

I do understand your point though. It will be a hard sell after what happened.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

[PantherRob82]

Actually in that sense (having a dome) it is beneficial for attendance. I think it was 2009 when UNI played Richmond (god what a horrible memory)..a blinding blizzard that day and yet because we had a dome the attendance was still over 12k i believe. Had it been outside, we'd prob have 5k max. It would take a massive construction job, but it could be done to add 10k more seats to the dome. Or just build a new retractable roof dome. :)

2007 Delaware

[clenz]

Clenz, that sounds like spin to me. You or I may not have seen those programs as important but others may. When you are cutting academics in the name of financial woes and then the President or AD or coaches turn around and say we need to spend more money so we can compete at the FBS level something isn't right. As much as I love college sports academics has to be the first priority of any school. When you are cutting academics folks are going to gripe but begrudgingly accept it as most folks who use common sense understand this. But turn around and tell those same folks yeah not only are we cutting academics were going to spend more money on athletics so we can be FBS???? Good luck with that if you can sell that you can sell an eskimo a refrigerator.
It's not spinning...it's the truth...



http://thegazette.com/2012/03/15/uni-program-cuts-to-go-to-regents-next-week/
Officials said the programs awarded less than 2 percent of UNI’s degrees last year and graduated, on average, fewer than two students per year over the last five years.

There was ZERO need to spend the money to fund programs graduating LESS THAN 2 STUDENTS PER YEAR!

People weren't really pissy about the academics getting cut - because they weren't useful degrees/weren't used by students. I'm trying to get the website with the list of closed/restrucured programs up, but it won't load. If it does I'll post them.

What pissed people off was the closing of the lab school - which needed to be done for about 100 different reasons. Biggest one being that the building needed over 30 MILLION DOLLARS IN RENOVATIONS TO STAY THIS SIDE OF CONDEMNED Couple that with the fact it wasn't a giving student teachers a real life environment, there was a MASSIVE scandal a couple years ago where the school encouraged people to lie about their address to get cheaper tuition http://wcfcourier.com/news/local/update-state-s-case-against-price-lab-parents-begins/article_a807cafc-2338-11e0-8906-001cc4c002e0.html and the fact that enrollment was dropping (they had dropped a couple athletic programs and were trying to figure out how to stay open the way it was). Like someone else said, it should have happened YEARS ago.

[clenz]

Found it...straight from the Iowa BOR press release. Remember the AVERAGE FOR ALL OF THESE PROGRAMS WAS LESS THAN 2 STUDENTS PER YEAR


Proposed programs for termination. The following programs are proposed for termination.


Undergraduate Programs - Program details are included in Attachment A (pages 5-15).
 Bachelor of Science – Applied Physics
 Bachelor of Science – Physics
 Bachelor of Arts - Physics
 Bachelor of Arts – Biology: Microbiology Emphasis
 Bachelor of Science – Bioinformatics
 Bachelor of Arts – Biology: Plant Bioscience Emphasis
 Bachelor of Arts – Biotechnology
 Bachelor of Arts – Earth Science: Interpretive Naturalist Emphasis
 Bachelor of Arts – Geography with Environmental Emphasis
 Bachelor of Arts – Geography with Geographic Information Science Emphasis
 Bachelor of Arts – Geography: Teaching
 Bachelor of Arts – Geography: Urban and Regional Spatial Analysis Emphasis
 Bachelor of Arts – Geology
 Bachelor of Science – Geology
 Bachelor of Arts – Health Education: Teaching
 Bachelor of Arts – Psychology: Teaching
 Bachelor of Arts – World Languages and Cultures: Dual
 Bachelor of Arts – World Languages and Cultures: Dual Teaching
 Bachelor of Arts – World Languages and Cultures: French
 Bachelor of Arts – World Languages and Cultures: French Teaching
 Bachelor of Arts – World Languages and Cultures: German
 Bachelor of Arts – World Languages and Cultures: German Teaching
 Bachelor of Arts – World Languages and Cultures: Russian


Graduate Programs - Program details are included in Attachment B (pages 16-23).
 Master of Arts in Education – Curriculum and Instruction: Education of the Gifted
 Master of Arts in Education in Middle Level Education: Content Specialization
 Professional Science Master’s – Applied Chemistry and Biochemistry
 Master of Arts - Biology
 Master of Arts – Chemistry
 Master of Science – Chemistry
 Professional Science Master’s – Applied Physics
 Master of Science – Computer Science
 Master of Arts - Criminology
 Master of Science – Environmental Health Emphasis
 Master of Science – Environmental Science Emphasis
 Master of Arts – French
 Master of Arts – German
 Professional Science Master’s - Industrial Mathematics: Continuous Quality
Improvement
 Professional Science Master’s – Industrial Mathematics: Mathematical Computing
and Modeling Option
 Master of Arts – Sociology


 Criteria to terminate programs. The criteria used to generate a pool of programs for
potential closure were based on program completion rates. The specific criteria used
included a five-year average of at least 10 completions for undergraduate programs, four
completions for master’s programs, and three completions for doctoral programs. These
benchmarks closely mirror those used by other universities and they account for the
normal difference in size between undergraduate and graduate programs.

After the pool of programs was created, other considerations that could be consistently
applied across all programs were used to determine if a program would be kept,
restructured, or closed. One consideration was to keep STEM education programs,
regardless of size. Another was to keep programs that were subsets of other programs
being kept, or that used courses that would be taught as requirements in other programs.
A decision was also made to keep programs that led to popular teaching endorsements or
credentials, although the programs might have to be restructured to match the
endorsement or credential requirements. Finally, some programs were kept because it
was projected that they would meet the average graduation requirement after
re-organization or restructuring.


 Proposed programs for suspension of admissions. The following programs are proposed
for immediate suspension of admissions. Program details are included in Attachment C
(pages 24-28).
 Master of Arts – Art Education
 Bachelor of Arts – Communication-Theatre Teaching
 Doctor of Industrial Technology
 Master of Science – Technology
 Master of Arts – TESOL/Modern Languages
 Bachelor of Arts – TESOL/Modern Language Teaching
 Master of Arts – Women’s and Gender Studies
 Bachelor of Arts – Geography
 Minor – Geography
 Minor – Communication-Theatre Teaching
 Purpose of proposed suspensions. By limiting the number of new students in the
programs mentioned above, the faculty will have an opportunity to conduct a thorough
review of the programs and implement curriculum modifications, reorganization, or
restructuring that will likely lead to increased enrollment and/or completion rates. If
approved, the proposed term of the suspensions will be two years.
 Proposed termination of minors. The following program minors are proposed for
termination. Program details are included in Attachment D (pages 29-38).
 Minor – Communication-Theatre Teaching
 Minor – Geography
 Minor – Special Education Teaching
 Minor – Asian Studies
 Minor – Astronomy
 Minor – Bioinformatics
 Minor – Comparative Literature
 Minor – Dance
 Minor – French Studies
 Minor – French Teaching
 Minor – Geography Teaching BOARD OF REGENTS EDUCATION AND STUDENT AFFAIRS COMMITTEE 2


 Minor – Geology
 Minor – German
 Minor – German Teaching
 Minor – Leadership Studies
 Minor – Meteorology
 Minor – Natural History Interpretation
 Minor – Portuguese
 Minor – Portuguese Teaching
 Minor – Youth Services Administration
 Minor – Russian
 Minor – Russian Teaching

[clenz]

Was money the driving force in building a multi purpose arena in the first place? Why are they playing indoors, when Iowa, Iowa State, U of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Drake, Northwestern, Nebraska and South Dakota State all seem to manage just fine playing outside?

It would seem to me that even w/ all of UNI's success at the FCS level, without an FBS size stadium they'll be just like Idaho. Playing in the dome will meet the barest of minimums for maintaining FBS status but they'll never get decent FBS teams to come there.
The reason the dome was built was to get a single home for football, basketball, track, and wrestling. The football stadium UNI was playing in was really started to age and needed to be replaced...same with the gym that the basketball teams, volleyball, and wrestling team was using. (in fact none of those structures exist as gyms anymore. One was turned into the technology center on campus - the other is still athletically used as it is being completely over hauled into a wrestling specific venue. Neither one could hold over 3000 people and were glorified high school gyms.

From 1976 until 2006 (when the McLeod Center opened which houses basketball and volleyball (did wrestling for a couple years as well) the dome hosted football, basketball, wrestling, track, high school football playoffs, high school football regular season games, national wreslting tournaments, concerts, expos of all kinds, graduation ceremonies, etc... Today it still does all of those except wrestling (still used for national tournaments), basketball games (camps are still held in there as multiple courts can be set up in it.)

[unigriff]

2007 Delaware

aww yes, correct. damn flacco.

[clenz]

aww yes, correct. damn flacco.
Official attendance was 15,803...not bad considering about 17K tickets were sold AND the state of Iowa had pretty much every inter-state and high way shut down for a day or two, along with all the airports after the state was hit over an inch of nothing but ice.

Take the roof off the dome and we maybe see 5K....maybe....likely 1k

[unigriff]

well it also helped it was our undefeated #1 panthers in the quaters. That was probably a large factor too.

[MplsBison]

Official attendance was 15,803...not bad considering about 17K tickets were sold AND the state of Iowa had pretty much every inter-state and high way shut down for a day or two, along with all the airports after the state was hit over an inch of nothing but ice.

Take the roof off the dome and we maybe see 5K....maybe....likely 1k

Makes me wonder how SDSU would ever be able to host late round playoff games...but I guess if they can do it in Montana. And of course it's not a consistent snow and ice storm in the winter, just feels like it.

[UNIFanSince1983]

We may have been able to win that game in a snow storm. I have a feeling Mr. Flacco would not have been able to wing it all over the field the way he did if that was in a blizzard. Who knows though that was a very good Delaware team.

[grayghost06]

The reason the dome was built was to get a single home for football, basketball, track, and wrestling. The football stadium UNI was playing in was really started to age and needed to be replaced...same with the gym that the basketball teams, volleyball, and wrestling team was using. (in fact none of those structures exist as gyms anymore. One was turned into the technology center on campus - the other is still athletically used as it is being completely over hauled into a wrestling specific venue. Neither one could hold over 3000 people and were glorified high school gyms.

From 1976 until 2006 (when the McLeod Center opened which houses basketball and volleyball (did wrestling for a couple years as well) the dome hosted football, basketball, wrestling, track, high school football playoffs, high school football regular season games, national wreslting tournaments, concerts, expos of all kinds, graduation ceremonies, etc... Today it still does all of those except wrestling (still used for national tournaments), basketball games (camps are still held in there as multiple courts can be set up in it.)

Interesting stuff. I actually looked up the old stadium after I posted. Def had some character.

I don't know what the mindset is for UNI fans about possibly moving up to FBS ball- Is it something most fans want? On our boards, it's probably 75-25 in favor, with the biggest negatives being stuck in a crap conference that's no better than where we are now ( and w/o the local rivalries). As a former teachers college ourselves, we understand the unlikeliness of reaching BCS level but do want to strive to reach a level of "best of the rest". I personally would not want JMU to make the move unless I felt we had all the pieces or plans in place to give it our best shot at making it work.

If you guys were to explore a move to FBS, what do you think it would take in terms of the dome/stadium issue?
Can it possibly be expanded? I just see too many similarities to Idahos' situation if you moved forward and played in a small dome. You literally would have a ceiling to the limits of the success of the program.

The MACs with larger facilities have been able to get some 2 for one deals with bigger name schools. The ones that don't have great facilities have scored a "neutral" site game at a nearby large city but that does not appear an option given your location.

Just genuinely interested in if you guys think it's realistic to move or are most fans content with the solid rivalries & good conference you're in now?

[MSUBear42]

Let's be honest... It seems the direction we are heading is the BCS splitting off anyways. Would the "mid major" FBS teams try to save that level of football? Or could we potentially see the FCS growing dramatically in size?

[clenz]

Interesting stuff. I actually looked up the old stadium after I posted. Def had some character.

I don't know what the mindset is for UNI fans about possibly moving up to FBS ball- Is it something most fans want? On our boards, it's probably 75-25 in favor, with the biggest negatives being stuck in a crap conference that's no better than where we are now ( and w/o the local rivalries). As a former teachers college ourselves, we understand the unlikeliness of reaching BCS level but do want to strive to reach a level of "best of the rest". I personally would not want JMU to make the move unless I felt we had all the pieces or plans in place to give it our best shot at making it work.

If you guys were to explore a move to FBS, what do you think it would take in terms of the dome/stadium issue?
Can it possibly be expanded? I just see too many similarities to Idahos' situation if you moved forward and played in a small dome. You literally would have a ceiling to the limits of the success of the program.

The MACs with larger facilities have been able to get some 2 for one deals with bigger name schools. The ones that don't have great facilities have scored a "neutral" site game at a nearby large city but that does not appear an option given your location.

Just genuinely interested in if you guys think it's realistic to move or are most fans content with the solid rivalries & good conference you're in now?The dome can't be expanded...This is a photo that's a couple years old (probably summer 06 as it looks like they are laying the sod around the McLeod center and finishing loading docks) facing north west. To the left of the dome (south) is the basketball arena, and to the right (north) is the Wellness and Recreation center, the field runs N/S. The road to the east is a major road in Cedar Falls (Hudson Rd).

With as much money has been dumped into the dome the last 5-10 years it isn't going anywhere (likely about enough to get a HUGE jump on paying for a new stadium) for at least a decade. The roof replacement in 2010 was 4 million alone. If a new stadium were to be built the dome would still stay standing, it is still used for FAR to many things. I don't know what would happen to it, and really have no guesses as the locker rooms, offices, and weight rooms were all redone in 2008/2009ish. My best guess for a loaction of a new stadium would be directly west of the dome. There is a ton of space over there, it's would be a matter of zoning it.

16812

The area circles in blue is the current practice fields, and the former lab schools softball/baseball complex. Since the school no longer exists, UNI not having baseball (even when we had it we played elsewhere), and UNI using a much nicer softball complex in town there is no need to keep those. That blue area could become a complete practice zone by getting rid of the fields. Already 3 or 4 practice fields there though.

The area in brown would be my first guess for the stadium. Right now it is grass lots used for big event parking (football, concerts, etc...) More than enough space for a 25k seat stadium. However, parking may be an issue at that point.

The area in purple would likely be the choice (although would easily work for parking) if option 2 is picked. The green area is the old soccer complex (the Cedar Valley has a new and very nice facility UNI uses), HOWEVER, the women's rugby team uses those fields. I don't see them wanting to find a new place to go. Cement that area and making it parking to use the middle area. However, it allows the biggest plot for a stadium with expansion room.


Really that is all just dreams right now though.


As for a conference, the consensus is that if anything happens it is going to be the MAC for football only. There is probably a 75% approval of it on panthernation.com. There are some who are against a move because of the FCS playoff, some don't think the money will work, some don't want to go unless we get a big time conference (not going to happen, even if it does years down the road it won't be until after being MAC/CUSA for YEARS) etc... However, the consensus (by far) is if the numbers work and the MAC is the option to do it. There is great hesitation for the Sun Belt or some revival of the WAC (as there should be).

The lack of being able to do a 2-1 is an issue, however, the neutral site game isn't as big of an issue as you'd think (remember FAU hosted Michigan State in Ford Field a couple years ago). Cedar Falls is 3.5 from Minneapolis keeping the Minnesota option open (a game at TCF and a game in the Dome, or the new Vikings stadium when it opens, hell NDSU would bring a **** ton of fans), 4/5 hours from Chicago so Illinois is in play (Wisconsin is only about 2 hours from Chicago and maybe would do it as a 2 games in Madison 1 in Chicago...maybe not after 2 weeks ago xlolx), 4.5 hours from St. Louis (Mizzou and Illinois), 4 hours from Kansas City (Kansas, K-State, Missouri) Would it be ideal? Heck no, but it would work.

[clenz]

Let's be honest... It seems the direction we are heading is the BCS splitting off anyways. Would the "mid major" FBS teams try to save that level of football? Or could we potentially see the FCS growing dramatically in size?
Most "people in the know" seem to believe the new set up will look like this...roughly

Tier 1 - BCS conferences still at the full 85 scholarship limit
Tier 2 - FBS conferences possibly not at the full 85
Tier 3 - top level FCS maybe at the 63
Tier 4 - low level FCS
Seems almost identical to what there is now, but there is a strong fear that the window to move from FCS to FBS is going to close again and you'll either be FBS or you won't be and the FCS is going to be almost separated from the FBS (no games or anything).

The reason there is all this clamor to get FBS before the move happens is in case that does happen you're still at the second level of football instead of being "left behind". Yes, there is a chance you could make the move and basically end up right back where you were with the way it could shake out - but there is nothing lost in that. It's why you'll see NMSU and Idaho hold on as long as they can.

[Vitojr130]

The lack of being able to do a 2-1 is an issue, however, the neutral site game isn't as big of an issue as you'd think (remember FAU hosted Michigan State in Ford Field a couple years ago). Cedar Falls is 3.5 from Minneapolis keeping the Minnesota option open (a game at TCF and a game in the Dome, or the new Vikings stadium when it opens, hell NDSU would bring a **** ton of fans), 4/5 hours from Chicago so Illinois is in play (Wisconsin is only about 2 hours from Chicago and maybe would do it as a 2 games in Madison 1 in Chicago...maybe not after 2 weeks ago xlolx), 4.5 hours from St. Louis (Mizzou and Illinois), 4 hours from Kansas City (Kansas, K-State, Missouri) Would it be ideal? Heck no, but it would work.


UNI's location is prime for being a B1G or Big 12 caliber team, but it would take a few years to work up to that even if a move was made to the MAC.

[MSUBear42]

UNI's location is prime for being a B1G or Big 12 caliber team, but it would take a few years to work up to that even if a move was made to the MAC.

Is that sarcastic? A few years??? Unless 20=a few?

[clenz]

To be clear no uni fan has realistic dreams of b10/12...we all realize its pretty much dreams

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk 2

[BucBisonAtLarge]

Is UNI ready to move from the MVC in all other sports? No doubt the MAC would love you. Basketball looks like a step down, and away from traditional rival with a lot more travel..

[clenz]

Dannen has said he will not jeopardize our standing in the mvc

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk 2

[BisonBacker]

Dannen has said he will not jeopardize our standing in the mvc

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk 2

Honest question then Clenz, do you see the MAC accepting a football only member in UNI? Honestly I haven't looked at the history of the MAC to see if there is precedent for this or not? Do they have any other Football only schools? I probably should already know the answer to that but I don't.

[MplsBison]

Honest question then Clenz, do you see the MAC accepting a football only member in UNI? Honestly I haven't looked at the history of the MAC to see if there is precedent for this or not? Do they have any other Football only schools? I probably should already know the answer to that but I don't.

Temple (former) and UMass (current) were/are members of the A10 and football-only in the MAC.

[PantherRob82]

...and Dannen may be bluffing to keep the MVC happy....:D

[ValleyChamp]

...and Dannen may be bluffing to keep the MVC happy....:D

I think its quite the opposite. I don't think he would be saying anything at all if he didn't know something. I think that he probably has an idea that a certain conference would be willing to accept a football only membership for a UNI Football program sometime in the future. And I think the MAC could very well be that conference, when you consider the strong rumors of moving the wrestling program into the MAC.

[henfan]

We may have been able to win that game in a snow storm. I have a feeling Mr. Flacco would not have been able to wing it all over the field the way he did if that was in a blizzard. Who knows though that was a very good Delaware team.

Funny you should mention a UNI advantage in the snow. I seem to remember a snow storm and a certain purple team from the Midwest coming into The Tub in 2003.

Wasn't UNI investigating the possibility of scholarship reductions for FB a few short years ago? Has the financial situation improved that much in Cedar Falls?

[clenz]

I think its quite the opposite. I don't think he would be saying anything at all if he didn't know something. I think that he probably has an idea that a certain conference would be willing to accept a football only membership for a UNI Football program sometime in the future. And I think the MAC could very well be that conference, when you consider the strong rumors of moving the wrestling program into the MAC.This. Dannen is far too smart (regardless what some Panther fans want to believe about him), and secretive, to say some of the things he has the last 2 weeks or so without having a damn good idea of something being fairly set. I know the talks have been going on within the department for a couple years and have been rather serious as well. The fact that they kept that a secret is pretty amazing.


Funny you should mention a UNI advantage in the snow. I seem to remember a snow storm and a certain purple team from the Midwest coming into The Tub in 2003.

Wasn't UNI investigating the possibility of scholarship reductions for FB a few short years ago? Has the financial situation improved that much in Cedar Falls?
No. The study that was done looked at every option possible....move FBS, stay FCS, go FCS non scholly, go D2, drop football....apparently the only things anyone remembers the study being about it is the dropping side of things. The study found that the way things sat at that current time was to stay FCS, followed by going FBS, then dropping scholly, then drop football, then go D2.

It's not that the finances have changed so much, as the landscape of everything. Dannen has a very good idea of what is going on right now. This may amount to nothing, like ASU thus far. However, UNI fans are much more gaurded in our "optimism" because we realize the hurdles that are out there yet

[Hammerhead]

It would help if their stadium had turf. The field at Montana State was in good shape for the playoffs in 2010 right after a heavy snow. Back when NDSU played outside, we still had good crowds for playoff games in cold weather although I doubt we could sell all of the available season tickets if we didn't play in the Fargodome.





Makes me wonder how SDSU would ever be able to host late round playoff games...but I guess if they can do it in Montana. And of course it's not a consistent snow and ice storm in the winter, just feels like it.

[totoinfl]

I lived in Wichita 8 years before I got parole to Florida. The talked about bringing football back every year...reality is the tWSU just doesn't have the facilities to handle it and the cost would brutalize them.


BBAL: How serious are they about bringing football back to WSU? I have heard that they are adding club football but what are the chances that it will go further? It would be nice to have them back- I remember the plane crash that ruined the program.

[totoinfl]

Playing football on week nights will impact your non-student crowd adversely...bet on it.


Some of the MAC stadiums are pretty nice, but almost all of them suffer from poor attendance. Nothing looks worse for a stadium than empty seats. EMU's stadium was a lesson in poor facility expansion. They added seats without any thought to symmetry, sight lines, or comfort. The result was an ugly, poorly attended mess.

[MSUBear42]

Response from MO State: www.news-leader.com/article/20120915/SPORTS0401/309150007/Missouri-State-Bears-football-Northern-Iowa-Football-Bowl-Subdivision


Moats is very guarded about comments, especially since we've been so bad lately, but I sense that if we do name our interim president, president, we would start looking at the move more seriously.