Merrimack College: Athletics continues drive for full Division I status

[dbackjon]

http://magazine.merrimack.edu/athletics-continues-drive-for-full-division-i-status/

The initiative to move Merrimack athletics (http://www.merrimackathletics.com/landing/index) fully into Division I is “a top priority for the athletic program and the institution,” said Athletic Director Jeremy Gibson — boldly laid out in the college’s Agenda for Distinction (http://www.merrimack.edu/strategicplan/) and passionately but methodically pursued by the college.
“We are very pleased with the feedback that we are doing all of the right things to position Merrimack Athletics to make a successful transition to DI when we receive a conference invitation,” Gibson said.
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (http://www.ncaa.org/), which regulates intercollegiate athletics for nearly 1,300 U.S. institutions, organizes competition into three divisions. Merrimack has 24 teams in competition — two, men’s and women’s hockey (http://www.merrimackathletics.com/sports/wice/index), classified as Division I, the rest Division II.
“Athletics is very visible — historically, it’s been a source of great pride for the institution,” said Gibson. The athletics program has boosted its visibility with such moves as “webstreaming athletics events (http://www.merrimackathletics.com/information/pages/Multimedia)” and partnerships with “local, regional and national media,” including several televised games each season.
That visibility, while important, is one of several factors weighed by Division I athletic conferences when they formally extend an invitation to a school to join.
Merrimack has been focusing its efforts on selected Division I organizations, in hopes of receiving an invitation to join a Division I conference in the near future, Gibson said. They’ve been casting an eye over such matters as Merrimack’s investment in athletic facilities, the growth and success of programs, coaching staff, scholarships and support services such as athletic training programs.

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They have football - NEC?

[WrenFGun]

They are pretty darn tiny. I grew up 5-10 minutes down the road from them -- would be a neat story; there's some food and shopping around the campus and it's generally well-regarded in the area, but it would still be surprising to seem them DI in things like basketball and football. UNH's BBALL coach is [I believe] either a Merrimack Alum or a former coach there.

[UIWWildthing]

I saw that the article there is from January of 2015, almost 2 years ago. This from last December says that they were "essentially waiting for an invite at this point" and the NEC, MAAC and A-East were possible targets http://www.themackreport.com/merrimack-athletics/merrimack-plugging-away-on-move-to-division-i/.

That's the last I could find on any other movement though it looks like.

[Lehigh Football Nation]

The good - they are a Northeastern-based team, have plenty of sports (including men's and women's hockey) and might be a good match for either the Patriot League or NEC. They would have a natural geographic match with either Holy Cross or Bryant.

The bad - they are a tiny school that are marginally bigger than Lafayette, and have areas of overlap with both the PL and NEC, but aren't a perfect match for either.

Push comes to shove they seem like a good fit for the NEC.

[dbackjon]

I saw that the article there is from January of 2015, almost 2 years ago. This from last December says that they were "essentially waiting for an invite at this point" and the NEC, MAAC and A-East were possible targets http://www.themackreport.com/merrimack-athletics/merrimack-plugging-away-on-move-to-division-i/.

That's the last I could find on any other movement though it looks like.

So they are still pimping themselves out, with no takers...

[Go Green]

Dartmouth's JV used to play them in football in the 1990s. Don't think that's happened in a while.

[Pinnum]

I don't understand this.

NEC is not going to provide them with more than they are getting out of NE-10. Their expenses are much lower in the NE-10 and they will get minimal exposure and guarantees from the NEC.

[PAllen]

Build stadium and arena first, then we'll talk.

[aceinthehole]

The good - they are a Northeastern-based team, have plenty of sports (including men's and women's hockey) and might be a good match for either the Patriot League or NEC. They would have a natural geographic match with either Holy Cross or Bryant.

The bad - they are a tiny school that are marginally bigger than Lafayette, and have areas of overlap with both the PL and NEC, but aren't a perfect match for either.

Push comes to shove they seem like a good fit for the NEC.

True, they are a great fit for the core of the league. They are small enrollment, small budget, private institution in the general footprint of the NEC. They would fit perfectly athletically and academically alongside the likes of Bryant, Sacred Heart, Wagner, and Saint Francis.

Problem for them is simple - the NEC isn't adding a member unless they have to. We saw that with NJIT waiting for an invite that was never coming. The NEC has 10 members, which leads to an 18-game double round robin basketball schedule. We have an AQ in football, and a lot of parity within the league. We don't need another school to split the limited NCAA revenues we earn.

If a NEC school, especially one that plays football, such as CCSU, were to leave for another conference, then I think Merrimack would be offered an invite in a matter of weeks. Bentley is likely another (in case of emergency break glass) option for the NEC that plays football.

[ccd494]

I don't understand this.

NEC is not going to provide them with more than they are getting out of NE-10. Their expenses are much lower in the NE-10 and they will get minimal exposure and guarantees from the NEC.

Protects hockey in the event of some sort of shakeup jeopardizing their D-I status or scholarships. There have also been a bunch of fights about D-I hockey voting status (and the Big Ten trying to ram through legislation despite hockey schools voting against it 50-10). The seat at the discussion table is a bit more secure if you are a full blown D-I member as opposed to a play-up.

[UNHWildcat18]

Good for them but yeah don't anyone really wants them

[ccd494]

Good for them but yeah don't anyone really wants them

I think America East would at least be open to it. They have a relationship with UVM/UNH/Maine/UML from Hockey East. Heck, that would get back to 5 HEA members in AEC. Nowhere to put football, though.

I agree with ace on Bentley, too. Maybe Merrimack is trying to get out in front of the Falcons should there be any availability anywhere? Bentley has the same hockey concerns, and would love a Hockey East invite to boot.

[DFW HOYA]

Build stadium and arena first, then we'll talk.

Good thing that wasn't a requirement to join the PL... xlolx

[Lehigh Football Nation]

Merrimack goes to America East, AE goes from 9 --> 10 full members, incl. five Hockey East members.

Merrimack FB becomes associate member of NEC, goes from 7 --> 8 teams and becomes travel partner with Bryant, perhaps setting up regular season finale with Bryant each year.

Makes so much sense.... would add stability to two conference situations that desperately need it.

If the NEC won't take on Merrimack, the PL could, possibly. Merrimack's acceptance rate is way higher than most PL schools, though.

[aceinthehole]

I think America East would at least be open to it. They have a relationship with UVM/UNH/Maine/UML from Hockey East. Heck, that would get back to 5 HEA members in AEC. Nowhere to put football, though.

I agree with ace on Bentley, too. Maybe Merrimack is trying to get out in front of the Falcons should there be any availability anywhere? Bentley has the same hockey concerns, and would love a Hockey East invite to boot.
If CCSU is not the next addition to America East sometime in the future, I think I'll go crazy. The UML addition was very disappointing to our fans, but it did make a lot of sense. They are public university in Massachusetts and had a relationship with other members through Hockey East. Nice facilities and good market (Greater Boston) to replace the loss of NU and BU.

But how about UNH, Maine, Albany, and SBU start to build a formal bond with Central Connecticut around football? :) Seriously, there is no candidate for the AE that is a better fit than CCSU. Can't those 4 schools and URI leverage a CAA Football invite for CCSU? Is Hartford still absolutely opposed to our entry?

I don't see any movement on the horizon, but if it does I would expect to see CCSU in the mix.

[Libertine]

they ...have areas of overlap with both the PL and NEC, but aren't a perfect match for either.


In other words, they're PERFECT for the Big South! xthumbsupx

[dbackjon]

In other words, they're PERFECT for the Big South! xthumbsupx


And North Alabama!!

[Laker]

If CCSU is not the next addition to America East sometime in the future, I think I'll go crazy. The UML addition was very disappointing to our fans, but it did make a lot of sense. They are public university in Massachusetts and had a relationship with other members through Hockey East. Nice facilities and good market (Greater Boston) to replace the loss of NU and BU.

But how about UNH, Maine, Albany, and SBU start to build a formal bond with Central Connecticut around football? :) Seriously, there is no candidate for the AE that is a better fit than CCSU. Can't those 4 schools and URI leverage a CAA Football invite for CCSU? Is Hartford still absolutely opposed to our entry?

I don't see any movement on the horizon, but if it does I would expect to see CCSU in the mix.

I might be blowing in the wind here- but what if CCSU would change their name to Connecticut State? Or would there be too much opposition from Eastern, Southern and Western? ULL and ULM changed their names in Louisiana.

[Lehigh Football Nation]

I might be blowing in the wind here- but what if CCSU would change their name to Connecticut State? Or would there be too much opposition from Eastern, Southern and Western? ULL and ULM changed their names in Louisiana.

ULL,ULM, Texas State and Missouri State... are you trying to invoke cautionary tales for CCSU? xlolx

[CHIP72]

Merrimack is in the Northeast 10 (NE-10) Conference, which for football purposes is considered one of the weakest conferences in Division II (though there are usually some very good programs in the conference; LIU-Post and Assumption made the playoffs this year and New Haven is traditionally a good program). If Merrimack moved up to FCS/DI-AA, the Northeast Conference would probably be the best fit for football, and the NEC and America East would be the most obvious basketball targets.

EDIT - somehow I only saw the first 3 posts in this thread but not the other posts before writing the above. My apologies for the duplication of some content.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Laker]

ULL,ULM, Texas State and Missouri State... are you trying to invoke cautionary tales for CCSU? xlolx

I was hoping that Mankato State would change their name to Minnesota State way back in the late 60s when they announced that they would be joining the NCC. It took a lot longer to do so, but I'm sure glad that they did!

[ccd494]

If CCSU is not the next addition to America East sometime in the future, I think I'll go crazy. The UML addition was very disappointing to our fans, but it did make a lot of sense. They are public university in Massachusetts and had a relationship with other members through Hockey East. Nice facilities and good market (Greater Boston) to replace the loss of NU and BU.

But how about UNH, Maine, Albany, and SBU start to build a formal bond with Central Connecticut around football? :) Seriously, there is no candidate for the AE that is a better fit than CCSU. Can't those 4 schools and URI leverage a CAA Football invite for CCSU? Is Hartford still absolutely opposed to our entry?

I don't see any movement on the horizon, but if it does I would expect to see CCSU in the mix.

I don't know about Hartford's issues. I think the other state schools would be happy to have CCSU, but football is the issue. Just like it is the issue with Bryant. And Merrimack. And Bentley. Lowell was such an easy fit- no football to deal with, pre-existing relationship with hockey, we needed back into Massachusetts...

It's a weird quirk of history that has CCSU in the NEC and Hartford in the AE.

[Lehigh Football Nation]

I don't know about Hartford's issues. I think the other state schools would be happy to have CCSU, but football is the issue. Just like it is the issue with Bryant. And Merrimack. And Bentley. Lowell was such an easy fit- no football to deal with, pre-existing relationship with hockey, we needed back into Massachusetts...

It's a weird quirk of history that has CCSU in the NEC and Hartford in the AE.

Do the AE and the NEC have a bad blood history? If there was ever a case for the AE and the NEC to work together, it's here. I have to seriously doubt Merrimack's tiny football program could be much of a roadblock to anything, as long as they have a home in the NEC. Merrimack isn't a threat to push for an AE football conference, nor are they threats for CAA membership.

[hebmskebm]

I'd always welcome another program into the FCS fold, but everything about this screams out to me that if Merrimack did find a DI all-sport conference, they'd ax the football program to cut costs Nebraska-Omaha style, or do away with scholarships and join the PFL.

[UNHWildcat18]

If CCSU is not the next addition to America East sometime in the future, I think I'll go crazy. The UML addition was very disappointing to our fans, but it did make a lot of sense. They are public university in Massachusetts and had a relationship with other members through Hockey East. Nice facilities and good market (Greater Boston) to replace the loss of NU and BU.

But how about UNH, Maine, Albany, and SBU start to build a formal bond with Central Connecticut around football? :) Seriously, there is no candidate for the AE that is a better fit than CCSU. Can't those 4 schools and URI leverage a CAA Football invite for CCSU? Is Hartford still absolutely opposed to our entry?

I don't see any movement on the horizon, but if it does I would expect to see CCSU in the mix.

NJIT is next to AE then Bryant IMO. When it comes to merrimack, I see them going NEC and thats about it, AE isn't going to go through another bring a d2 to d1 addition. NJIT once done its new athletic facilities will be ripe for the taking and adds NJ market with a travel buddy for UMBC.

[Danielr11220]

If CCSU is not the next addition to America East sometime in the future, I think I'll go crazy. The UML addition was very disappointing to our fans, but it did make a lot of sense. They are public university in Massachusetts and had a relationship with other members through Hockey East. Nice facilities and good market (Greater Boston) to replace the loss of NU and BU.

But how about UNH, Maine, Albany, and SBU start to build a formal bond with Central Connecticut around football? :) Seriously, there is no candidate for the AE that is a better fit than CCSU. Can't those 4 schools and URI leverage a CAA Football invite for CCSU? Is Hartford still absolutely opposed to our entry?

I don't see any movement on the horizon, but if it does I would expect to see CCSU in the mix.

America East and NEC should just trade hartford for ccsu straight up. Creating two conference where 1 is for private schools and the others are for public schools. Then america east can add scsu(&maybe wcsu and umass boston if they could make all the jumps down the line) and NJIT (get them to add football).

[UNHWildcat18]

America East and NEC should just trade hartford for ccsu straight up. Creating two conference where 1 is for private schools and the others are for public schools. Then america east can add scsu(&maybe wcsu and umass boston if they could make all the jumps down the line) and NJIT (get them to add football).

what crack are you smoking?

[Bogus Megapardus]

The good - they are a Northeastern-based team, have plenty of sports (including men's and women's hockey) and might be a good match for either the Patriot League or NEC. They would have a natural geographic match with either Holy Cross or Bryant.

The bad - they are a tiny school that are marginally bigger than Lafayette, and have areas of overlap with both the PL and NEC, but aren't a perfect match for either.

Push comes to shove they seem like a good fit for the NEC.

The admins at Bryant and Monmouth went pounding on the PL door for years but there was no answer. So how does Merrimack College - a local commuter school established in 1947 for WWII veterans - fit into the PL? (Also the Jesuits are not overly fond of the Augustinians, IIRC.)

[UNHWildcat18]

The admins at Bryant and Monmouth went pounding on the PL door for years but there was no answer. So how does Merrimack College - a local commuter school established in 1947 for WWII veterans - fit into the PL?
Don't you know? Any school from PA to Maine is a possible patriot league addition on this board...sheesh

[citdog]

The big question for me is can they whip the monitor??

[melloware13]

Don't you know? Any school from PA to Maine is a possible patriot league addition on this board...sheesh
NJIT to the PL confirmed. If they could find a suitable facility (on-campus soccer stadium seats 1K, Red Bull Arena is nearby but too big at 28K), they could be a solid add for the NEC in football. Given their current A-Sun membership, they'd be in the Big South though.

[Pinnum]

NJIT to the PL confirmed. If they could find a suitable facility (on-campus soccer stadium seats 1K, Red Bull Arena is nearby but too big at 28K), they could be a solid add for the NEC in football. Given their current A-Sun membership, they'd be in the Big South though.

I have always thought the Newark Bears River Front stadium would have been perfect for a football stadium for NJIT. But that is not an option anymore as it is being demod. Just a few years old but because the baseball team folded they are getting rid of it to free up space. City wasted a ton of money on it. NJIT used it for baseball too.

[Pinnum]

Protects hockey in the event of some sort of shakeup jeopardizing their D-I status or scholarships. There have also been a bunch of fights about D-I hockey voting status (and the Big Ten trying to ram through legislation despite hockey schools voting against it 50-10). The seat at the discussion table is a bit more secure if you are a full blown D-I member as opposed to a play-up.

What's the hockey issue that is unique to the Big Ten?

[Bogus Megapardus]

I have always thought the Newark Bears River Front stadium would have been perfect for a football stadium for NJIT. But that is not an option anymore as it is being demod. Just a few years old but because the baseball team folded they are getting rid of it to free up space. City wasted a ton of money on it. NJIT used it for baseball too.

Newark Schools Stadium. Practically brand new. Holds 15,000. It's a couple of blocks from the Davenport Ave City Subway stop.

Coordinates: 40.769866°N 74.184612°W

[Go Green]

The big question for me is can they whip the monitor??

Maybe if they changed their name to Virginia. :)

[ccd494]

What's the hockey issue that is unique to the Big Ten?

The Big Ten proposed legislation that would have restricted the age of incoming freshmen to those under 20. Conveniently, the Big Ten (plus one or two other blue blood programs) has a near monopoly on the special players who are ready for DI hockey fresh out of high school or one year of juniors.

Most of the smaller programs rely on guys coming in after 2-3 years of juniors. The Big Tens blue chippers tend to go pro early so they are having their 19 year old kids face 24 year old men, is their argument. It's pretty self serving, it would have created a permanent group of 10-12 programs who could win. But the Big Ten has been a disaster competitively since they formed their conference so they wanted to push it through.

The straw vote of the coaches' association was 50-10 opposed. But because the Big Ten is P5, they can propose legislation right to the governance board and bypass the hockey committee. They finally dropped their proposal when it became clear they would no longer be able to play nonconference games if it was rammed through.

[ccd494]

NJIT is next to AE then Bryant IMO. When it comes to merrimack, I see them going NEC and thats about it, AE isn't going to go through another bring a d2 to d1 addition. NJIT once done its new athletic facilities will be ripe for the taking and adds NJ market with a travel buddy for UMBC.

NJIT won't join. They have a weird mix of sports and doesn't help the AE anywhere they need numbers. They begged in for years but couldn't get their **** together to make a good presentation, either.

And the NEC doesn't take football affiliates, see Monmouth. So any prospective AE member with football either needs to get into the CAA (yeah, right) or beg the Big South.

[hebmskebm]

NJIT won't join. They have a weird mix of sports and doesn't help the AE anywhere they need numbers. They begged in for years but couldn't get their **** together to make a good presentation, either.

And the NEC doesn't take football affiliates, see Monmouth. So any prospective AE member with football either needs to get into the CAA (yeah, right) or beg the Big South.

The NEC already has a football affiliate, Duquesne, and had Albany and SBU as affiliates in the past. They had to put their foot down with Monmouth because they were leaving the conference in all other sports, and didn't want to set a precedent for any of the other football-playing full members to think that they could move but still park their football in the NEC.

The conference would absolutely be open to other football-only schools in the right circumstances.

[aceinthehole]

The NEC already has a football affiliate, Duquesne, and had Albany and SBU as affiliates in the past. They had to put their foot down with Monmouth because they were leaving the conference in all other sports, and didn't want to set a precedent for any of the other football-playing full members to think that they could move but still park their football in the NEC.

The conference would absolutely be open to other football-only schools in the right circumstances.

+1

[Laker]

What's the hockey issue that is unique to the Big Ten?

Extreme arrogance. Holier than though attitude. Keep everyone else under the jackboot of the oppressor. Divide and conquer.

I cheer every time Bemidji, UMD, St Cloud and of course the Mavs beat "Pride on Ice, AKA the Goofers.

[ccd494]

The NEC already has a football affiliate, Duquesne, and had Albany and SBU as affiliates in the past. They had to put their foot down with Monmouth because they were leaving the conference in all other sports, and didn't want to set a precedent for any of the other football-playing full members to think that they could move but still park their football in the NEC.

The conference would absolutely be open to other football-only schools in the right circumstances.

But, if there was someone both the AE and NEC wanted (not saying this is Merrimack), the NEC could use football as the leverage to get that member for themselves.

The best bets for AE expansion are either CCSU or Bryant. Neither can leave the NEC for the AE without losing NEC football. And neither is getting a CAA invite. After that, it's probably Bentley, but Bentley is pretty attractive to the NEC too. The AE either needs to add non-football schools like Lowell or football schools that the NEC doesn't want as a full member, but will admit to their football conference. I don't know what schools would meet that criteria.

[NY Crusader 2010]

I hope that it doesn't get to the point where the NEC and AE are forced to add more DII move-ups to stay afloat. How many more DI schools do we need in New England? Once Merrimack and Bentley start entering the conversation, you know the pickings are slim.

[Dane96]

Short answer: None.

There is no way the public schools in the conference vote for Merrimack. Zip. None.

There will be no AE Hockey (killed by BU), which would have enveloped Hockey East. Ship=Sailed.

[Dane96]

I hope that it doesn't get to the point where the NEC and AE are forced to add more DII move-ups to stay afloat. How many more DI schools do we need in New England? Once Merrimack and Bentley start entering the conversation, you know the pickings are slim.

Unless Albany and SBU leave, which is highly unlikely for the next 5-7 years barring a seismic shift in football that would make a move necessary to protect those interests, there will be no AE expansion unless it is a no-brainer school. The AE Presidents have directed Amy Hutchenson to stand firm on current membership.

[Go...gate]

NJIT to the PL confirmed. If they could find a suitable facility (on-campus soccer stadium seats 1K, Red Bull Arena is nearby but too big at 28K), they could be a solid add for the NEC in football. Given their current A-Sun membership, they'd be in the Big South though.

Source? NJIT has never been on the PL's radar. Caldwell College would be a better fit.

[ccd494]

Source? NJIT has never been on the PL's radar. Caldwell College would be a better fit.

It was a joke, I think.

And I agree with Dane that AE isn't expanding unless there is a home run candidate and Merrimack isn't it. But if Albany or SBU leave (I don't know to where- the CAA isn't really a step up for them), they could be in play if the AE wants to stick as a New England bus league.

[UNHWildcat18]

NJIT won't join. They have a weird mix of sports and doesn't help the AE anywhere they need numbers. They begged in for years but couldn't get their **** together to make a good presentation, either.

And the NEC doesn't take football affiliates, see Monmouth. So any prospective AE member with football either needs to get into the CAA (yeah, right) or beg the Big South. They have mens lax, soccer, basketball and baseball.............. all needed in AE. You are correct on not having their **** together before but they are upgrading facilities such as their new 100 million basketball/other use facility. Like I said as soon as they get their ACT together I believe they are in if the AE wants to expand. I said Bryant is the other top choice for the AE. Its been shown that they want them. Yes they have the football problem and you are correct on the lack of options. however if they decide to leave is the NEC gonna let them walk out and have 6 members? Don't you need 7 to keep the AQ? or is it 6? I am not saying this will happen I'm simply stating these are the two schools that will be sought after if the AE decides to expand.


Also I agree I don't see SBU or UA leaving for CAA. Why add travel costs to another 1 bid league? football is in CAAFB thats all that matters.

[ccd494]

They have mens lax, soccer, basketball and baseball.............. all needed in AE.

We have enough for autobids in all of those sports. Why add another school that could take away the one bid AE gets? Sure, NJIT is better than the AE average in basketball, so they could theoretically help the Conference RPI. So what? If you play in a one bid league, and do well in a robust out of conference schedule, you'll get rewarded with a 12/13 seed. If you win a one-bid league, and you had a mediocre non-conference, you will be a 14/15 seed. If you win a one-bid league and had a bad non-conference (or were like .500 in your conference regular season) you will be a 16 seed/play in game participant.

The marginal difference in your league being ranked 19th or 22nd isn't the deciding factor in one bid league seeding- it's how dominant the league winner was in winning the league, and if they had a half decent non-conference resume. NJIT does nothing to change that calculus for AE except adding another school to take away the one auto bid.

Lowell bumped the league up to 7 baseball schools. Fine there. Seven schools play men's lax. Fine there.

If NJIT had field hockey, then we would have an argument to add them. We only have five "core" schools that play field hockey- Maine, UNH, Lowell, Vermont and Albany. The autobid would have disappeared if Stanford, Cal, UC-Davis and Pacific weren't added as "America East - West". As is, Stanford won the tournament and was the only NCAA participant despite Maine and Albany being ranked for most of the year. But, we had to add schools to keep the autobid, and didn't get a real AE team in the tournament anyways. Just like could happen if NJIT joins for hoops.

[aceinthehole]

We have enough for autobids in all of those sports. Why add another school that could take away the one bid AE gets?

All good points, by everyone.

I don't think the AE is desperate (or they would have taken NJIT), but a 9-team basketball league with a conference schedule of just 16 games is not helping the AE. Binghamton played 2 lower division schools this year in the regular season. This isn't helping the RPI or non-conference scheduling.

I think ideally, the AE want 1 more member, they just haven't found the right fit (now). All the candidates have some drawbacks.

NJIT - Athletic Department disorganized and didn't play key AE sports. That is changing, but they still have a very small budget relative to the AE members and fall way behind on women's sports.

Bryant - Has all-around resume, but finding a home for football is a problem. New market (Rhode Island), but a smaller, private school outside of the profile of everyone in the AE (sans Hartford).

CCSU - very similar to Bryant resume athletically with football, plus it is a regional public university; but in existing market with Hartford.

Merrimack and Bentley - both have relationships via Men's hockey, behind Bryant athletically and don't offer anything to the league profile as small private schools.

----

Obviously, I'm being a homer but CCSU makes the most sense if the AE can leverage a CAA Football invite for Central. I know its not realistic now, but if JMU were to leave for FBS, does anyone really think that CCSU isn't already more competitive than URI and Elon today with 40 scholarships in the NEC? Central would have a hill to climb in the CAA, but they could be every much in the mold of the New England/NY members in short order.

[clenz]

I'd always welcome another program into the FCS fold, but everything about this screams out to me that if Merrimack did find a DI all-sport conference, they'd ax the football program to cut costs Nebraska-Omaha style, or do away with scholarships and join the PFL.
UN-O wasn't cut due to budget issues. That situation is screwed up from the start.

UN-O wanted to move D1 but they, obviously, fall under the same school system as UN-Lincoln (or Nebraska as they are more commonly known). UNO's AD is Trev Alberts. You know, the Trev Alberts that played for the Huskers between 1991-1994 and is one of the most decorated players they've ever had. He was appointed as AD in 2009 at UNO and the move to D1 was announced in 2011 but had been explored for 5-7 years prior to the announcement.

It is widley ̶k̶n̶o̶w̶n̶ rumored that UNL would/will never allow another D1 football or wrestling program to exist within their state (much like Minnesota and Wisconsin). When Albert was hired in 09 many saw it as him getting a job to position him to be next in line in Lincoln. What most didn't see coming, though is real evident now, is that while it may be true that it's positioning him to get to Lincoln, he also was a plant on the NBOR to kill wrestling and football for the D1 move. Most AD's won't be willing to do it, especially the way UNO and the NBOR did it.

In the 4 years or so leading up to the closing of the program UNO had dumped considerable money into their facility. They had just installed field turf, redone the seating, adding facades, and a new video board (which would probably be top 10-15 in the FCS for size 21x45 LED). The stadium has/had a capacity of 9,500 fixed with the ability to go to probably 12K+ with temp seating.


https://www.stadiumsusa.com/images/thumbs/eac72ac5bd4efe693734902a1145beace5dbbc5b.jpg-590x1000.png

This photo is from 2013 when they pulled the football field out to install a soccer specific field - shows the board. They also removed all seats except that main block reduing capacity to just over 3,000.
http://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/omaha.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/5d/05d6e339-9776-5aa6-9716-869867145f79/5331f59ce1147.image.jpg

I want to say the video board was installed in 2008 or 2009 and the turf was a year or two before that only.

The football program was pretty solid. They had 9 conference titles including 2000, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007.

The thing that truly pissed people off is how they found out the programs were dropped.

Trev Alberts got news on a Friday that they were accepted into the Summit. He waited until after UNO had just won their third straight D2 wrestling title. I mean JUST won to announce it. How did the wrestling program find out? A few hours later they got back to their facility to find their locker room, training room and weight room had all been chained shut with a simple, short, phone call after the program had won the title.

Alberts blamed finances, but that didn't pass the smell test, and because of the viral natures of how UNO wrestlers found out they were cut, there was some digging done....by ESPN and Outside The Lines


http://www.espn.com/espn/otl/news/story?id=6488960
But an analysis of various financial statements and studies by "Outside the Lines" and economist Andy Schwarz shows discrepancies in UNO's numbers and raises questions about predictions that the university will fare better financially in Division I without the two programs.


Alberts, who was hired as athletic director two years ago, is a former All-American linebacker from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. After three years in the NFL, he became a TV sports analyst and worked for ESPN until 2005.


Alberts, along with UNO Chancellor John Christensen and other university officials, turned down several requests by "Outside the Lines" to review the figures, and they declined to any answer questions about the university's decision.


"By choosing to make the jump to D-I without football, UNO has made their chance of success much lower," Schwarz said. "Whatever additional money and other benefits they will earn [in D-I] is less than they would likely earn if football were part of the D-I package, because they've understated the benefits of football and wrestling by about $1.5 million."


Forgetting about the revenue provided by athletes such as Dennis is just one of the economic oversights, said Schwarz, an antitrust economist and partner at OSKR, a firm in Emeryville, Calif., that specializes in economic analysis and expert witness testimony. Schwarz has conducted several studies of college sports finances and accounting.


In public statements, Alberts said the football program was losing $1.3 million a year. However, according to financial statements filed with the NCAA that "Outside the Lines" obtained through public records requests, the football program was short $50,500 in revenue, and the wrestling program was ahead by $143,000 for the 2009-10 fiscal year.

Where Alberts seems to be making his argument is by not counting the $1.2 million that the football program receives from student fees and direct funds from the university, according to the NCAA report.


The entire athletic department gets about $5.9 million from student fees and university funds, which is about 2.5 percent of the university's total revenue. Alberts has said he projects that the department would require $7.9 million if it kept the football and wrestling programs -- an amount he said the university couldn't afford.

In its own accounting, the NCAA will subtract student fees and university funds, along with other government support, to determine whether programs can generate enough revenue on their own to cover their expenses, which is rare even among Division I schools.


In fact, among all Division II programs with football, the median support from student fees, university and government funds combined is about $800,000 for a football team; within UNO's Division II conference, it's about $900,000.


But Schwarz said he doesn't put a lot of faith in those numbers, either, because they don't count the revenue that nonscholarship athletes contribute to the program, which is especially significant for Division II programs that offer far fewer scholarships than big-name Division I schools. It's just one of a number of problems Schwarz sees in how UNO came up with its conclusions.


"They're extremely typical in the sort of mistakes they're making. It's sort of a fundamental mark of bad accounting that they just don't have revenues and expenses match," he said. "They're charging themselves expenses and not giving themselves account for revenues in the way that they should. That's endemic to college sports accounting."

...

UNO had 36 football scholarships divided among 77 of the 121 football players from this past season, and players such as Davis were paying the more expensive out-of-state tuition. The university counts the cost of athletic scholarships as an expense against the football department, but it doesn't count the tuition that student-athletes pay as revenue. If it did, Schwarz said the football program could count at least an additional $700,000 in revenue, and for wrestling it would be at least $200,000.


According to university records obtained by "Outside the Lines," by mid-February the Summit League had already extended an informal invitation to UNO, and Alberts and his advisers concluded that the football program would be dropped in the move.


At that time, UNO hired Alden & Associates consulting company for $20,000 to do a feasibility study on UNO's plans; it was allowed a two-day visit and two weeks to finish its report, which the report authors acknowledge didn't allow them to review any data independent of the figures UNO had already calculated.

...

Schwarz said it is a university's prerogative to cut sports it doesn't want anymore, but he said to argue that football and wrestling had to go because they were costing too much money is disingenuous or the result of poor accounting.


"They're allowing the numbers to fool them into making bad decisions," he said.

...

In February, at which time records indicate that plans were already in place to drop the program, Alberts authorized the hiring of an assistant football coach from Minnesota. And he approved the signing of two junior college transfers less than a week before the official announcement, coaches say.


Wrestling coach Mike Denney got the word about his program around 11 p.m. on March 12, when Alberts called him just hours after his team had won the Division II national championship. The football coaches had heard about it just a couple of hours earlier as rumors spread through text messages from people who said they'd already read about it online.

...

In an attempt to find out what had been discussed in the past year, "Outside the Lines" made a public records request for documents, including email messages, pertaining to the Division I move and the elimination of programs.

According to the university records officers, all emails relating to those topics that were sent or received shortly before the NU board of regents meeting on March 25 had been deleted. State law requires that all correspondence which has "long-term ramifications to the operation of the agency" be retained for eight years. Officials also denied a request for the chancellor's and athletic director's calendars.

...

Bober, Deeb and other supporters also believe a reason behind dropping the football program comes from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, home to the Cornhuskers, who might see a Division I football team in Omaha as a threat to its successful walk-on program. Nebraska athletic director Tom Osborne said that isn't true, and chancellor Harvey Perlman said he heard of UNO's Division I plans only about a week before they were finalized.


"Because of the potential powerhouse that Nebraska-Omaha could have built, I think that was intimidating to the powers that be at Lincoln. And I think there might be some other scenarios," Deeb said. "One of my first thoughts was, you know, Trev Alberts is in line for Tom Osborne's job. Or it's going to look a heck of a lot better coming from … a complete, full Division I school on your resume than it is coming from a Division II school with Division I hockey."









After reading that, do you really believe it was about finances with UNO? Keep in mind that in the 5 years leading up to that move 10 universities made the jump to D1 - including all 4 Dakota schools, who they would have shared a conference with for all sports (and football....they would have been an MVFC member) and NOT A SINGLE ONE DROPPED ANY SPORTS

[Laker]

Clenz, this is the post of the day. I'd rep you twice if I could.

My brother taught at UNL and UNO. What you have said it spot on. MSU-Mankato was in the NCC with these other clubs and Northern Colorado. There are still people at UNO who were big donors who have nothing to do with the school anymore.

It was almost like- well, UNO can have hockey but don't compete with UNL in football. Which is really dumb since they wouldn't have anyway. They dropped football and the two time national champs in wrestling and they could have kept both.

[clenz]

Also, the thread of "Summit League Football" would be a hell of a lot more real had UNO kept football, should UND want to move Summit and MVFC. That would have given The Summit 7 football schools to build with affiliates.

[clenz]

Clenz, this is the post of the day. I'd rep you twice if I could.

My brother taught at UNL and UNO. What you have said it spot on. MSU-Mankato was in the NCC with these other clubs and Northern Colorado. There are still people at UNO who were big donors who have nothing to do with the school anymore.

It was almost like- well, UNO can have hockey but don't compete with UNL in football. Which is really dumb since they wouldn't have anyway. They dropped football and the two time national champs in wrestling and they could have kept both.
UNL was likely worried about the walk on program being hurt. Had UNO built a respectble FCS program they would be able to offer full rides to to kids that would otherwise walk on to UNL.

We see the same type of issue at UNI when it comes to "plucking" kids that would have otherwise been walk ons. If Iowa/Iowa State are too bad at basketball/football we don't get the same recruits because they can't recruit nationally so they fall back on Iowa kids for their scholarships. If they get too good then Iowa kids will talk on there over a scholarship at UNI to be "part of the program"....most of them end up transferring out to D2 or quitting football all together. Then it comes down to is there enough money/early PT to get a kid to UNI over Iowa/Iowa State. UNI also provides a nice transfer home should those kids no longer feel that walking on at Iowa is right for them.

There is a happy medium for Iowa football that seems to be about 7-5 or 8-4 that they can recruit regionally well enough to keep scholarship offers out of the hands of most Iowa kids which gives UNI a better shot. We need Iowa to stabilize at 8-4 for a few years in a row to get that going again. They've been so up and down to the extremes that it's made recruiting the "right" Iowa kid harder

I don't know if UNO would have gotten there with UNL but it would be interesting.

Hell, look at NDSU:
RJ Urzendowski and Easton Stick played high school ball 2.1 miles from UNO's campus.
Nick Deluca is also from Omaha. He went to Millard North, which is just 8 miles straight west of UNO on HWY 6.
Jalen Allison played 8 miles south of UNO on the south side of Omaha.

UNI has 2 kids out of the Omaha/Lincoln corridor.

Omaha is also directly connected to Council Bluffs, IA, which has 5 high schools on top of all of the Omaha schools. Oh, and Iowa Western Community is just east of the Omaha/Council Bluffs metro (20 min from UNO's campus). IWCC is a program thats only about 5 years old and is already a power house in the JUCO ranks and throwing kids into D1 programs across the country like nothing.

[UNHWildcat18]

We have enough for autobids in all of those sports. Why add another school that could take away the one bid AE gets? Sure, NJIT is better than the AE average in basketball, so they could theoretically help the Conference RPI. So what? If you play in a one bid league, and do well in a robust out of conference schedule, you'll get rewarded with a 12/13 seed. If you win a one-bid league, and you had a mediocre non-conference, you will be a 14/15 seed. If you win a one-bid league and had a bad non-conference (or were like .500 in your conference regular season) you will be a 16 seed/play in game participant.

The marginal difference in your league being ranked 19th or 22nd isn't the deciding factor in one bid league seeding- it's how dominant the league winner was in winning the league, and if they had a half decent non-conference resume. NJIT does nothing to change that calculus for AE except adding another school to take away the one auto bid.

Lowell bumped the league up to 7 baseball schools. Fine there. Seven schools play men's lax. Fine there.

If NJIT had field hockey, then we would have an argument to add them. We only have five "core" schools that play field hockey- Maine, UNH, Lowell, Vermont and Albany. The autobid would have disappeared if Stanford, Cal, UC-Davis and Pacific weren't added as "America East - West". As is, Stanford won the tournament and was the only NCAA participant despite Maine and Albany being ranked for most of the year. But, we had to add schools to keep the autobid, and didn't get a real AE team in the tournament anyways. Just like could happen if NJIT joins for hoops.

Do you understand what you are saying? First off yes I agree they need to add another womens field hockey and probably softball as well.
1. NJIT in men and womens basketball you are correct wouldn't change the RPI much.
2. There are 7 schools for baseball, I'm sure they would welcome an 8th no problem.
3. You are making zero sense with "taking away the bid ****" NJIT would be a member for all sports so winning the bid for a sport would be like..... how everyone else.....does it....... I am talking about them being a full member, not an associate for a sport or two.
4. UMBC and SBU I'm sure would like the travel buddy, not that's its a strong factor but still, gives them one and opens us up into NJ/NY market more ( not that it means the same as a P5 team when adding in a market)

[UNHWildcat18]

All good points, by everyone.

I don't think the AE is desperate (or they would have taken NJIT), but a 9-team basketball league with a conference schedule of just 16 games is not helping the AE. Binghamton played 2 lower division schools this year in the regular season. This isn't helping the RPI or non-conference scheduling.

I think ideally, the AE want 1 more member, they just haven't found the right fit (now). All the candidates have some drawbacks.

NJIT - Athletic Department disorganized and didn't play key AE sports. That is changing, but they still have a very small budget relative to the AE members and fall way behind on women's sports.

Bryant - Has all-around resume, but finding a home for football is a problem. New market (Rhode Island), but a smaller, private school outside of the profile of everyone in the AE (sans Hartford).

CCSU - very similar to Bryant resume athletically with football, plus it is a regional public university; but in existing market with Hartford.

Merrimack and Bentley - both have relationships via Men's hockey, behind Bryant athletically and don't offer anything to the league profile as small private schools.

----

Obviously, I'm being a homer but CCSU makes the most sense if the AE can leverage a CAA Football invite for Central. I know its not realistic now, but if JMU were to leave for FBS, does anyone really think that CCSU isn't already more competitive than URI and Elon today with 40 scholarships in the NEC? Central would have a hill to climb in the CAA, but they could be every much in the mold of the New England/NY members in short order.

Like stated above No small private schools that are d2 are going to get voted in. CCSU doesn't have the recognition or stadium. IF JMU were to bolt I don't think they add anyone, If they did It would not be an NEC team or a northern school

[BisonFan02]

UNL was likely worried about the walk on program being hurt. Had UNO built a respectble FCS program they would be able to offer full rides to to kids that would otherwise walk on to UNL.

We see the same type of issue at UNI when it comes to "plucking" kids that would have otherwise been walk ons. If Iowa/Iowa State are too bad at basketball/football we don't get the same recruits because they can't recruit nationally so they fall back on Iowa kids for their scholarships. If they get too good then Iowa kids will talk on there over a scholarship at UNI to be "part of the program"....most of them end up transferring out to D2 or quitting football all together. Then it comes down to is there enough money/early PT to get a kid to UNI over Iowa/Iowa State. UNI also provides a nice transfer home should those kids no longer feel that walking on at Iowa is right for them.

There is a happy medium for Iowa football that seems to be about 7-5 or 8-4 that they can recruit regionally well enough to keep scholarship offers out of the hands of most Iowa kids which gives UNI a better shot. We need Iowa to stabilize at 8-4 for a few years in a row to get that going again. They've been so up and down to the extremes that it's made recruiting the "right" Iowa kid harder

I don't know if UNO would have gotten there with UNL but it would be interesting.

Hell, look at NDSU:
RJ Urzendowski and Easton Stick played high school ball 2.1 miles from UNO's campus.
Nick Deluca is also from Omaha. He went to Millard North, which is just 8 miles straight west of UNO on HWY 6.
Jalen Allison played 8 miles south of UNO on the south side of Omaha.

UNI has 2 kids out of the Omaha/Lincoln corridor.

Omaha is also directly connected to Council Bluffs, IA, which has 5 high schools on top of all of the Omaha schools. Oh, and Iowa Western Community is just east of the Omaha/Council Bluffs metro (20 min from UNO's campus). IWCC is a program thats only about 5 years old and is already a power house in the JUCO ranks and throwing kids into D1 programs across the country like nothing.

http://www.gobison.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=4623

Heck.....we took some of their players after they dissolved too.

[Laker]

http://www.gobison.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=4623

Heck.....we took some of their players after they dissolved too.

Pretty much our entire O-line on our national runnerup team in 2014 was from Omaha.

[ccd494]

Do you understand what you are saying? First off yes I agree they need to add another womens field hockey and probably softball as well.
1. NJIT in men and womens basketball you are correct wouldn't change the RPI much.
2. There are 7 schools for baseball, I'm sure they would welcome an 8th no problem.
3. You are making zero sense with "taking away the bid ****" NJIT would be a member for all sports so winning the bid for a sport would be like..... how everyone else.....does it....... I am talking about them being a full member, not an associate for a sport or two.
4. UMBC and SBU I'm sure would like the travel buddy, not that's its a strong factor but still, gives them one and opens us up into NJ/NY market more ( not that it means the same as a P5 team when adding in a market)

I understand you want them as a full member. I don't. The nine members of America East (when Lowell gets postseason eligible) have one bid to the NCAA tournament right now. You add NJIT and there are now ten members who get one bid to the NCAA tournament. The pie stayed the same size, you are just slicing it thinner and thinner. Getting into the greater NYC "market" (there is no "market" for America East basketball) doesn't enlarge the pie either. I don't care if they are a full member or not, adding them takes opportunities away from current conference members and doesn't add anything. So I would consider them taking bids away if they earn them as full members.

[Lehigh Football Nation]

I understand you want them as a full member. I don't. The nine members of America East (when Lowell gets postseason eligible) have one bid to the NCAA tournament right now. You add NJIT and there are now ten members who get one bid to the NCAA tournament. The pie stayed the same size, you are just slicing it thinner and thinner. Getting into the greater NYC "market" (there is no "market" for America East basketball) doesn't enlarge the pie either. I don't care if they are a full member or not, adding them takes opportunities away from current conference members and doesn't add anything. So I would consider them taking bids away if they earn them as full members.

AE media rights and one NCAA share isn't exactly a "pie" that needs to be shared, we're talking more like a cookie.

Ten hoops teams is perfect because then you don't have to schedule College of Faith hoops in February to fill in conference schedules, so it actually saves money and headaches, too. And it also seems like hockey is basically unaffected by it.

[ccd494]

AE media rights and one NCAA share isn't exactly a "pie" that needs to be shared, we're talking more like a cookie.

Ten hoops teams is perfect because then you don't have to schedule College of Faith hoops in February to fill in conference schedules, so it actually saves money and headaches, too. And it also seems like hockey is basically unaffected by it.

No one in AE is scheduling non-conference games once the conference season starts as is.

[Laker]

AE media rights and one NCAA share isn't exactly a "pie" that needs to be shared, we're talking more like a cookie.

Is there any real hope that schools in the Northeast will start football? It seems to be the opposite for years.

Too bad that Ben & Jerry aren't football fans. Vermont football could make a comeback.

[ccd494]

Is there any real hope that schools in the Northeast will start football? It seems to be the opposite for years.

Too bad that Ben & Jerry aren't football fans. Vermont football could make a comeback.

No.

And, LFN, I wasn't talking about money as being the pie, I was talking about the one bid to the NCAA tournament for its own sake. Couldn't care less about the money, which is non-existent.

[aceinthehole]

Is there any real hope that schools in the Northeast will start football? It seems to be the opposite for years.

Too bad that Ben & Jerry aren't football fans. Vermont football could make a comeback.

At the FCS level?

I don't envision any current D-I school in New England adding a football team anytime in the future - Vermont, Northeastern, Boston U., UMass-Lowell, Providence, and Fairfield all had teams at one point and dropped the sport. Hartford and Quinnipiac never had and never will support a football program.

Same for New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Maryland - I don't see any realistic potential for any of the following D-I school to add football to its offerings:

Iona
Manhattan
St. John's
St. Francis (Brooklyn)
LIU-Brooklyn
Binghamton
Siena
St. Bonaventure
Niagara
Canisius
NJIT
Seton Hall
St. Peter's
Fairleigh Dickenson
Rider
LaSalle
St. Jospeh
Mt. St. Mary's
Loyola (MD)
Coppin State
UMBC
UMES

Only 7 public D-I universities in 11 States across the Northeast (New England, NY, NJ, PA, DE, and MD) do not currently sponsor football and 4 are members of America East:

Vermont
UMass-Lowell
Binghamton (NY)
New Jersey Inst. of Tech
Coppin State (MD)
Maryland-Baltimore County
Maryland-Eastern Shore

[PAllen]

Coppin has a pretty decent following and support for their club team. I could also see Bowie St. as a move up, but both are HBCUs in MD, so not helpful for New England

[Lehigh Football Nation]

Iona
Manhattan
St. John's
Siena
St. Bonaventure
Niagara
Canisius
Seton Hall
St. Peter's (NJ)
LaSalle
St. Joe's (PA)
UMES

All of these schools had football programs before, and many of them had football programs as late as 20 years ago. The great majority of them sponsored football in the non-scholarship MAAC conference which folded once St. Peter's (NJ) disbanded its program in 2007, less than a decade ago.

That doesn't include Hofstra, Northeastern, and BU, which were all mentioned originally, and Vermont, which discontinued the sport in the 1970s I'm fairly sure. That's an awful lot of football programs.

[Lehigh Football Nation]

Of all the aforementioned schools, the one that should start a football program tomorrow really shouldn't be in doubt - Boston U. They are the largest of all the schools in terms of students, they have a on-campus facility that used to support football, and their Title IX balance actually would support a football program. Their president and BOT appear to have a religious fervor against all that is football (while hypocritically ignoring every single argument when it comes to hockey). But if they would get their heads out of their collective asses, they would probably discover that they could start a successful FCS program, run it the "right way", and have it probably largely pay for itself as well.

[UNHWildcat18]

I understand you want them as a full member. I don't. The nine members of America East (when Lowell gets postseason eligible) have one bid to the NCAA tournament right now. You add NJIT and there are now ten members who get one bid to the NCAA tournament. The pie stayed the same size, you are just slicing it thinner and thinner. Getting into the greater NYC "market" (there is no "market" for America East basketball) doesn't enlarge the pie either. I don't care if they are a full member or not, adding them takes opportunities away from current conference members and doesn't add anything. So I would consider them taking bids away if they earn them as full members.

Lol dude I am sorry you have such a participation trophy view of this. You are adding a good academic school thats closer to SBU and UMBC geographically, you are adding a school that will be competitive and already schedules AE teams in most mens and womens sports. I understand that that we are a 1 bid league and adding 1 team will make it a 1/10 chance over a 1/9 chance. Your last statement is however utter bull****. If a team joins a league they earn the bid, the competition becomes greater, and teams are forced to get better. if NJIT joined AE for next year and two years down the road won the league in mens basketball, they arent stealing ****, they earned the bid and the other AE teams dont deserve it.

[PAllen]

All of these schools had football programs before, and many of them had football programs as late as 20 years ago. The great majority of them sponsored football in the non-scholarship MAAC conference which folded once St. Peter's (NJ) disbanded its program in 2007, less than a decade ago.

That doesn't include Hofstra, Northeastern, and BU, which were all mentioned originally, and Vermont, which discontinued the sport in the 1970s I'm fairly sure. That's an awful lot of football programs.

UMBC had a team once upon a time as well.

[DFW HOYA]

UMBC had a team once upon a time as well.

Not according to this article.

http://magazine.umbc.edu/umbc-magazine-fall-2015/histories-and-mysteries/football/

[PAllen]

Not according to this article.

http://magazine.umbc.edu/umbc-magazine-fall-2015/histories-and-mysteries/football/

Their stadium has/had (it's been a few years since I've been there for a lacrosse game) league championship years listed for football along with the other sports that use/used the stadium.

[ccd494]

Of all the aforementioned schools, the one that should start a football program tomorrow really shouldn't be in doubt - Boston U. They are the largest of all the schools in terms of students, they have a on-campus facility that used to support football, and their Title IX balance actually would support a football program. Their president and BOT appear to have a religious fervor against all that is football (while hypocritically ignoring every single argument when it comes to hockey). But if they would get their heads out of their collective asses, they would probably discover that they could start a successful FCS program, run it the "right way", and have it probably largely pay for itself as well.

Except that BU students couldn't give less of a **** about athletics in general (outside of hockey), and football in particular. It isn't a good fit for the student body.

[ccd494]

Lol dude I am sorry you have such a participation trophy view of this. You are adding a good academic school thats closer to SBU and UMBC geographically, you are adding a school that will be competitive and already schedules AE teams in most mens and womens sports. I understand that that we are a 1 bid league and adding 1 team will make it a 1/10 chance over a 1/9 chance. Your last statement is however utter bull****. If a team joins a league they earn the bid, the competition becomes greater, and teams are forced to get better. if NJIT joined AE for next year and two years down the road won the league in mens basketball, they arent stealing ****, they earned the bid and the other AE teams dont deserve it.

You are gaining literally nothing for America East by adding NJIT. The league schedule doesn't use travel partners. No leagues do anymore, except maybe the Ivy's Friday/Sunday model. You go and play one game, you take the bus home, you go to class the next day. There aren't any 4 day road trips in America East, that's too expensive and too much missed class time. There is no "Academic League" of America East where students are swapped back and forth.

The nine schools of America East have an automatic bid to the NCAA basketball tournament. Adding one school that is in the top 200 of the RPI won't do anything to increase the league's national or regional exposure, or to improve the seeding of the teams in the tournament. I'm not saying "Let's make it easier to win the league" I am saying "Let's not make it harder without a tangible gain to the conference as a whole."

There isn't an AETV network that is suddenly going to be carried in New York City because NJIT joined. UMBC isn't going to save on travel money- they are going to have to take an extra trip to NJIT. NJIT gains nothing.

You want the names of schools I would be okay with AE adding? Boston University. Northeastern. McGill. New Brunswick. Rhode Island. Massachusetts. Delaware. None of those are happening for a number of reasons, so why the heck add a school that doesn't move the needle in any meaningful way?

[aceinthehole]

You are gaining literally nothing for America East by adding NJIT. The league schedule doesn't use travel partners. No leagues do anymore, except maybe the Ivy's Friday/Sunday model.

For the most part, the NEC does use "travel partners" and a regular Thursday/Saturday league schedule for men's basketball similar to the Ivy model. It is not carved in stone, as there are some slight variations, but almost all trips to/from Western PA are done by travel partners.

*RMU/SFU*
Bryant/CCSU
LIU/SFC

For instance, CCSU and Bryant will head out to Western PA for Thursday and Saturday games against SFU and RMU. Bobby Mo and the Red Flash will both visit Brooklyn for Thursday/Saturday games at LIU and SFC.

The other partners outside of "Western PA" (RMU/SFU) and "New England" (Bryant/CCSU) aren't as strong because half of the NEC teams are in Metro NYC (SHU, LIU, SFC, Wagner, FDU) and gives the league a lot of flexibility. The men generally stick to Thursday/Saturday league schedule, will some games on Monday or Wednesday for TV purposes.

Also, UMBC was a true "travel partner" with Mount St. Mary's before they left the NEC.