Colonial To Add Football

[saint0917]

Small article in the USA Today

The Colonial Athletic Association announced Wednesday that it will sponsor Division I-AA football starting in 2007, when all 12 members of the Atlantic 10 football conference switch leagues. The A10 had sponsored football since 1996. Five of its schools already compete in the CAA in other sports. The A-10 has placed 10 of its 12 teams in the playoffs at least once in the past 5 years. It produced the last two national champs. Delaware in 2003 and James Madison in 2004.

[henfan]

The Yankee/Atlantic 10/Colonial has produced 3 of the last 7 champions. A pretty darn good run for our league.

[saint0917]

The Yankee/Atlantic 10/Colonial has produced 3 of the last 7 champions. A pretty darn good run for our league.

I couldn't agree more. Does anyone know if George Mason, Old Dominion, N.C. Wilmington, and Virginia Commonwealth will add football in the near future?

[JMU Duke Dog]

1. Georgia State and George Mason both have club football teams, while Old Dominion has now been talking about adding football for the last 15 years. Yeager said that all three would are guaranteed membership into CAA football; however, there would be a long upgrade period for any of those schools to get them ready to play a league with the quality of the CAA.

2. A donor at UNC-Wilmington has offered $25 million, if UNC-Wilmington would start a football program

3. VCU president Dr. Trani is pleased with the events of the CAA but said that VCU would not have football under his watch.

4. From "CAA Gets Football in 2007" by Mike Barber of the Daily News-Record:

That [2007] season can’t come fast enough for Yeager, who has chafed the past two years as schools that play their other sports in the Colonial captured the I-AA football title with A-10 patches on their jerseys. "We work very hard to try to create the CAA brand to garner that kind of recognition," Yeager said after the press conference. Yeager recalled his frustration when he traveled to Harrisonburg to see his daughter, who will graduate from JMU on Saturday. "I go visit my daughter at JMU and see T-shirts in the bookstore – ‘A-10 football champions’ -- it drives me nuts," Yeager said.

[greenG]

I couldn't agree more. Does anyone know if George Mason, Old Dominion, N.C. Wilmington, and Virginia Commonwealth will add football in the near future?

There is talk in Norfolk, about ODU starting a football program. This is not the first time the topic has come up. I remember similar talk in the late `80s that came to nothing.

[NEZ]

None of the other CAA schools that currently do not play football have near future plans of fielding a team. Lack of funds and facilities being the biggest deterent.
There was an article in todays Delaware News Journal,
"But it's a much, much bigger issue than just the idea of ordering 100 football helmets, shoulder pads and putting 63 scholarships in the program. All of sudden, you have facility needs, your weight room isn't big enough, your academic support staff isn't big enough, your sports information staff's not big enough, your athletic training staff has to be doubled, you've got to find places to practice and everything else."
CAA Comissioner Tom Yeager

[NEZ]

As a result, Yeager said it would probably be "light years" before a new team would be ready.

[89Hen]

If I had to guess at the order and likelyhood of the other developing football (completely speculation and opinion)....

1. Old Dominion (40%)
2. Georgia State (30%)
3. George Mason (30%)
4. UNC-W (1%)
5. VCU (0.00000000000000000001%)

[89Hen]

The Yankee/Atlantic 10/Colonial has produced 3 of the last 7 champions. A pretty darn good run for our league.

Linda Bruno referred back to 1997-2004...

National Champions
UMass - 1998
Delaware - 2003
JMU - 2004

Semi-finalists
Delaware - 1997
Delaware - 2000
Villanova - 2002
W&M - 2004

Quarter-finalists
Villanova - 1997
UConn - 1998
Richmond - 2000
Maine - 2001
Maine - 2002
Delaware - 2004
UNH - 2004

First Round
Richmond - 1998
JMU - 1999
W&M - 2001
Hofstra - 2001
Northestern - 2002
UMass - 2003

Payton Award
Brian Finneran, Villanova - 1997
Jerry Azumah, UNH - 1998
Brian Westbrook, Villanova - 2001
Lang Campbell, W&M - 2004

Eddie Robinson Award
Andy Talley, Villanova - 1997
Mickey Matthews, JMU - 1999

Buchanan Award
Derrick Lloyd, JMU - 2001

[bkrownd]

Will this most recent incarnation be stable for long? Hmmm...

[JMU Duke Dog]

Will this most recent incarnation be stable for long? Hmmm...

It will be very interesting to see what happens in the next decade with the schools involved in the CAA for football. Questions about Delaware, JMU, and UMass going Division I-A and about ODU or other non-football CAA members adding a Division I-AA football team will be answered. These rumors could be all talk and nothing could change; however, if these rumors or other events occur that have not even been discussed then there will be even more changes in the CAA. Regardless, college football conference alignments will continue to change for many years to come.

[GannonFan]

It will be very interesting to see what happens in the next decade with the schools involved in the CAA for football. Questions about Delaware, JMU, and UMass going Division I-A and about ODU or other non-football CAA members adding a Division I-AA football team will be answered. These rumors could be all talk and nothing could change; however, if these rumors or other events occur that have not even been discussed then there will be even more changes in the CAA. Regardless, college football conference alignments will continue to change for many years to come.

Duke Dog is right - nothing is really stable for long periods any longer in college sports - conference affiliations change every year and IAA is really no different. I don't think any one school has anything planned in terms of leaving, but the speed and degree of outside changes (changes in IA and IAA classification, changes in other conferences, etc) will determine how long this arrangement lasts. Should be enjoyable while we have it!