Jacksonville St + FBS

[TexasTerror]

I know - enough with these realignment threads!

How close is Jacksonville State to being ready for a move to FBS? I saw Paul Snow Stadium will be able to handle 24k int he coming year...

What about other facility upgrades? What else does Jax State have in store?

Does anyone have a link to their feasibility study results as well?

[Keenan]

ZZZZZzzzzzz....xdeadhorsex

[JaxSinfonian]

I wish I could say JSU was working quickly on major upgrades to other facilities, but that's not the case. A $40 million renovation of Pete Mathews Coliseum is on the school's long-range capital plan on file with the state (pdf link here (http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CBIQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ache.state.al.us%2FInformatio n%2FPublications%2FFMP2011-2015%2FJSU.pdf&ei=rQYUTOWEEJm6M56FsaML&usg=AFQjCNHq7jLcIs-WCdqaooicgCzOMWKi8g&sig2=pqpIHD2EpanXovu18ljy-Q).) But no one's said anything out loud about this project, or where the money might come from. Whether JSU moves up or not, this project is probably needed, as the Pete isn't even up to the OVC's standards.

The facilities for baseball and softball, meanwhile, are far from matching the quality of play in those two programs.

If we could expect significant increases in guarantee-game revenue with a move up, perhaps there'd be enough to cover bonds for all three of those upgrades.

I also wish I had a copy of the Johnny Williams feasibility study, but I've long since lost that link.

[JSU02]

They never published the study, but the results said that we should, we just needed to market the athletic department better, and find the right conference with schools that are familiar to our alumni and the people in our area. We have talked to the Sunbelt and they said we need to upgrade our facilities (basketball, baseball, softball)first. We have submitted a planned $40,000,000 renovation to the Alabama Commision for Higher Education in our 3-5 capital improvement budget. I can post that link later if u want it.

[Redbirdz]

With the shift in conference allignments, I think it is just a matter of time before the Sunbelt loses and adds several teams, Jacksonville State included. The trustees are supportive of a move up. Facility improvements will come with that.

[AppMan]

You guys are perfectly situated for the SunBelt.

[Cocky]

The lower level FBS conference will worry more about travel than TV sets in their expansion or replacements. It's not like any of us FCS schools move the dial.

[AppMan]

Exactly. IMO, the great thing about FBS is there are several levels within FBS, yet minimum standards exist which ensure there is a measure of uniformity within the division. Institutions willing to make a commitment to a certain level can find comparable schools to compete with. The allure is to play at a higher, not necessarily the HIGHEST, level of football. At the same time you get a better shot when you take on those big boys now with a deeper team.

[TexasTerror]

The lower level FBS conference will worry more about travel than TV sets in their expansion or replacements. It's not like any of us FCS schools move the dial.

Good point... xthumbsupx

One of the better points I've seen and this is a good enough argument to express to the TXST fans. The thing is - the WAC makes sense for them if it includes schools like ArkSt, ULL, UTSA, NT and maybe non-footballs UALR and Oral Roberts. With just them and La Tech, the league will put their program in a rough spot...

[JSU02]

With all the Texas schools looking to move up, an Eastern WAC division would work out quite nicely.

[JaxSinfonian]

The lower level FBS conference will worry more about travel than TV sets in their expansion or replacements. It's not like any of us FCS schools move the dial.

Indeed. It's for that reason I'm hoping the conference shake-up doesn't wind up taking Troy, South Alabama and/or Middle Tennessee to Conference USA or elsewhere. If JSU is to move up, it'll be to the Sun Belt. And if those schools are gone we may find ourselves stuck in a league with FAU, FIU, North Texas and Denver, with big-time travel costs and a level of fan unfamiliarity worse than we're dealing with in the OVC.

Has anyone got any credible theories on new conference homes for the teams on the eastern and western fringes of the Sun Belt? Also, (and I apologize if this has been discussed elsewhere, but ...) how is Appalachian State situated for a move up? If it's being considered, would the Sun Belt be acceptable?

I get the sense all this movement will in the long term have real negative consequences for FCS as we know it. I'd like for JSU to stay at the level where true national champs are crowned, but I don't want our program to become even more of an afterthought in Alabama. If things are bound to shake up, I'd like to see them play out with a Sun Belt something like this:

East:
Western Kentucky
Appalachian State
Middle Tennessee
Jacksonville State
Troy

West:
Arkansas State
North Texas
Louisiana-Monroe
South Alabama
Louisiana-Lafayette

That's a solid 10-team league, but would be tiny in the new reality that is beginning to emerge. Other candidates to take the league to 12 would all be FCS move-ups, I think, and could include Texas State, UTSA (both could make UNT happier) and perhaps Georgia Southern (though I read from their fans here that they're not ready) and, the real outside shot, Eastern Kentucky (I don't know that a move has even been discussed formally on their campus, but it would be great to see both the Battle of the Bluegrass and the Battle for the Ol' School Bell revived).