This may be a moot point with the Big Conferences starting to stablize but...

[URMite]

...how about 4 Div-I subdivisions.

The Corporate Money/ESPN Group

The Non-Scholarship but Division I other sports group

And split the rest by Attendance - above and below X

That seems like it would allow everyone to be with their peers, and therefore make too much sense. xrolleyesx

There could still be some cross scheduling without too much trouble.

So who wants to label all the teams and present this to the powers that be?xlolx

[Twentysix]

...how about 4 Div-I subdivisions.

The Corporate Money/ESPN Group

The Non-Scholarship but Division I other sports group

And split the rest by Attendance - above and below X

That seems like it would allow everyone to be with their peers, and therefore make too much sense. xrolleyesx

There could still be some cross scheduling without too much trouble.

So who wants to label all the teams and present this to the powers that be?xlolx

And what about when a school has a down year or three in a row and goes form 25k attendance to 15k.

[lionsrking2]

Not a fan of this idea ... there's nothing wrong with the way it is now other than how FBS/BCS schools are determined ... attendance should not be used to classify programs ... if a school is inclined and has the means to fully fund a program relative to the level they seek to participate, more power to them ... attendance already serves as a natural barrier in most instances, we don't need to make it an official one ... doing so could undermine budding programs which are striving to build a fan base.

[superman7515]

Not a fan of this idea ... there's nothing wrong with the way it is now other than how FBS/BCS schools are determined ... attendance should not be used to classify programs ... if a school is inclined and has the means to fully fund a program relative to the level they seek to participate, more power to them ... attendance already serves as a natural barrier in most instances, we don't need to make it an official one ... doing so could undermine budding programs which are striving to build a fan base.

In theory, it already is an official barrier. If attendance is under 15k for two seasons, the NCAA is supposed to automatically reclassify that school as FCS.

[superman7515]

Although, to clarify, they've never followed through on it. Rice, Utah State, Eastern Michigan, Idaho, Ball State, Kent State, New Mexico State, Buffalo, and Florida International all should have been reclassified at some point or another in the past.

[alvinkayak6]

URMite, I think the title of the thread suggests you know the answer to the question. :)

[lionsrking2]

In theory, it already is an official barrier. If attendance is under 15k for two seasons, the NCAA is supposed to automatically reclassify that school as FCS.

To echo your point, the 15K rule has never been enforced, and likely never will be ... it's essentially a toothless rule and not the primary means of dividing classifications ... in fact, there is no attendance language as it relates to FCS, D-II or D-III.