(01-03-2013 03:54 PM)dogpick Wrote:  Tulane would be our academic school. Like a Vanderbilt or Northwestern. Every conference needs one of those teams with the slow but smart kids. Everyone knows Tulane. Nobody knows the name of the bottom third MAC schools. This is why we aren't referring to them by name. We don't even think about them until we look at the schedule and say, "Oh crap, this week's home game is against [Insert Bottom Third MAC school]."

We do have one of those...its called Buffalo. They are an AAU school same as Tulane. Best part is that Buffalo is a public school in a HUGE state in the MAC footprint and Tulane is a private school in a much smaller state almost double the distance from NIU.

HuskieJohn you are a die hard. Nobody that isn't a die hard will ever care about Buffalo unless they also find a better conference. Granted Tulane isn't Alabama or Florida State, but I sure as heck would rather go to school at Tulane instead of Buffalo.

So basically you are telling me that we are going nowhere and that I should have gone to school elsewhere if I wanted to be really excited about my school's football program? I guess that I have always known that was the case, but after the Orange Bowl I was hoping that others would be looking for more too. If the people here don't want it then I guess it probably can't be done. You guys are the die hards.

East Carolina is sexier than any MAC including Toledo!

(01-03-2013 04:03 PM)yesman815 Wrote:  East Carolina is sexier than any MAC including Toledo!

ECU by itself...ok maybe BUT it is not sexier for NIU over Toledo for football.

(01-03-2013 04:03 PM)yesman815 Wrote:  East Carolina is sexier than any MAC including Toledo!

You and I know that. The mooks sitting at home during home games because theye say we don't play anyone the people on TV talk about probably doesn't know the difference.

Two comments:

1. Outside of joining one of the Big AQ conferences, what conference out of the Group of 5 would be a substantial improvement? A lot of uncertainties out there right now

2. A move to any other conference, with the exception of maybe the Sun Belt (which would be a downgrade from the MAC anyway), would require us to make a significant increase to our athletic budget and improve facilities.

Does anyone know if there is truth to the rumor that the MAC limits a team from paying its head coach no more than 10% more than the current highest paid coach? If that is true, that in itself could strain any growth targets we set for our program. With success hopefully comes more money by way of fan support and at some point we will need to pay up to retain a coach. I would hate a conference rule being one reason we can't finally generate some stability at the HC level which in my opinion is a key to building a consistent winner long term on a national level. I think at some point the upper MAC teams that have achieved success will want to continue to sustain it and it will create a bigger divide from the bottom teams from a monetary standpoint. I don't know how a team like EMU will keep up when the cost to playing in the FBS show keeps increasing.

I'm not really concerned with the investment or cost. I just want more exciting opponents. I guess I am selfish, but I want more excitement. The Orange Bowl was fun. 2003 was fun. Let's have more of that kind of fun.

(01-03-2013 01:56 PM)HuskieJohn Wrote:  

(01-03-2013 01:52 PM)fathuskie Wrote:  I prefer the way it is. In 2014, the highest rated non-BCS team gets into a BCS bowl every year no matter what. We will compete for that spot with Boise, Louisiana Tech, Nevada, SMU, Houston, Cincinnati, San Diego State, Utah State, ect. I like our odds of us getting in or a MAC school every couple of years if not more.

Even better chances if SD St, Boise St, Utah St, Houston, SMU, Nevada are all in the same conference (MWC) and they have 2 divisions with a conference championship game. Nothing kills a BCS buster like a conference championship game.

Boise won't stay strong once Chris Peterson goes to Oregon after Kelly bolts to the NFL.

(01-03-2013 04:20 PM)badmoonrising13 Wrote:  

(01-03-2013 01:56 PM)HuskieJohn Wrote:  

(01-03-2013 01:52 PM)fathuskie Wrote:  I prefer the way it is. In 2014, the highest rated non-BCS team gets into a BCS bowl every year no matter what. We will compete for that spot with Boise, Louisiana Tech, Nevada, SMU, Houston, Cincinnati, San Diego State, Utah State, ect. I like our odds of us getting in or a MAC school every couple of years if not more.

Even better chances if SD St, Boise St, Utah St, Houston, SMU, Nevada are all in the same conference (MWC) and they have 2 divisions with a conference championship game. Nothing kills a BCS buster like a conference championship game.

Boise won't stay strong once Chris Peterson goes to Oregon after Kelly bolts to the NFL.

Oregon already says they will promote Helfrich. Peterson looks like a football version of Mark Few.

(01-03-2013 04:20 PM)dogpick Wrote:  I'm not really concerned with the investment or cost. I just want more exciting opponents. I guess I am selfish, but I want more excitement. The Orange Bowl was fun. 2003 was fun. Let's have more of that kind of fun.

I'm okay with the MAC opponents but we at least should get somebody decent to play us at home in the OOC schedule.

None of the non-BCS conferences are worth bothering with. When the dust settles, the MAC, SBC, CUSA and Big East will be on equal footing. The MWC has the most potential to join the BCS conferences, but more than likely they will be picked clean to fill the expansion desires of the Pac 12 and Big 12.

(01-03-2013 04:36 PM)niu79 Wrote:  None of the non-BCS conferences are worth bothering with. When the dust settles, the MAC, SBC, CUSA and Big East will be on equal footing. The MWC has the most potential to join the BCS conferences, but more than likely they will be picked clean to fill the expansion desires of the Pac 12 and Big 12.

Yea I think we're stuck. Only reason to move would be for one of the power conferences and that won't happen.

If MAC teams can continue to knock off teams from the other conferences, that will be nice though. We need to start by beating Iowa and Purdue.

(01-03-2013 04:02 PM)dogpick Wrote:  HuskieJohn you are a die hard. Nobody that isn't a die hard will ever care about Buffalo unless they also find a better conference. Granted Tulane isn't Alabama or Florida State, but I sure as heck would rather go to school at Tulane instead of Buffalo.

So basically you are telling me that we are going nowhere and that I should have gone to school elsewhere if I wanted to be really excited about my school's football program? I guess that I have always known that was the case, but after the Orange Bowl I was hoping that others would be looking for more too. If the people here don't want it then I guess it probably can't be done. You guys are the die hards.

Ok fine lets say the BE is desperate to add FB team #12 for the 2013 season and called AD Dogpick today. They offer a football only invite and we had the option to join the Horizon League in all other sports at the same time. We just have to pay the 6.5million exit fee to the MAC (Same that Temple paid) and the 2.5 million entry fee to the BE then sign an agreement that if we leave we have to pay $10mil and give 27 months notice otherwise we will have to pay even more...unless we get some fancy pants lawyers who will cost a pretty penny. But you do it for exciting football matchups and the TV money which is better than what the MAC pays by a minimum of 20 times.

Then the very next week after we sign the contract its announced the Houston, SMU, SD St are all leaving for the MWC to join Boise St for the 2013 season.

You think, eh that is not horrible since it will lessen the travel burden...right? Well you have lonely all sports member Tulane who is now sitting out in BE no mans land who is now asking for a travel partner. So an invite is sent out to So Miss but then need to invite one more school if the BE wants a conference championship game by 2014 (now delayed by 1 year because it will be too hard to find 3 additional teams to join for 2013). The next obvious choice would be UMASS because they would fit well being in a big TV market, having a decent MBB team and already having access to a big stadium.

The next addition has to be in a new state close to the current footprint and has to offer something. The first program that comes to mind is Tulsa.

So now NIU is in a conference that looks like this...
2014

NIU
Cincinnati
UMASS
UCONN
Temple
Memphis

Tulsa
UCF
USF
So Miss
ECU
Tulane

Until the day that the B1G decides to have a bowel movement and takes GT and Virginia...or if hell freezes over...UNC and Duke. All to get to 16.

Then the ACC grabs Cincinnati and UCONN.

The BE then has to add two more to get back to 12 for the conference championship game. With NIU, Temple, Memphis and UMASS it makes sense to invite Toledo and Buffalo between markets (because that is what they do) and footprint (having learned that its better to stay close).

So now 2016 here is our conference

NIU
Buffalo
Temple
Toledo
Memphis
UMASS

Tulsa
Tulane
So Miss
ECU
UCF
USF


All this and all we had to pay was 9mil up front along with raising our ticket prices 3 times as much so we could afford our coaches pay to be competitive in the conference. Just so we could get that game every other year with Cincinnati. Now we have 5 games total with Buffalo AND Tulane every 4 years AND we have to deal with Temple and Memphis fans constantly talking about basketball.

The point being you don't move to a conference because of 1 opposing team. You move if its right for your school/student athletes.

Realistically only a move to the B12 would be right for us but that would only be an option if they lost TX, TT, oSu and OU AND wanted to go to 12.

Since we won't move why can't we get better games

Lets try and get Boise st!!!! Battle of non AQ

Skip an FBS school we do not need them to weaken our already weak shedule

Big 10 sucks

Here is what we should do

Out of conference

2 big 10 (1 game at soldier field)
1 ACC, SEC, or big 12
1 non AQ team such as Boise at home

Some of you have been doing a little too much :drinky2: . Thinking you (or anyone from the MAC, for that reason) will be going to a new conference.

We've played Illinois, Alabama, Iowa, Northwestern, and scheduled Nebraska. Only team I really want to play for the first time still out there is playing for the championship this year and they are from South Bend.

Don't laugh, WMU played them a year or two ago. Wonder if we could get them back in Soldier Field?

I've always figured that ND at Soldier Field is the scheduling white whale.

(01-03-2013 04:56 PM)MidnightBlueGold Wrote:  Some of you have been doing a little too much :drinky2: . Thinking you (or anyone from the MAC, for that reason) will be going to a new conference.

Before long the Big East might be desperate enough to try to grab a MAC team. By then they'd probably be a league of FCS teams and startups though.

But you're right, many of us have been doing far too much drinking.

(01-03-2013 05:13 PM)RitzHuskie Wrote:  We've played Illinois, Alabama, Iowa, Northwestern, and scheduled Nebraska. Only team I really want to play for the first time still out there is playing for the championship this year and they are from South Bend.

Don't laugh, WMU played them a year or two ago. Wonder if we could get them back in Soldier Field?

I was told that ND scheduled WMU because someone else backed out.

With the ACC agreement I doubt ND schedules a non AQ (Other than AF, Army, Navy, BYU) in the future while they are in partnership with the ACC.

Rice is on the schedule now in 2014 but I would bet that game is canceled to fit the ACC schedule.

UMASS is on the schedule in 2015 but there is a coaching connection and this game should fit just fine.

I think we might need to fill our stadium on a consistent basis before we can even ask some the bigger schools to play us at home not Soldiers Field.