After additional research, I believe the NCAA has always used the interpretation to include other financial aid. Otherwise FCS conferences like the NEC couldn't be used as countable opponents for FBS teams. The NEC only allows 45 scholarships, but schools use need-based financial aid to get the number over 90% of the 63 FCS limit (example Wagner is at 59).

Easiest thing would be to make a blanket rule covering all of FCS. Either games against them count or they don't count. Sure, you might have lower-tier FBS schools trying to game the system by going for the lowest-hanging non-scholarship fruit possible, but it's not like there's THAT much of a gap between scholarship and non-scholarship FCS football. Is playing San Diego or an Ivy any worse than playing Gardner-Webb or Tennessee Tech?

(12-26-2017 02:40 PM)Cyniclone Wrote:  Easiest thing would be to make a blanket rule covering all of FCS. Either games against them count or they don't count. Sure, you might have lower-tier FBS schools trying to game the system by going for the lowest-hanging non-scholarship fruit possible, but it's not like there's THAT much of a gap between scholarship and non-scholarship FCS football. Is playing San Diego or an Ivy any worse than playing Gardner-Webb or Tennessee Tech?

A few of those Savannah State teams in recent years might go winless in the Ivy or Patriot League

(12-26-2017 02:53 PM)MTPiKapp Wrote:  

(12-26-2017 02:40 PM)Cyniclone Wrote:  Easiest thing would be to make a blanket rule covering all of FCS. Either games against them count or they don't count. Sure, you might have lower-tier FBS schools trying to game the system by going for the lowest-hanging non-scholarship fruit possible, but it's not like there's THAT much of a gap between scholarship and non-scholarship FCS football. Is playing San Diego or an Ivy any worse than playing Gardner-Webb or Tennessee Tech?

A few of those Savannah State teams in recent years might go winless in the Ivy or Patriot League

True enough. They'll probably still have trouble reaching .500 when they drop back to D2 and the SIAC.

(12-25-2017 11:28 PM)Luckyshot Wrote:  

(12-23-2017 01:46 PM)EagleX Wrote:  

(12-23-2017 12:47 PM)Ragu Wrote:  Shows how far the media has fallen when an idiot on reddit gets national coverage for a message board post. I can't believe people actually believed this

The vast majority of the people in this thread bought it.

I still buy it. The explanation is that "other forms of scholarships" counting toward the total is understood. In other words, "Nothing in the rules say it's true, but this is better for the NCAA, so that's how we choose to define it."

It's strange to insist on believing crap from Reddit even after it has been disproven.

(12-26-2017 06:17 PM)EagleX Wrote:  

(12-25-2017 11:28 PM)Luckyshot Wrote:  

(12-23-2017 01:46 PM)EagleX Wrote:  

(12-23-2017 12:47 PM)Ragu Wrote:  Shows how far the media has fallen when an idiot on reddit gets national coverage for a message board post. I can't believe people actually believed this

The vast majority of the people in this thread bought it.

I still buy it. The explanation is that "other forms of scholarships" counting toward the total is understood. In other words, "Nothing in the rules say it's true, but this is better for the NCAA, so that's how we choose to define it."

It's strange to insist on believing crap from Reddit even after it has been disproven.

what's really ****** up is it wouldn't have meant dick either ******* way who was going to play whom......

this board has gone to shite in the logic category from too many for my liking since 3.0.....

(12-26-2017 06:34 PM)stinkfist Wrote:  this board has gone to shite in the logic category from too many for my liking since 3.0.....