CSNbbs

Too little, too late. The Sun Belt bailed them out, presumably permanently, and their share of CFP money alone warfs anything available to them in a lower division.

Besides, if the P5 balloons up to 69 schools, there's a really good chance the Aggies move into C-USA or the Mountain West. (Idaho needs a little more help, but the Mountain West suffering multiple losses would be the ticket).

If anything, this column is a hit job on NMSU Football. It's poorly written and not convincing.

NMSU is out of the woods. They aren't going anywhere. A few body bag games along with the conference money and you keep the program afloat during the rebuilding years.

Sounds like an academic who doesn't like sports. Moving to Division II would be monumentally stupid for NMSU. FCS is arguable. They could join the Big Sky or Southland, but joining the Rocky Mountain and downgrading basketball?

There is a reason schools never move down. With the ~$1.5 million conference payout in the new system, there is even more reason to be in the FBS.

(07-07-2013 07:36 PM)bullet Wrote: [ -> ]Sounds like an academic who doesn't like sports. Moving to Division II would be monumentally stupid for NMSU. FCS is arguable. They could join the Big Sky or Southland, but joining the Rocky Mountain and downgrading basketball?

Playing D2 is not going to happen. The administration is not going to want their peers to New Mexico Highlands or Eastern New Mexico.

(07-07-2013 07:48 PM)GSU Eagles Wrote: [ -> ]There is a reason schools never move down. With the ~$1.5 million conference payout in the new system, there is even more reason to be in the FBS.

Exactly. Also NMSU earns two to three times as much for a body bag game as it would as an FCS school. If the Aggies were to drop down there would be a net negative effect on their athletic finances.

This guy also clearly has no understanding of the economics of college sports. FBS is a far more viable business model than FCS. Those road losses to UCLA and Minnesota are part of this model and are necessary to pay the bills. NMSU does not need to beat schools like this regularly, though, it needs to be competitive in its conference, and it has every chance to be competitive in the SBC.

NMSU should move down to FCS football. Just take a hard look at Montana. There is a reason that they don't move up. NMSU would probably compete more on a national level in FCS than they ever will on the FBS level. People like to post about how much money they will make in the FBS. How about the amount of money they will have to spend just to be a door mat in the Sun Belt.

(07-07-2013 09:10 PM)hawghiggs Wrote: [ -> ]NMSU should move down to FCS football. Just take a hard look at Montana. There is a reason that they don't move up. NMSU would probably compete more on a national level in FCS than they ever will on the FBS level. People like to post about how much money they will make in the FBS. How about the amount of money they will have to spend just to be a door mat in the Sun Belt.

Then Arkansas should move down too since they are a door mat in the SEC. They have not won the conference since joining many years ago. Arkansas spends tens of millions of dollars just to be the doormat of the SEC. National title?.....not even close.

The sad part is, I don't think the Big Sky wants NMSU - they are so far from the rest of the conference it really doesn't help them. Even travel in the WAC would be slightly better, especially since just about every destination is in the same city or close to a major airport (Idaho is the clear outlier, but they aren't staying past 2014, although they are an easy travel partner with Seattle).

Even NMSU moving to the Southland destroys what is currently a bus league. Their closes conference opponent would be Abilene Christian, who is almost a 7.5 hour drive away - at least Grand Canyon is within a 6-hour drive within the WAC. In Division I NMSU at least has UNM and UTEP close by, and even Texas Tech is a shorter trip than Abilene Christian (Lubbock to Las Cruces is actually about 35-40 miles shorter than Las Cruces to Phoenix). In all honesty, I think the only reason ACU got in the Southland is that they have FCS football-if they didn't they'd certainly be in the WAC if they still went Division I.

Where did the writer come up with those scores from? 66-2, 41-18, 11-9, 49-9... So NMSU wont be able to stop Texas from scoring but will somehow get a safety? They will make 5 FG's against Minnesota? UTEP decides to go for 2? Then already dropping the first three games they will continue to kick FG's against UCLA instead of go trying to go big and go for it on 4th down?

(07-07-2013 09:16 PM)GSU Eagles Wrote: [ -> ]

(07-07-2013 09:10 PM)hawghiggs Wrote: [ -> ]NMSU should move down to FCS football. Just take a hard look at Montana. There is a reason that they don't move up. NMSU would probably compete more on a national level in FCS than they ever will on the FBS level. People like to post about how much money they will make in the FBS. How about the amount of money they will have to spend just to be a door mat in the Sun Belt.

Then Arkansas should move down too since they are a door mat in the SEC. They have not won the conference since joining many years ago. Arkansas spends tens of millions of dollars just to be the doormat of the SEC. National title?.....not even close.

We are not the door mat of the SEC little one. We have played in 3 conference championship games,and a Sugar bowl. We have also played in two NCAA basketball championship games and winning a National title. Also since joing the SEC. We have won 27 track and field National titles.

Getting back to New Mexico state. This is the same program. That had its coach ask the parents of the players to bring snacks after the team had practice. Because the program couldn't afford them.

I can tell you this much: Doug Martin is a good coach. I've met him personally, as have many other ECU fans. he has a tough job but he might be a perfect it there...

obviously a poorly written opinion piece. These lazy, anti-sports types fail to acknowledge that there is no greater way to get national recognition for a public university then having Div1 football and men's bball teams. Even ones with bad teams. Football= Marketing. This author unwittingly proves this point by using Cumberland as an example of what NMSU should be like- a school nobody has ever heard of with no students.

He then references a school like Minnesota, a school most people have heard of because of the great academic achievement of ???, or maybe MN is well know because they play sports in a high profile conference. Assuming the big named school will roll over NMSU is not supported by the fact that when the two met two years ago NMSU won, 28-21.

When I was in middle school and high school, I remember using Gopher, which was effectively the immediate predecessor to the World Wide Web. Gopher is named for the University of Minnesota.

I believe that a school classified as Div I in basketball (and all other sports) must also be in a Div I football conference either FBS OR FCS. Thus, NMSU could not drop down to Div II football and remain in Div I basketball. Apparently, neither the politician or writer are aware of that.

(07-07-2013 11:10 PM)RUfan03 Wrote: [ -> ]I believe that a school classified as Div I in basketball (and all other sports) must also be in a Div I football conference either FBS OR FCS. Thus, NMSU could not drop down to Div II football and remain in Div I basketball. Apparently, neither the politician or writer are aware of that.

They could, however, play Division III football like Georgetown does.

Georgetown doesn't play D-III football - it is Division I, just without scholarships.