(03-30-2014 11:36 PM)AACtopER Wrote:  get 50 k in seats in your stadiums.

Why would that be a qualifier for anyone? Most of the current AAC doesn't seat 50k. And a fair share of those programs aren't even over 40k.

(03-30-2014 06:22 PM)BigHouston Wrote:  We already know how UMass fans think... They're not going to invest on their football stadium unless AAC offers them membership first... Backward thinking, IMO.

Old Dominion is a good size school (24k plus students)... Decent size market... Facility upgrades are on the works... Fan interest is good.


Here's the + or - question

IF, the AAC had to chose between these two programs... Who would be the better AAC fit, UMass or Old Dominion???




Please Note; This is just for conversation purposes, nothing more.

The way things stand right now. ODU and I don't think its close. UMass is a land grant, but they are in the same category of land grants as Idaho, New Mexico, Colorado State and New Mexico State. That is to say they all have great potential if their states ever decide to give them a hand up which I doubt will happen anytime soon.

ODU on the other hand is easily has the highest ceiling of any of the recent move ups, from the looks of it they own their market. Very few, if any, non-p5 school can say that about their area. The monarchs have 14,000+ season ticket holders in football with a waiting list of several thousand more. I've heard that they are planning on upgrading their stadium to 30,000 which I think is short sighted, I think anything less than 40,000 is to small for them. Once their basketball gets better they will also be able to hold their own in the AAC. In short, ODU is one of the very few G5 schools that has the potential to put 50-60,000 in the stands on a regular basis, assuming they had a stadium that can hold that many.

(03-31-2014 10:30 PM)Lurker Above Wrote:  Old Dominion now? No. Old Dominion in about 7 years? Maybe.

If Old Dominion were a stock I would buy it low and look to sell it high. The university has a mystic about it, the campus is large, the facilities are decent, the recruiting grounds are fertile and there is excitement building in their program. I think OD has as much chance of getting an AAC invite in the future as any other C-USA team.

ODU!? Really? It was said on another thread a few months ago: You just jumped the shark!

Sent from my SPH-M840 using Tapatalk

The idea of adding ODU is laughable. They are at best the 3rd program in their state behind VA Tech and UVA. They're probably behind JMU as well. So exactly what market are they bringing?

Football isn't the only thing that conferences look at when they evaluate new members. Basketball is at best 4th in the state behind VCU as well as the other two. GMU has had more success than ODU as well.

So what exactly does OFU bring? UMass is the flagship university of a state with one of the top dozen most populated states in the country. It's only competition in state is from a private school. It has a basketball program that was nationally ranked this year. The state has stepped up and provided the backing for the move to FBS. Upgrades to the stadium are under way as we speak.they have immediate access to the Patriots Stadium for games that could draw bigger crowds as games with UConn probably could right away. The current on campus stadium is expandable when the program grows to that level of demand.

There is simply no way to reject UMass on the basis of football attendance when you look at the attendance at members like Tulsa, Tulane, etc. OTOH, UConn and Temple badly need help with travel for their Olympic sports. They badly need rivals that their fans care about. Both programs have a history with UMass, which makes them a perfect addition.

ODU seems to have just come out of nowhere. I hadn't ever heard of it until a year or two ago but on the whole they seem to have a respectable following and their fans are as passionate, if not more so, than many of the schools they are so often compared to.

(04-04-2014 10:45 AM)Melky Cabrera Wrote:  The idea of adding ODU is laughable. They are at best the 3rd program in their state behind VA Tech and UVA. They're probably behind JMU as well. So exactly what market are they bringing?

Football isn't the only thing that conferences look at when they evaluate new members. Basketball is at best 4th in the state behind VCU as well as the other two. GMU has had more success than ODU as well.

So what exactly does OFU bring? UMass is the flagship university of a state with one of the top dozen most populated states in the country. It's only competition in state is from a private school. It has a basketball program that was nationally ranked this year. The state has stepped up and provided the backing for the move to FBS. Upgrades to the stadium are under way as we speak.they have immediate access to the Patriots Stadium for games that could draw bigger crowds as games with UConn probably could right away. The current on campus stadium is expandable when the program grows to that level of demand.

There is simply no way to reject UMass on the basis of football attendance when you look at the attendance at members like Tulsa, Tulane, etc. OTOH, UConn and Temple badly need help with travel for their Olympic sports. They badly need rivals that their fans care about. Both programs have a history with UMass, which makes them a perfect addition.

Some other ODU fan please straighten this fool out. I don't have the time.

(04-04-2014 10:47 AM)HeartOfDixie Wrote:  ODU seems to have just come out of nowhere. I hadn't ever heard of it until a year or two ago but on the whole they seem to have a respectable following and their fans are as passionate, if not more so, than many of the schools they are so often compared to.

If you ever get the chance to come to Norfolk and see an ODU game (basketball, football, whatever) in person I would strongly suggest it. There are lots of supportive fans in this entire region that want to see ODU do even greater things in the future.

If the only question is UMass or ODU, the choice is simple for me. Old Dominion has an upside. If I were ECU, I'd be lobbying hard to include them and release Navy from its commitment to join.

Why would the AAC want Old Dominion or U Mass. They are a perfect fit for the Sunbelt or Cusa. We want top nationally academic ranked universities such as BYU Air Force or Army.

Neither UMass or Old Dominion are good choices....

(04-04-2014 02:13 PM)Savacool Wrote:  Why would the AAC want Old Dominion or U Mass. They are a perfect fit for the Sunbelt or Cusa. We want top nationally academic ranked universities such as BYU Air Force or Army.

Air Force and Army aren't even good choices....

BYU is the top pick

Villanova should be invited for all sports except football, and they can sort of share a spot with Navy (who is football only)

Colorado State and New Mexico should be added to go to 14 (the current magic number)....it weakens the MW tremendously, and could possibly become future western teams for BYU if they wanted to join

(03-30-2014 06:22 PM)BigHouston Wrote:  We already know how UMass fans think... They're not going to invest on their football stadium unless AAC offers them membership first... Backward thinking, IMO.

Old Dominion is a good size school (24k plus students)... Decent size market... Facility upgrades are on the works... Fan interest is good.


Here's the + or - question

IF, the AAC had to chose between these two programs... Who would be the better AAC fit, UMass or Old Dominion???




Please Note; This is just for conversation purposes, nothing more.

ODU

Old Dominion is in the middle of unprecedented Capital Improvement and New Construction projects, estimated in excess of $400 million dollars, this doesn't include projects proposed from a new 10 year Master Plan that was recently completed. The future improvements our estimated to be between $300-$500 million in new projects (2025). ODU is also privately funding a new Basketball Practice Facility ($8 Million) to be completed in 2015 and our proposed $150,000,000 state of the art new football stadium, on the water, planed for 2017.

The new arts in the village project will feature a one of a kind outdoor Amphitheater for productions along side the new Arts building and Museum. The new Arts Center will house one of the largest art collections on the East Coast. This is a colabration between the Chrysler Family and the "Baron and Ellin Gordon Art Galleries" at Old Dominion University.

As a part of ODU's College of Arts and Letters, the Gordon Art Galleries promotes the advancement of knowledge through research and scholarship in the arts and seeks to develop a respect for the dignity and worth of the individual. entrepreneurial research and collaboration, and initiatives that contribute nearly $1 billion to the economy.

ODU's focus on Research, ranks it behind UVA, Tech and MCV/VCU in research dollars in the State. Old Dominion has become one of Virginia's forward-focused research university and a Carnegie Classification has propelled our research entrepreneurial center into a new level. Recently ODU secured a partnership collaboration with NASA. The project collaboration is estimated in the millions, and will give Old Dominion a new avenue for research. The University has already made great strides in the areas of modeling and simulation, bioelectrics, maritime health and systems, nanotechnologies and alternative energies. With over 400 projects in progress at our 26 research centers, Old Dominion University is on the cutting-edge. ODU research teams generate $88 million in annual funding for research and ODU contributes nearly $2 billion annually to the regional economy. Combined with the Art initiatives and Research diversification Old Dominion accounts for nearly 3 billion dollars to the Regions economy. . Thanks for reading

ODU Arts in the Village and Amphitheater

ODU New Education Building

One of ODU's New Research Centers on Campus

The Ted Constance Center "$40 million privately funded"

I have also linked a video for the Arts in the Village Project for ODU.

edit ... I should mention that Old Dominion has also seen 4%, 7%, 11% and an 18% increase in applications in the last 4 years. Most likely the application increases are due to Football and the visibility in the State and localities (Norfolk, VA Beach, Chesapeake, Hampton, Portsmouth, Suffolk and Newport News, over 1.5 million people in the metro area). The 2005 projection for school enrollment are dramatically off. A new 5 and 10 year study to estimate student population would have ODU with 30,000 students by 2019 and 37,000 by 2024 . Those projections are being evaluated to find ways to accommodate more students on campus. The housing needs and funding to increase faculty numbers are major issues. The logistics of space and dormitory building may be just one critical part of a solution. Old Dominion is very aggressive in their approach to increase their visibility on the Nation Stage.

(04-04-2014 03:40 PM)ODU Oldtimer Wrote:  I have also linked a video for the Arts in the Village Project for ODU.

Where does ODU fall academically and athletically in the Commonwealth of Virginia?

(04-04-2014 04:05 PM)Hitch Wrote:  

(04-04-2014 03:40 PM)ODU Oldtimer Wrote:  I have also linked a video for the Arts in the Village Project for ODU.

Where does ODU fall academically and athletically in the Commonwealth of Virginia?

Well, ODU started as a Norfolk Campus for The College of William and Mary.


1 University of Virginia Charlottesville ...
2 Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Blacksburg
3 George Mason University Fairfax
4 Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond
5 The College of William & Mary Williamsburg
6 James Madison University Harrisonburg
7 Old Dominion University Norfolk
8 Liberty University Lynchburg
9 University of Richmond
10 Washington and Lee University Lexington
11 Sweet Briar College
12 Radford University
13 Regent University Virginia Beach
14 Hampden-Sydney College
15 Longwood University Farmville
16 Christopher Newport University Newport News
17 University of Mary Washington Fredericksburg
18 Hampton University
19 Norfolk State University
20 Virginia Military Institute Lexington
21 Eastern Mennonite University Harrisonburg ...
22 Marymount University Arlington
23 The University of Virginia's College at Wise
24 Lynchburg College
25 Randolph-Macon College Ashland
26 Virginia State University Petersburg
27 Shenandoah University Winchester
28 Bridgewater College
29 Virginia Union University Richmond
30 Hollins University Roanoke
31 Roanoke College Salem
32 Virginia Wesleyan College Norfolk
33 Averett University Danville ...
34 Eastern Virginia Medical School Norfolk
35 Mary Baldwin College Staunton
36 Randolph College Lynchburg
37 Ferrum College
38 Emory & Henry College Emory ...
39 Bluefield College
40 Virginia Intermont College Bristol
41 Saint Paul's College

(04-04-2014 02:13 PM)Savacool Wrote:  Why would the AAC want Old Dominion or U Mass. They are a perfect fit for the Sunbelt or Cusa. We want top nationally academic ranked universities such as BYU Air Force or Army.

A school from New England is a "perfect fit" for the SunBelt?

While I don't really care about joining the AAC at this moment because I know that my school has a long way to go since our football is in its infancy. We just joined CUSA which is a real good fit for us and it would also cost a lot of money to leave a conference and join a new one. I don't appreciate posters from other schools berating ODU as if it is not a contender for a future role in a conference such as the AAC by demeaning our academics or sports program(these people are very uninformed about ODU). No ODU posters have started these conversations or polls, so a little courtesy is in order.


OLD DOMINION UNIVERSITY
Norfolk, VA


University Profile
Enrollment 25,000
17:1 Students per faculty member
167 Courses of study
108 Countries represented on campus
250 Student organizations
69 Undergraduate Majors
54 Masters Programs
42 Doctoral Programs
$180 Million Endowment(which would not be the smallest in AAC)

Located in the city of Norfolk, in Hampton Roads (1.7 million people, 37th most populous area in U.S.) #43 TV market with no major sports teams.

ACADEMICS

The foundations of Old Dominion University began in the minds of administrators and officials at the College of William and Mary in the first decades of the twentieth century. ODU has an endowment of over $180 million dollars and has many notable attendees such as Jimmy Carter and Maya Angelou. ODU has changed a lot in the last few years and is focusing on its development of which it has spent over $300 million on capital improvements along with a new capital plan which will invest another $300 - $500 million dollars into the campus. The major reason ODU has been labeled at the cusp of a tier 2 school is due to its graduation rates which takes a hit from the large transient military enrollment(which ODU takes honor in teaching soldiers-many are unable to stay for 4 years to earn a degree due to them moving on to other bases). ODU is working hard in partnerships with NASA, US NAVY and EVMS( a medical school that ODU would like to acquire at some point). ODU pumps over $1 billion dollars into the Hampton Roads economy every year. ODU's location in a major international maritime and commerce gateway enhances the university's engagements in key fields such as marine science, aerospace, ship design and construction, advanced electronics, national security, and nuclear physics. Relative to its location to national and international military commands, ODU is also strong in programs with global outreach such as business, economics, international studies, geography, and the sciences. Research priorities in science and technology at ODU can be categorized into four sectors, all of which have strong capabilities and market opportunity: lifespan biology, including bioelectrics; modeling, simulation, and visualization; alternative energy, including photovoltaics and biofuels; and transportation, a multi-modal focus that encompasses all possible avenues of movement. A fifth area, nanotechnology, is also considered a priority sector due to the university's strengths, close working relationship with the Jefferson Lab, and multitude of applications. Collaboration between ODU and the Jefferson Lab focuses on micro- and nanotechnologies, especially for use by or in partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy. Other areas of focus include accelerator physics, specialized accelerators and instrumentation, and specialized sensors and particle detectors.
Within these key sectors, ODU's work is targeted, yet widespread. ODU has a strong and active photovoltaic program, with heavy emphasis on smart grid technologies, including the resiliency of grids in the coastal area. Within their work on transportation, researchers are focused on autonomous vehicle technology, human factors engineering, biomechanics, lean manufacturing with regards to shipbuilding technologies, and planning for emergency evacuations through traffic advisory and signaling systems. Additional work in nanotechnologies includes nanomaterials, both with nanoparticles that carry drugs into human bodies and microfluidics, or the flow of fluids into micro entry points; nanoscale electronics, especially microelectron mechanical systems (MEMS); and the targeted delivery of nanomedicine through bioelectrics and pulse signaling.
Over the next few years ODU expects to see growth in numerous sectors, and particularly in bioelectrics, modeling and simulation, photovoltaics, and micro- and nanotechnologies.

ODU rates similarly to ECU, USF, Memphis, and Louisville(all members of AAC) in Forbes Rankings.



SPORTS
Old Dominion's 18 athletic teams are known as the Monarchs (men) and Lady Monarchs (women) and mostly compete in the NCAA Division I Conference USA. Old Dominion University athletic teams have captured 28 team national championships and four individual titles. ODU athletic teams have won a further 28 national championships including 15 in men's and women's sailing and 9 in women's field hockey. The Lady Monarchs' nine national titles in field hockey are unprecedented in NCAA record books for most titles in that sport by the same school. ODU currently has an athletic budget of around $40 million dollars, placing it at top of CUSA.



The school's best-known sports team is the Lady Monarchs basketball team, which has won three national championships in 1979 (AIAW), 1980 (AIAW) and 1985 (NCAA). The Lady Monarchs also made it to the 1997 Women's NCAA Championship Game, losing to Tennessee.NCAA/AIAW Tournament champions. They are also one of the most storied programs in all of women's basketball, ranked #6 in all time NCAA appearances and are under a massive overhaul that has included many highly rated recruits in the last 2 years.

NCAA/AIAW National Titles
1979, 1980, 1985
NCAA/AIAW Tournament runner up
1997
NCAA/AIAW Tournament Final Four
1979, 1980, 1981, 1983, 1985, 1997
NCAA/AIAW Tournament Elite Eight
1979, 1980, 1981, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1997, 2002
NCAA/AIAW Tournament Sweet Sixteen
1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2008
NCAA/AIAW Tournament appearances
1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008
Conference tournament champions
Sun Belt: 1983, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1990
CAA: 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008
Conference regular season champions
Sun Belt: 1983, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1989
CAA: 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010


The Old Dominion Monarchs Basketball team represents Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, United States in NCAA Division I men's competition. (The women's team, which has traditionally had a considerably higher national profile, is known as the Lady Monarchs.) The school's team currently competes in the Conference USA. They were the 1975 Division II national champions and the champions of the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament in 2009. The team last played in the Division I NCAA Tournament in 2011. The Monarchs are currently coached by Jeff Jones. They lost to Butler(Finalist) in the second round of the 2011 NCAA Tournament by 2 points on a heartbreaker(that year VCU made it to the Final Four but loss to ODU twice that year). The Old Dominion University Monarchs (men's) basketball team have captured six CAA championship titles (1992, 1995, 1997, 2005, 2010, and 2011) since their conference admission in 1992, which is the most among all CAA schools. In 2007, they received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament, when the team went 24-8 and finished 37th in RPI. That season included a notable 13-point win at 8th ranked Georgetown. Their most recent trip to the NCAA tournament was with an automatic bid after capturing the 2010 CAA title. During the NCAA tournament, the 11th seeded Monarchs managed a 1-point first-round upset over the 6th seeded Fighting Irish of Notre Dame.

In 2002 ODU opened the Ted Constant Convocation Center for the 2002-2003 basketball season. "The Ted" has 8,600 fully cushioned seats, 16 luxury suites, and a state-of-the-art scoreboard. In addition to being used for home basketball games, the Constant Center hosts family-oriented events as well as concerts, lectures, and commencement ceremonies. It has been rated the one of the best small arenas in the world multiple times.


ODU FOOTBALL

While this program is in its infancy, it is considered one of the best football startups ever (starting up at 46W-14L) along with a hungry fan base. ODU currently plays in the 20,000 seat Foreman Field that is always sold out and has a huge waiting list of people who are waiting to buy tickets when more seats are available. ODU is in the process of designing/planning a new state of the art Football stadium by the Elizabeth River on the other end of campus. ODU had one of the top recruiting classes in CUSA this year with 15 3 star recruits this year.

ODU Soccer has been ranked numerous times in the top 25 in the last few years. With multiple NCAA Tournament Appearances
1989, 1991, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013


ODU Field Hockey is one of the most dominant teams in all of NCAA history. Titles in 1982, 1983, 1984, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1998, 2000 along with multiple final and 3rd place awards.


ODU baseball has a checkered history but has produced some notable players such as Bud Metheny and Justin Verlander.


ODU sailing has nabbed over 15 National Titles.


ODU wrestling has produced a number of individual champions, has highly rated classes and is always a very good team that have been ranked.


ODU tennis has produced a National Champion in women's tennis.


ODU has so much potential, and it is achieving its goals to reach that potential!

Every large public university in Virginia has spent hundreds of millions in facility upgrades for academic and athletic programs. They all have ambitious campus master plans for further expansion and upgrades, but none of it is set in stone. It is merely what the school envisions for itself in the future. To act like ODU is unique in this matter is not true.

Number of Applicants / % Student Body Out of State
1. UVA 27,178 / 35%
2. JMU 22,864 / 33%
3. VT 20,191 / 29%
4. GMU 17,621 / 21%
5. VCU 15,750 / 13%
6. ODU 10,361 / 10%

Size of incoming freshman class / student retention rate
VT 5,487 / 92%
JMU 4,029 / 91%
VCU 3,617 / 85%
UVA 3,400 / 98%
ODU 2,708 / 80%
GMU 2,696 / 86%

Top 10% in HS Class / graduation rate
UVA 88% / 93%
VT 40% / 83%
JMU 26% / 80%
GMU 20% / 66%
VCU 20% / 56%
ODU 12% / 49%

I never once said or made references that ODU was the only school spending money to improve its campus, which would be a stupid and clearly uninformed statement. I clearly stated how much ODU was spending on improving ITS OWN CAMPUS. Im not here to promote JMU, UVA or VCU. I am here just defending ODU and explaining some of the things ODU has going on with its school, academics and athletics.