(05-10-2022 11:53 AM)billybobby777 Wrote:  

(05-10-2022 11:49 AM)IWokeUpLikeThis Wrote:  

(05-10-2022 11:45 AM)PeteTheChop Wrote:  

(05-10-2022 11:35 AM)Big 12 fan too Wrote:  It’s as much a quality supply issue as cost. Residential education is trending towards luxury goods. Illinois has a shortage of spots for what the number of quality students are looking for.

My personal opinion is college athletics plays into that.

Illinois has a lot of colleges that have generally always been fast food quality, now charging casual dining prices, and most students are looking for better

In that context, would Illinois State making the jump to I-A and the MAC be a good thing for the "Prairie State" moving forward?

Would the MAC embrace such a thing (say with WKU in tow as Nos. 13 and 14)?

It would make zero difference. Illinois State (FCS) is a more popular school for IL students than NIU (FBS).

IL high school students don't care about G5 or FCS football. They care that there's not a Purdue to Indiana's Illinois.

I think that’s every state. If you live in X state you want to go to the “University of X” or “X State University”….I hate to say it but having a direction in your name is a killler unless your USC.

More correlation than anything. Most of the oldest, largest schools in states took those names. They became established as the top institutions a century ago.

Coming in 50+ years later and trying to compete with an business that is established is going to take some special circumstances to succeed.

USF and UCF for example have the benefit of a state with massive transient population growth, and better locations than FSU and UF. Particularly FSU.

FSU does not want to end up in the same conference as either of those two. Without their history in football, they wouldn’t have any significant brand advantage in state