(10-06-2021 02:29 PM)ccd494 Wrote:  

(10-06-2021 01:49 PM)esayem Wrote:  Well most of those regional arguments fall apart when you consider the administration is all for joining the AAC, where the closest school is Temple. Then where, Greenville?

UMass has been talking about moving up to 1-A since the mid-90’s, so it’s not like this was a decision on a whim. The way I see it, the MAC or C-USA is a way to build towards the AAC if they’re not selected this round.

People will come out to see a winner. Their AD hired a coach that hasn’t done that. Hockey has nothing to do with football.

I'm not sure you can make any of those assumptions.

First, there's a HUGE difference between the AAC and the MAC. While the present AAC is no great shakes, the AAC at least has a few schools that are academically aspirational (Tulane, Navy), and athletically recognizable (Memphis, SMU, Temple for late 90's UMass hoops fans). At least you could tell your faculty "we're rubbing elbows with Tulane!" instead of Western Michigan.

Second, I haven't heard anything specifically from the UMass administration that says the AAC is the goal. It's kind of assumed it is by everyone on the internet, but I'm not positive it is from the UMass admin. UMass just watched the most comparable FBS school leave the AAC. Two other schools just left, and public discourse suggests that the AAC swung and missed at CSU and Air Force. I'm not saying UMass would turn down the AAC, and UMass is probably close to two decades away from being invited, but if you asked the powers that be at UMass to design a conference they want to join I'm not sure there are many, if any, AAC schools in said conference.

Third, if C-USA and the MAC are how you build to the AAC, why aren't any of those schools already in those conferences ahead of UMass in the pecking order? UMass football sucks compared to most of C-USA and the MAC. Just bringing the investment up to the level of C-USA and the MAC using money from joining the conference isn't going to vault UMass ahead of those schools. And you are lighting your basketball program on fire, the program that traditionally has been your premier program.

Fourth, the administration and athletic director from when UMass went FBS has completely turned over. Are we sure that this present group thinks football is worth it? UMass moving to FBS was largely tied to the Krafts wanting it to happen to fill dates at Foxboro (a move that SPECTACULARLY failed) and the ego of the then UMass president. I don't remember a ton of rumors in the 1990's about UMass moving up, and that was the heyday of FCS to FBS jumps. The move was largely sold as "UMass football is failing and losing money in FCS. The Krafts are offering us Foxboro. This is the only thing we can do to save UMass football."

Fifth, you brought up the AD: "The mistake was hiring an AD that fired two coaches with UMass roots and replaced them with unproven coaches. Look at the records of their current revenue producing sports. Abysmal. That starts and ends with coaching." I pointed out that hockey is more important at UMass than football, and the hockey hire was fantastic and they won a national title. UMass competes in Hockey East with schools that look a heck of a lot more like UMass than the schools in the MAC or CUSA that you think they should join up with.

The AAC is less appealing after UConn’s departure. I won’t argue there.

I posted an article sometime ago citing UMass having an invite to C-USA if they wanted to move up their football program. This was like 1995. There were other articles that just generally talked about moving up and playing at the new (then) Kraft stadium.

I’ve already explained how they wouldn’t be lighting their basketball program on fire. How is current basketball attendance? Are they racking up tournament bids? People don’t generally go to home games because of who the team is playing. They go because their team is good or they go to every game no matter what.

Why would UMass have to leave Hockey East? Why are you avoiding the fact that the two main revenue sports have bad coaches?

I don’t see UMass moving down to FCS—their AD even said that’s not an option— so it doesn’t make sense for people to scream and yell it’s a mistake they moved up. The focus should be “how can we make this work?” And that’s precisely what this thread is about.