I'm going to tell you what JMU did right that everyone else did wrong, and it's the thing these boards loved to throw shade over. It's the student athletic fee.

For a sake of comparison, JMU's athletic revenue generated from student fees is more than $10M more than Middle Tennessee's entire athletic budget (and we have one of the higher budgets in the conference). In fact, the only school that has a larger budget (and only slightly) than what JMU brings in just from student fees is Liberty.

JMU has ridden this financial excess over its rivals to beat out everyone else in what is the #1 indicator of athletic success. And that is resources. Never more did this premise come to bear than when player compensation went into effect.

So, I think the question that every single one of us needs to be asking ourselves is why aren't our schools doing the same thing? The first reaction is people are going to say it's a detriment to the academic side. Well, JMU debunked that too. JMU has doubled its athletic student fee over the past 10 years. During that same time frame JMU experienced about an 80% increase in applications. As the previous MT President said some three decades ago, athletics is the front porch to the University - something the current long time president never understood.

The bottom line is with increased costs, player compensation, and the gap widening because P4 can pay player excessive amounts the only way to grow yourself athletically at this point (if not too late) is by increasing athletic student fees, which drives broader institutional goals. That's the whole reason we all compete at the highest level. To drive broader institutional goals, so if you're not maximizing that opportunity then why bother at all? This is where we all failed and JMU is laughing all the way to the bank.

Athletics has little to do with growth of these type schools. It’s all about location.

North Texas, JMU, FAU. They benefit from being close to the fastest growing areas in America. DC, DFW, Miami

Student athletic fees are what funds these athletic programs. Look at ODU also Virginia and North Texas. Students fees funds these programs not alumni donations. Not actively engaged students.

Yes high athletic student fees is the model especially for these type schools where alumni donations are low and most students don’t care

$24 million is stupid amount to spend to play Charlotte and North Texas. I can assure you none of the schools left in the AAC after future realignment will move the needle for any JMU fan.
They won’t care.

Call me crazy but JMU just spent $24 million to play Charlotte, North Texas, and UTSA.

Money well spent? We’ll see in few years when Memphis, Tulane and USF leave. If JMU leaves with those schools. Yes it will be money well spent

JMU didn't spend anything for entrance. Corporations made a 23M deal with the American.

Zero from JMU budget for joining.

State laws actually play a lot into this.

Additionally, the concept of what the "student fee" is supposed to be also plays into this.

In Virginia, the state forces public universities to use the "student fee" to identify dollars used for athletics (and also things like marching band, etc) which are coming directly from the students. In other words, tuition dollars are not allowed, by VA state law, to be used for NCAA sports.

JMU also is currently in violation of the state law, as the percentage of athletic budget dollars coming from student fees is violating state law. They are being forced to lower that % by either lowering the athletic budget or finding more external dollars (this is actually one of the reasons the move to the American is so important for them).

Additionally, most Universities don't like using "student fees" for a couple of reasons:

• university dollars spent on NCAA sports is usually considered marketing by the administrations
• "student fees" are historically fees are used to fund services and activities for ALL students, not just a select few.
• additionally, most universities have student representation on the board of the body responsible to setting the "student fee."
  

PERSONALLY, I do think the Virgina model is more transparent. Esp since we know that when a university is spending "institutional dollars" on NCAA sports, it's almost always 100% from tuition (as govt funding and donations are almost always earmarked).

However, due to state laws & historic fews regarding what the "student fee" is for; I don't see many public universities adopting what happens with the Virginia public universities.

Once again.

Money is not “free” from big donors especially from small FBS schools.

Big donor money is finite.

Curious do you always believe the “spin” from press releases?

Here is the real story. We “JMU” convinced a big corporate donor of ours to pay the $24 million dollar entrance fee into the AAC. In exchange we give the naming rights to JMU athletics brands and properties. The well might be dry from this big donor when the next athletic project is needed.

If JMU leaves the AAC for a P4 in a few years with Memphis, Tulane and USF. I will say that was the great investment of 24 million dollars.

But if not JMU might be stuck in the AAC with CUSA remnants for the foreseeable future.

JMU loses their coach and hit a rough stretch of mediocre years. You think JMU fans are going be saying, I’m glad we got Charlotte or North Texas coming into Harrisonburg this Saturday!

Here is something else to think about for all this “free” or no money spent ridiculous talk

We all have one or two big corporate sponsors.

This corporate sponsor will get their 24 million dollars worth of advertising. Every other Radio spot or commercial break advertising will brought to you “by ______” big corporate sponsor.

That is value being taken away from another possible sponsor or donor.

Nothing is “free” in life. TopStraight should have already learn that life lesson

(10-22-2026 11:42 AM)TOPSTRAIGHT Wrote:  JMU didn't spend anything for entrance. Corporations made a 23M deal with the American.

Zero from JMU budget for joining.

You are the corporate sponsors, no one in Virginia seems to know who they are.

(10-22-2026 12:32 PM)JackedUp Wrote:  If JMU leaves the AAC for a P4 in a few years with Memphis, Tulane and USF. I will say that was the great investment of 24 million dollars.

But if not JMU might be stuck in the AAC with CUSA remnants for the foreseeable future.

JMU loses their coach and hit a rough stretch of mediocre years. You think JMU fans are going be saying, I’m glad we got Charlotte or North Texas coming into Harrisonburg this Saturday!

Here is something else to think about for all this “free” or no money spent ridiculous talk

We all have one or two big corporate sponsors.

This corporate sponsor will get their 24 million dollars worth of advertising. Every other Radio spot or commercial break advertising will brought to you “by ______” big corporate sponsor.

That is value being taken away from another possible sponsor or donor.

Nothing is “free” in life. TopStraight should have already learn that life lesson

What if AAC survives Division I and the rest of us are relegated in essence to I-AA era status? Entirely plausible. Schools meeting a certain revenue/spending threshold will get to stay. Those who do not will be relegated. So too will it have been worth it.

Also to the other poster who says athletics doesn't drive admissions, I respectfully disagree. There are way too many examples (i.e. Loyola to Final 4, Boise to BCS, etc) where these events drove not only significant increases in applications but also drove future growth on both sides of campus.

Another counter. MT is in one of the fatest growing counties/regions in the nation has done jack squat over the past few years.

(10-22-2026 01:14 PM)ThreeifbyLightning Wrote:  

(10-22-2026 12:32 PM)JackedUp Wrote:  If JMU leaves the AAC for a P4 in a few years with Memphis, Tulane and USF. I will say that was the great investment of 24 million dollars.

But if not JMU might be stuck in the AAC with CUSA remnants for the foreseeable future.

JMU loses their coach and hit a rough stretch of mediocre years. You think JMU fans are going be saying, I’m glad we got Charlotte or North Texas coming into Harrisonburg this Saturday!

Here is something else to think about for all this “free” or no money spent ridiculous talk

We all have one or two big corporate sponsors.

This corporate sponsor will get their 24 million dollars worth of advertising. Every other Radio spot or commercial break advertising will brought to you “by ______” big corporate sponsor.

That is value being taken away from another possible sponsor or donor.

Nothing is “free” in life. TopStraight should have already learn that life lesson

What if AAC survives Division I and the rest of us are relegated in essence to I-AA era status? Entirely plausible. Schools meeting a certain revenue/spending threshold will get to stay. Those who do not will be relegated. So too will it have been worth it.

Also to the other poster who says athletics doesn't drive admissions, I respectfully disagree. There are way too many examples (i.e. Loyola to Final 4, Boise to BCS, etc) where these events drove not only significant increases in applications but also drove future growth on both sides of campus.

Another counter. MT is in one of the fatest growing counties/regions in the nation has done jack squat over the past few years.

And we've gone from 26,000 students down to 17,500 during our decade of athletics decline (in a boomtown)

I think Bowling Green (KY) is growing at a fast rate, as well