(09-20-2021 03:11 PM)82hawk Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 02:48 PM)SEA33HAWK Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 01:59 PM)82hawk Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 12:54 PM)solohawks Wrote:  If we did add football, we would have to cut men's sports.

We would have to cut 3 of:
M Soccer
M Tennis
M Swimming and Diving
M Golf
M Cross Country
M Outdoor Track

That would put us at the bare minimum of 6 Men's sports, which is what JMU and Towson run at
Football, Basketball, Baseball, plus 3 of the above

Golf, cross country and tennis are the obvious ones to me. No revenue, little recognition for the school, and no impact negative impact on "diversity".

I can see cutting XC and Track. But golf actually holds its own and has had a tournament every year that has brought major programs. And tennis, through the years, has been in the national rankings more than any program at UNCW. They do make the NCAA tournament pretty consistently.

It's about revenue, not success.

It's a selling point to the conference we try to join If it's only about revenue, then we are automatically screwed.

(09-20-2021 04:17 PM)SEA33HAWK Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 03:11 PM)82hawk Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 02:48 PM)SEA33HAWK Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 01:59 PM)82hawk Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 12:54 PM)solohawks Wrote:  If we did add football, we would have to cut men's sports.

We would have to cut 3 of:
M Soccer
M Tennis
M Swimming and Diving
M Golf
M Cross Country
M Outdoor Track

That would put us at the bare minimum of 6 Men's sports, which is what JMU and Towson run at
Football, Basketball, Baseball, plus 3 of the above

Golf, cross country and tennis are the obvious ones to me. No revenue, little recognition for the school, and no impact negative impact on "diversity".

I can see cutting XC and Track. But golf actually holds its own and has had a tournament every year that has brought major programs. And tennis, through the years, has been in the national rankings more than any program at UNCW. They do make the NCAA tournament pretty consistently.

It's about revenue, not success.

It's a selling point to the conference we try to join If it's only about revenue, then we are automatically screwed.

The discussion was about which sports we'd cut if we brought on football, not which sports could make us attractive to a conference. And when you are cutting sports, why would you cut any revenue sports when you have other options?

(09-20-2021 07:42 PM)82hawk Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 04:17 PM)SEA33HAWK Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 03:11 PM)82hawk Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 02:48 PM)SEA33HAWK Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 01:59 PM)82hawk Wrote:  Golf, cross country and tennis are the obvious ones to me. No revenue, little recognition for the school, and no impact negative impact on "diversity".

I can see cutting XC and Track. But golf actually holds its own and has had a tournament every year that has brought major programs. And tennis, through the years, has been in the national rankings more than any program at UNCW. They do make the NCAA tournament pretty consistently.

It's about revenue, not success.

It's a selling point to the conference we try to join If it's only about revenue, then we are automatically screwed.

The discussion was about which sports we'd cut if we brought on football, not which sports could make us attractive to a conference. And when you are cutting sports, why would you cut any revenue sports when you have other options?

thought the main discussion was getting into the SoCon by adding football. Part of the attraction, right? And, what I meant by revenue sports, is we pretty much have basketball as our only revenue sport. And there have been years that basketball didn't generate a revenue. Thus, depending on revenue sports to get into another conference is not a big plus. That makes successful non revenue sports a key to another conference even giving us a serious look. Its not just about revenue sports. It also includes a strong athletic program overall. Along with academics. Getting accepted into another conference involves more than one aspect..

(09-20-2021 09:37 PM)SEA33HAWK Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 07:42 PM)82hawk Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 04:17 PM)SEA33HAWK Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 03:11 PM)82hawk Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 02:48 PM)SEA33HAWK Wrote:  I can see cutting XC and Track. But golf actually holds its own and has had a tournament every year that has brought major programs. And tennis, through the years, has been in the national rankings more than any program at UNCW. They do make the NCAA tournament pretty consistently.

It's about revenue, not success.

It's a selling point to the conference we try to join If it's only about revenue, then we are automatically screwed.

The discussion was about which sports we'd cut if we brought on football, not which sports could make us attractive to a conference. And when you are cutting sports, why would you cut any revenue sports when you have other options?

thought the main discussion was getting into the SoCon by adding football. Part of the attraction, right? And, what I meant by revenue sports, is we pretty much have basketball as our only revenue sport. And there have been years that basketball didn't generate a revenue. Thus, depending on revenue sports to get into another conference is not a big plus. That makes successful non revenue sports a key to another conference even giving us a serious look. Its not just about revenue sports. It also includes a strong athletic program overall. Along with academics. Getting accepted into another conference involves more than one aspect..

What kind of money does it take to start a D1 football program today ? What are the yearly operating expenses ? Where will this money come from ? Is it $25 million.$50-$75 million to start ? For a school that has trouble raising money it seems like a huge gamble.

(09-21-2021 11:10 AM)jumpinmullet Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 09:37 PM)SEA33HAWK Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 07:42 PM)82hawk Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 04:17 PM)SEA33HAWK Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 03:11 PM)82hawk Wrote:  It's about revenue, not success.

It's a selling point to the conference we try to join If it's only about revenue, then we are automatically screwed.

The discussion was about which sports we'd cut if we brought on football, not which sports could make us attractive to a conference. And when you are cutting sports, why would you cut any revenue sports when you have other options?

thought the main discussion was getting into the SoCon by adding football. Part of the attraction, right? And, what I meant by revenue sports, is we pretty much have basketball as our only revenue sport. And there have been years that basketball didn't generate a revenue. Thus, depending on revenue sports to get into another conference is not a big plus. That makes successful non revenue sports a key to another conference even giving us a serious look. Its not just about revenue sports. It also includes a strong athletic program overall. Along with academics. Getting accepted into another conference involves more than one aspect..

For a school that has trouble raising money it seems like a huge gamble.

This is where I'm in agreement with Mullet. From a purely emotional standpoint as a alum and fan, I would love for UNCW to have a football program. I think it would immediately generate revenue just from excitement. Students, alum, and even just locals that want to see a Div 1 football game without having to drive 2 hours would enjoy it. I think there's definitely a potentially strong market for it. Not only that, but the local business revenue from it would drive interest up, and could increase the likelihood of a better local media deal that could carry over to our other major sports (basketball, baseball) and decrease our reliance on a stupid media deal like Flo.

The trouble though is getting a good chunk of money upfront. I know 82 has said he's heard there's major donor money floated as "available" if UNCW does indeed decide to take that step. That with the Chancellor's vision for it (if true, I don't know much about that), plus any sort of deal of adding football as a way into a different conference could all combine to make this happen.

There's a lot of moving parts that would all need to take place, but the school's significant growth over the past 10-15 years has really put UNCW into a realm of making what we all thought was impossible... potentially possible. Sure, there's some cons that others have covered, but at this point it's a more realistic possibility than it ever has been in the past.

One thing I do NOT think we should do, is to stifle it as an automatic "No" because we want to be in the A10. We've had sporadic years of basketball success that could maybe make us a contender should the A10 ever look to expand or a spot opens, but I don't think we should throw all of our eggs in that hope basket and then be stuck in the CAA for another decade as it collapses on us because we lacked greater vision.

Just my thoughts.

(09-21-2021 12:54 PM)B_Hawk06 Wrote:  

(09-21-2021 11:10 AM)jumpinmullet Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 09:37 PM)SEA33HAWK Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 07:42 PM)82hawk Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 04:17 PM)SEA33HAWK Wrote:  It's a selling point to the conference we try to join If it's only about revenue, then we are automatically screwed.

The discussion was about which sports we'd cut if we brought on football, not which sports could make us attractive to a conference. And when you are cutting sports, why would you cut any revenue sports when you have other options?

thought the main discussion was getting into the SoCon by adding football. Part of the attraction, right? And, what I meant by revenue sports, is we pretty much have basketball as our only revenue sport. And there have been years that basketball didn't generate a revenue. Thus, depending on revenue sports to get into another conference is not a big plus. That makes successful non revenue sports a key to another conference even giving us a serious look. Its not just about revenue sports. It also includes a strong athletic program overall. Along with academics. Getting accepted into another conference involves more than one aspect..

For a school that has trouble raising money it seems like a huge gamble.

This is where I'm in agreement with Mullet. From a purely emotional standpoint as a alum and fan, I would love for UNCW to have a football program. I think it would immediately generate revenue just from excitement. Students, alum, and even just locals that want to see a Div 1 football game without having to drive 2 hours would enjoy it. I think there's definitely a potentially strong market for it. Not only that, but the local business revenue from it would drive interest up, and could increase the likelihood of a better local media deal that could carry over to our other major sports (basketball, baseball) and decrease our reliance on a stupid media deal like Flo.

The trouble though is getting a good chunk of money upfront. I know 82 has said he's heard there's major donor money floated as "available" if UNCW does indeed decide to take that step. That with the Chancellor's vision for it (if true, I don't know much about that), plus any sort of deal of adding football as a way into a different conference could all combine to make this happen.

There's a lot of moving parts that would all need to take place, but the school's significant growth over the past 10-15 years has really put UNCW into a realm of making what we all thought was impossible... potentially possible. Sure, there's some cons that others have covered, but at this point it's a more realistic possibility than it ever has been in the past.

One thing I do NOT think we should do, is to stifle it as an automatic "No" because we want to be in the A10. We've had sporadic years of basketball success that could maybe make us a contender should the A10 ever look to expand or a spot opens, but I don't think we should throw all of our eggs in that hope basket and then be stuck in the CAA for another decade as it collapses on us because we lacked greater vision.

Just my thoughts.

I would love to see football here if possible and I do think it could work if the upfront money is there to do it the right way. Operating expenses yearly for football are huge and if you do it on the cheap , book a few really bad losing seasons will the money still be there to run it ? There is also the possibility that it hurts other sports at UNCW if that happens .
I have heard Sartarelli speak at a few events and he talks pro growth. I would guess at the very least he would be interested in the possibility of football and all that it can bring if done correctly.

(09-21-2021 12:54 PM)B_Hawk06 Wrote:  

(09-21-2021 11:10 AM)jumpinmullet Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 09:37 PM)SEA33HAWK Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 07:42 PM)82hawk Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 04:17 PM)SEA33HAWK Wrote:  It's a selling point to the conference we try to join If it's only about revenue, then we are automatically screwed.

The discussion was about which sports we'd cut if we brought on football, not which sports could make us attractive to a conference. And when you are cutting sports, why would you cut any revenue sports when you have other options?

thought the main discussion was getting into the SoCon by adding football. Part of the attraction, right? And, what I meant by revenue sports, is we pretty much have basketball as our only revenue sport. And there have been years that basketball didn't generate a revenue. Thus, depending on revenue sports to get into another conference is not a big plus. That makes successful non revenue sports a key to another conference even giving us a serious look. Its not just about revenue sports. It also includes a strong athletic program overall. Along with academics. Getting accepted into another conference involves more than one aspect..

For a school that has trouble raising money it seems like a huge gamble.

This is where I'm in agreement with Mullet. From a purely emotional standpoint as a alum and fan, I would love for UNCW to have a football program. I think it would immediately generate revenue just from excitement. Students, alum, and even just locals that want to see a Div 1 football game without having to drive 2 hours would enjoy it. I think there's definitely a potentially strong market for it. Not only that, but the local business revenue from it would drive interest up, and could increase the likelihood of a better local media deal that could carry over to our other major sports (basketball, baseball) and decrease our reliance on a stupid media deal like Flo.

The trouble though is getting a good chunk of money upfront. I know 82 has said he's heard there's major donor money floated as "available" if UNCW does indeed decide to take that step. That with the Chancellor's vision for it (if true, I don't know much about that), plus any sort of deal of adding football as a way into a different conference could all combine to make this happen.

There's a lot of moving parts that would all need to take place, but the school's significant growth over the past 10-15 years has really put UNCW into a realm of making what we all thought was impossible... potentially possible. Sure, there's some cons that others have covered, but at this point it's a more realistic possibility than it ever has been in the past.

One thing I do NOT think we should do, is to stifle it as an automatic "No" because we want to be in the A10. We've had sporadic years of basketball success that could maybe make us a contender should the A10 ever look to expand or a spot opens, but I don't think we should throw all of our eggs in that hope basket and then be stuck in the CAA for another decade as it collapses on us because we lacked greater vision.

Just my thoughts.

Agree with everything you've said, including the A10. I was an A10 or bust guy as a long term goal for UNCW. But full membership in the SoCon, including football, would now be my preference. My simple thought is this. If Campbell can start up FCS football, so can we. If WCU can afford the yearly cost of FCS football, so can we. And the SoCon provides a tight geographic footprint to make it more financially feasible than the CAA.

Legion stadium would be a great location to start, and could likely be expanded to hold several thousand more people fairly easily. We could sign a 10 year contract that would cover the costs to expand. Once football is going, raising funds for a stadium on or close to campus would be much easier, with a plan for completion as the contract expires.

The pent up demand from alumni, from all the years the university has existed, would probably explode ticket sales and donations. UNCW could probably sell out Legion stadium home games for several years in advance.

(09-21-2021 01:45 PM)82hawk Wrote:  

(09-21-2021 12:54 PM)B_Hawk06 Wrote:  

(09-21-2021 11:10 AM)jumpinmullet Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 09:37 PM)SEA33HAWK Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 07:42 PM)82hawk Wrote:  The discussion was about which sports we'd cut if we brought on football, not which sports could make us attractive to a conference. And when you are cutting sports, why would you cut any revenue sports when you have other options?

thought the main discussion was getting into the SoCon by adding football. Part of the attraction, right? And, what I meant by revenue sports, is we pretty much have basketball as our only revenue sport. And there have been years that basketball didn't generate a revenue. Thus, depending on revenue sports to get into another conference is not a big plus. That makes successful non revenue sports a key to another conference even giving us a serious look. Its not just about revenue sports. It also includes a strong athletic program overall. Along with academics. Getting accepted into another conference involves more than one aspect..

For a school that has trouble raising money it seems like a huge gamble.

This is where I'm in agreement with Mullet. From a purely emotional standpoint as a alum and fan, I would love for UNCW to have a football program. I think it would immediately generate revenue just from excitement. Students, alum, and even just locals that want to see a Div 1 football game without having to drive 2 hours would enjoy it. I think there's definitely a potentially strong market for it. Not only that, but the local business revenue from it would drive interest up, and could increase the likelihood of a better local media deal that could carry over to our other major sports (basketball, baseball) and decrease our reliance on a stupid media deal like Flo.

The trouble though is getting a good chunk of money upfront. I know 82 has said he's heard there's major donor money floated as "available" if UNCW does indeed decide to take that step. That with the Chancellor's vision for it (if true, I don't know much about that), plus any sort of deal of adding football as a way into a different conference could all combine to make this happen.

There's a lot of moving parts that would all need to take place, but the school's significant growth over the past 10-15 years has really put UNCW into a realm of making what we all thought was impossible... potentially possible. Sure, there's some cons that others have covered, but at this point it's a more realistic possibility than it ever has been in the past.

One thing I do NOT think we should do, is to stifle it as an automatic "No" because we want to be in the A10. We've had sporadic years of basketball success that could maybe make us a contender should the A10 ever look to expand or a spot opens, but I don't think we should throw all of our eggs in that hope basket and then be stuck in the CAA for another decade as it collapses on us because we lacked greater vision.

Just my thoughts.

Agree with everything you've said, including the A10. I was an A10 or bust guy as a long term goal for UNCW. But full membership in the SoCon, including football, would now be my preference. My simple thought is this. If Campbell can start up FCS football, so can we. If WCU can afford the yearly cost of FCS football, so can we. And the SoCon provides a tight geographic footprint to make it more financially feasible than the CAA.

Legion stadium would be a great location to start, and could likely be expanded to hold several thousand more people fairly easily. We could sign a 10 year contract that would cover the costs to expand. Once football is going, raising funds for a stadium on or close to campus would be much easier, with a plan for completion as the contract expires.

The pent up demand from alumni, from all the years the university has existed, would probably explode ticket sales and donations. UNCW could probably sell out Legion stadium home games for several years in advance.

I think you are still way under estimating the costs to start up football. I can't say for certain, but i'd guess that every one of those schools was in far better shape financially in the athletic department when they made the jump. Campbell has a much more $$ in it's donor base, it's a school largely full of Lawyers who give a crap ton back to the school. I know a few guys that went to UNCW for undergrad and Campbell Law..... Guess where they give their money too?

(09-21-2021 01:45 PM)82hawk Wrote:  

(09-21-2021 12:54 PM)B_Hawk06 Wrote:  

(09-21-2021 11:10 AM)jumpinmullet Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 09:37 PM)SEA33HAWK Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 07:42 PM)82hawk Wrote:  The discussion was about which sports we'd cut if we brought on football, not which sports could make us attractive to a conference. And when you are cutting sports, why would you cut any revenue sports when you have other options?

thought the main discussion was getting into the SoCon by adding football. Part of the attraction, right? And, what I meant by revenue sports, is we pretty much have basketball as our only revenue sport. And there have been years that basketball didn't generate a revenue. Thus, depending on revenue sports to get into another conference is not a big plus. That makes successful non revenue sports a key to another conference even giving us a serious look. Its not just about revenue sports. It also includes a strong athletic program overall. Along with academics. Getting accepted into another conference involves more than one aspect..

For a school that has trouble raising money it seems like a huge gamble.

This is where I'm in agreement with Mullet. From a purely emotional standpoint as a alum and fan, I would love for UNCW to have a football program. I think it would immediately generate revenue just from excitement. Students, alum, and even just locals that want to see a Div 1 football game without having to drive 2 hours would enjoy it. I think there's definitely a potentially strong market for it. Not only that, but the local business revenue from it would drive interest up, and could increase the likelihood of a better local media deal that could carry over to our other major sports (basketball, baseball) and decrease our reliance on a stupid media deal like Flo.

The trouble though is getting a good chunk of money upfront. I know 82 has said he's heard there's major donor money floated as "available" if UNCW does indeed decide to take that step. That with the Chancellor's vision for it (if true, I don't know much about that), plus any sort of deal of adding football as a way into a different conference could all combine to make this happen.

There's a lot of moving parts that would all need to take place, but the school's significant growth over the past 10-15 years has really put UNCW into a realm of making what we all thought was impossible... potentially possible. Sure, there's some cons that others have covered, but at this point it's a more realistic possibility than it ever has been in the past.

One thing I do NOT think we should do, is to stifle it as an automatic "No" because we want to be in the A10. We've had sporadic years of basketball success that could maybe make us a contender should the A10 ever look to expand or a spot opens, but I don't think we should throw all of our eggs in that hope basket and then be stuck in the CAA for another decade as it collapses on us because we lacked greater vision.

Just my thoughts.

Agree with everything you've said, including the A10. I was an A10 or bust guy as a long term goal for UNCW. But full membership in the SoCon, including football, would now be my preference. My simple thought is this. If Campbell can start up FCS football, so can we. If WCU can afford the yearly cost of FCS football, so can we. And the SoCon provides a tight geographic footprint to make it more financially feasible than the CAA.

Legion stadium would be a great location to start, and could likely be expanded to hold several thousand more people fairly easily. We could sign a 10 year contract that would cover the costs to expand. Once football is going, raising funds for a stadium on or close to campus would be much easier, with a plan for completion as the contract expires.

The pent up demand from alumni, from all the years the university has existed, would probably explode ticket sales and donations. UNCW could probably sell out Legion stadium home games for several years in advance.

I would be very careful about going into any business deal with the City of Wilmington in regards to Legion Field . On campus stadium might be the better long term plan if possible. I do think it would be supported at least initially but the entertainment dollar here is very fickle and can change with the wind -gotta win .

(09-21-2021 01:54 PM)jumpinmullet Wrote:  

(09-21-2021 01:45 PM)82hawk Wrote:  

(09-21-2021 12:54 PM)B_Hawk06 Wrote:  

(09-21-2021 11:10 AM)jumpinmullet Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 09:37 PM)SEA33HAWK Wrote:  thought the main discussion was getting into the SoCon by adding football. Part of the attraction, right? And, what I meant by revenue sports, is we pretty much have basketball as our only revenue sport. And there have been years that basketball didn't generate a revenue. Thus, depending on revenue sports to get into another conference is not a big plus. That makes successful non revenue sports a key to another conference even giving us a serious look. Its not just about revenue sports. It also includes a strong athletic program overall. Along with academics. Getting accepted into another conference involves more than one aspect..

For a school that has trouble raising money it seems like a huge gamble.

This is where I'm in agreement with Mullet. From a purely emotional standpoint as a alum and fan, I would love for UNCW to have a football program. I think it would immediately generate revenue just from excitement. Students, alum, and even just locals that want to see a Div 1 football game without having to drive 2 hours would enjoy it. I think there's definitely a potentially strong market for it. Not only that, but the local business revenue from it would drive interest up, and could increase the likelihood of a better local media deal that could carry over to our other major sports (basketball, baseball) and decrease our reliance on a stupid media deal like Flo.

The trouble though is getting a good chunk of money upfront. I know 82 has said he's heard there's major donor money floated as "available" if UNCW does indeed decide to take that step. That with the Chancellor's vision for it (if true, I don't know much about that), plus any sort of deal of adding football as a way into a different conference could all combine to make this happen.

There's a lot of moving parts that would all need to take place, but the school's significant growth over the past 10-15 years has really put UNCW into a realm of making what we all thought was impossible... potentially possible. Sure, there's some cons that others have covered, but at this point it's a more realistic possibility than it ever has been in the past.

One thing I do NOT think we should do, is to stifle it as an automatic "No" because we want to be in the A10. We've had sporadic years of basketball success that could maybe make us a contender should the A10 ever look to expand or a spot opens, but I don't think we should throw all of our eggs in that hope basket and then be stuck in the CAA for another decade as it collapses on us because we lacked greater vision.

Just my thoughts.

Agree with everything you've said, including the A10. I was an A10 or bust guy as a long term goal for UNCW. But full membership in the SoCon, including football, would now be my preference. My simple thought is this. If Campbell can start up FCS football, so can we. If WCU can afford the yearly cost of FCS football, so can we. And the SoCon provides a tight geographic footprint to make it more financially feasible than the CAA.

Legion stadium would be a great location to start, and could likely be expanded to hold several thousand more people fairly easily. We could sign a 10 year contract that would cover the costs to expand. Once football is going, raising funds for a stadium on or close to campus would be much easier, with a plan for completion as the contract expires.

The pent up demand from alumni, from all the years the university has existed, would probably explode ticket sales and donations. UNCW could probably sell out Legion stadium home games for several years in advance.

I would be very careful about going into any business deal with the City of Wilmington in regards to Legion Field . On campus stadium might be the better long term plan if possible. I do think it would be supported at least initially but the entertainment dollar here is very fickle and can change with the wind -gotta win .

Mullet is 100% right on this. We could probably use Legion for a year or 2 to get going, but anything more than that just won't work. NHHS uses that field every other Friday during football season so it would be incredibly rough to have it ready the next day after a NHHS football game. Do we want to be the football program accommodating a high school on scheduling since we are using a high school field?

If we have a plan for a stadium, Legion would suffice in the very short interim but patience would wear thin quick if it went on too long.

(09-21-2021 02:13 PM)solohawks Wrote:  

(09-21-2021 01:54 PM)jumpinmullet Wrote:  

(09-21-2021 01:45 PM)82hawk Wrote:  

(09-21-2021 12:54 PM)B_Hawk06 Wrote:  

(09-21-2021 11:10 AM)jumpinmullet Wrote:  For a school that has trouble raising money it seems like a huge gamble.

This is where I'm in agreement with Mullet. From a purely emotional standpoint as a alum and fan, I would love for UNCW to have a football program. I think it would immediately generate revenue just from excitement. Students, alum, and even just locals that want to see a Div 1 football game without having to drive 2 hours would enjoy it. I think there's definitely a potentially strong market for it. Not only that, but the local business revenue from it would drive interest up, and could increase the likelihood of a better local media deal that could carry over to our other major sports (basketball, baseball) and decrease our reliance on a stupid media deal like Flo.

The trouble though is getting a good chunk of money upfront. I know 82 has said he's heard there's major donor money floated as "available" if UNCW does indeed decide to take that step. That with the Chancellor's vision for it (if true, I don't know much about that), plus any sort of deal of adding football as a way into a different conference could all combine to make this happen.

There's a lot of moving parts that would all need to take place, but the school's significant growth over the past 10-15 years has really put UNCW into a realm of making what we all thought was impossible... potentially possible. Sure, there's some cons that others have covered, but at this point it's a more realistic possibility than it ever has been in the past.

One thing I do NOT think we should do, is to stifle it as an automatic "No" because we want to be in the A10. We've had sporadic years of basketball success that could maybe make us a contender should the A10 ever look to expand or a spot opens, but I don't think we should throw all of our eggs in that hope basket and then be stuck in the CAA for another decade as it collapses on us because we lacked greater vision.

Just my thoughts.

Agree with everything you've said, including the A10. I was an A10 or bust guy as a long term goal for UNCW. But full membership in the SoCon, including football, would now be my preference. My simple thought is this. If Campbell can start up FCS football, so can we. If WCU can afford the yearly cost of FCS football, so can we. And the SoCon provides a tight geographic footprint to make it more financially feasible than the CAA.

Legion stadium would be a great location to start, and could likely be expanded to hold several thousand more people fairly easily. We could sign a 10 year contract that would cover the costs to expand. Once football is going, raising funds for a stadium on or close to campus would be much easier, with a plan for completion as the contract expires.

The pent up demand from alumni, from all the years the university has existed, would probably explode ticket sales and donations. UNCW could probably sell out Legion stadium home games for several years in advance.

I would be very careful about going into any business deal with the City of Wilmington in regards to Legion Field . On campus stadium might be the better long term plan if possible. I do think it would be supported at least initially but the entertainment dollar here is very fickle and can change with the wind -gotta win .

Mullet is 100% right on this. We could probably use Legion for a year or 2 to get going, but anything more than that just won't work. NHHS uses that field every other Friday during football season so it would be incredibly rough to have it ready the next day after a NHHS football game. Do we want to be the football program accommodating a high school on scheduling since we are using a high school field?

If we have a plan for a stadium, Legion would suffice in the very short interim but patience would wear thin quick if it went on too long.

I don't think anyone was saying this was a long term solution. But, given the cost of starting up a program without even considering stadium costs one would have to think we'd need it for 5 years, unless the magic money trees start growing on campus.

I think the Charlotte model would be the one to follow if possible but somebody has to step up with some huge money to make this happen. Legion might be an option but hopefully not a 5 year plan,just to many things that can wrong with that . I could also see baseball being really pissed about football if it happens because they have legit needs right now for a D1 program-starting with a scoreboard that actually works .
Legion has served many purposes over the years but is tied into New Hanover HS football and soccer now along with others. I had an uncle who raced horses at Legion back in the day along with being a auto racetrack it has been the gambit for sure .

(09-22-2021 08:54 AM)jumpinmullet Wrote:  I think the Charlotte model would be the one to follow if possible but somebody has to step up with some huge money to make this happen. Legion might be an option but hopefully not a 5 year plan,just to many things that can wrong with that . I could also see baseball being really pissed about football if it happens because they have legit needs right now for a D1 program-starting with a scoreboard that actually works .
Legion has served many purposes over the years but is tied into New Hanover HS football and soccer now along with others. I had an uncle who raced horses at Legion back in the day along with being a auto racetrack it has been the gambit for sure .

my dad and grandad used to attend wrestling matches out there. It has hosted concerts too. Its done pretty much everything for stadium nearing 100 years old

For some perspective here, we are talking 50ish mil to build a stadium similar to UNCC. So unless the magic money trees start growing on campus, one would have to think having it's own stadium is a long term plan not a short one.

https://www.google.com/search?q=cost+to+...nt=gws-wiz

(09-22-2021 08:54 AM)jumpinmullet Wrote:  I think the Charlotte model would be the one to follow if possible but somebody has to step up with some huge money to make this happen. Legion might be an option but hopefully not a 5 year plan,just to many things that can wrong with that . I could also see baseball being really pissed about football if it happens because they have legit needs right now for a D1 program-starting with a scoreboard that actually works .
Legion has served many purposes over the years but is tied into New Hanover HS football and soccer now along with others. I had an uncle who raced horses at Legion back in the day along with being a auto racetrack it has been the gambit for sure .

Agreed with the bold fully, and its why I don't even want this administration to be considering starting football until baseball gets what it needs to get by.

Baseball is not a revenue sport but its easily our BEST sport, and the sport I care about most, even more than Men's Basketball. It deserves all the support it can get. And if football is likely to hurt baseball in the long run, then I don't want football.

(09-22-2021 03:57 PM)Seahawk Nation 08 Wrote:  

(09-22-2021 08:54 AM)jumpinmullet Wrote:  I think the Charlotte model would be the one to follow if possible but somebody has to step up with some huge money to make this happen. Legion might be an option but hopefully not a 5 year plan,just to many things that can wrong with that . I could also see baseball being really pissed about football if it happens because they have legit needs right now for a D1 program-starting with a scoreboard that actually works .
Legion has served many purposes over the years but is tied into New Hanover HS football and soccer now along with others. I had an uncle who raced horses at Legion back in the day along with being a auto racetrack it has been the gambit for sure .

Agreed with the bold fully, and its why I don't even want this administration to be considering starting football until baseball gets what it needs to get by.

Baseball is not a revenue sport but its easily our BEST sport, and the sport I care about most, even more than Men's Basketball. It deserves all the support it can get. And if football is likely to hurt baseball in the long run, then I don't want football.

I don't see how football helps in the long run as long as we can be in a competitive basketball conference.

If it takes football to get into a competitive basketball conference, that is another discussion.

(09-22-2021 04:20 PM)solohawks Wrote:  

(09-22-2021 03:57 PM)Seahawk Nation 08 Wrote:  

(09-22-2021 08:54 AM)jumpinmullet Wrote:  I think the Charlotte model would be the one to follow if possible but somebody has to step up with some huge money to make this happen. Legion might be an option but hopefully not a 5 year plan,just to many things that can wrong with that . I could also see baseball being really pissed about football if it happens because they have legit needs right now for a D1 program-starting with a scoreboard that actually works .
Legion has served many purposes over the years but is tied into New Hanover HS football and soccer now along with others. I had an uncle who raced horses at Legion back in the day along with being a auto racetrack it has been the gambit for sure .

Agreed with the bold fully, and its why I don't even want this administration to be considering starting football until baseball gets what it needs to get by.

Baseball is not a revenue sport but its easily our BEST sport, and the sport I care about most, even more than Men's Basketball. It deserves all the support it can get. And if football is likely to hurt baseball in the long run, then I don't want football.

I don't see how football helps in the long run as long as we can be in a competitive basketball conference.

If it takes football to get into a competitive basketball conference, that is another discussion.

It it takes starting football to get in a good basketball conference what does that say about your basketball program ?

(09-22-2021 06:32 PM)jumpinmullet Wrote:  

(09-22-2021 04:20 PM)solohawks Wrote:  

(09-22-2021 03:57 PM)Seahawk Nation 08 Wrote:  

(09-22-2021 08:54 AM)jumpinmullet Wrote:  I think the Charlotte model would be the one to follow if possible but somebody has to step up with some huge money to make this happen. Legion might be an option but hopefully not a 5 year plan,just to many things that can wrong with that . I could also see baseball being really pissed about football if it happens because they have legit needs right now for a D1 program-starting with a scoreboard that actually works .
Legion has served many purposes over the years but is tied into New Hanover HS football and soccer now along with others. I had an uncle who raced horses at Legion back in the day along with being a auto racetrack it has been the gambit for sure .

Agreed with the bold fully, and its why I don't even want this administration to be considering starting football until baseball gets what it needs to get by.

Baseball is not a revenue sport but its easily our BEST sport, and the sport I care about most, even more than Men's Basketball. It deserves all the support it can get. And if football is likely to hurt baseball in the long run, then I don't want football.

I don't see how football helps in the long run as long as we can be in a competitive basketball conference.

If it takes football to get into a competitive basketball conference, that is another discussion.

It it takes starting football to get in a good basketball conference what does that say about your basketball program ?

It says the SoCon won't take us without football. Unless they have changed their minds.

(09-22-2021 06:47 PM)SEA33HAWK Wrote:  

(09-22-2021 06:32 PM)jumpinmullet Wrote:  

(09-22-2021 04:20 PM)solohawks Wrote:  

(09-22-2021 03:57 PM)Seahawk Nation 08 Wrote:  

(09-22-2021 08:54 AM)jumpinmullet Wrote:  I think the Charlotte model would be the one to follow if possible but somebody has to step up with some huge money to make this happen. Legion might be an option but hopefully not a 5 year plan,just to many things that can wrong with that . I could also see baseball being really pissed about football if it happens because they have legit needs right now for a D1 program-starting with a scoreboard that actually works .
Legion has served many purposes over the years but is tied into New Hanover HS football and soccer now along with others. I had an uncle who raced horses at Legion back in the day along with being a auto racetrack it has been the gambit for sure .

Agreed with the bold fully, and its why I don't even want this administration to be considering starting football until baseball gets what it needs to get by.

Baseball is not a revenue sport but its easily our BEST sport, and the sport I care about most, even more than Men's Basketball. It deserves all the support it can get. And if football is likely to hurt baseball in the long run, then I don't want football.

I don't see how football helps in the long run as long as we can be in a competitive basketball conference.

If it takes football to get into a competitive basketball conference, that is another discussion.

It it takes starting football to get in a good basketball conference what does that say about your basketball program ?

It says the SoCon won't take us without football. Unless they have changed their minds.

And it took more than basketball to get us in the CAA. Richmond was against us joining because they felt like we were academically inferior. Luckily the other schools didn't see it that way.

Curious if anyone really knows, but how the hell did Coastal Carolina become a top 25 football program? Obviously money, but someone had to have a vision of what the school could offer in athletics. Twenty years ago that school was nothing. What they have done with athletics in the past 10 years is incredible.

That is what we should be with regards to football. D1 football and competitive. They have outperformed local counterparts in ODU and Charlotte in regards to football success at the D1 level.