Author Topic: Conference Realignment Rumors  (Read 12880 times)

Chairman of the Board

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Re: Conference Realignment Rumors
« Reply #30 on: March 01, 2017, 10:12:53 pm »
since most agree here that one giant hurdle is attendance- cant fill an 8200 hundred seat stadium on a regular basis.  how to fill 15k?

cant fill either if kids arent on campus.  it aint gonna be 15k locals.
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Seawolf97

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Re: Conference Realignment Rumors
« Reply #31 on: March 01, 2017, 11:00:41 pm »
That's   the problem in a nutshell . Folks don't come out in great numbers for SBU Football . If the weather is rain or cold then even less butts are in the seats.  We shall see  going forward.

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Re: Conference Realignment Rumors
« Reply #32 on: March 02, 2017, 10:53:59 am »
the good news is that with a large campus (over 20k students, half on campus, thousands of faculty) it's possible to tap this base to fill LaValle.

next question is how to keep them on campus, and then more importantly, how to get them to the game.
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VA_Seawolf

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Re: Conference Realignment Rumors
« Reply #33 on: March 02, 2017, 12:28:40 pm »
Our biggest problem these past four seasons has been that we suck. Last year was really looking like a breakthrough season where we could have returned to the playoffs, but then we sh*t the bed. No reason we should lose to friggin Sacred Heart. We have way too much talent to be a 5 win team annually, even in the CAA. We should always be winning AT LEAST 7 games and be in the playoff hunt.

 Attendance from October on has always been bad, but start winning and people will show up. The brand of football we play too also may have something to do with it. People like to watch the tempo/spread offenses of the Baylor's and Oregon's of the world. With Hemphill gone, it's possible we don't even win 5 next year.

Get Priore out of there and things will improve. I appreciate what he's done for the program, but he's now stagnated. It's looking like all those Big South titles and playoff appearances were more the result of Hofstra's program folding and us having a huge talent advantage compared to the rest of the Big South than him. 

Hammertime

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Re: Conference Realignment Rumors
« Reply #34 on: March 02, 2017, 04:17:05 pm »
Our biggest problem these past four seasons has been that we suck. Last year was really looking like a breakthrough season where we could have returned to the playoffs, but then we sh*t the bed. No reason we should lose to friggin Sacred Heart. We have way too much talent to be a 5 win team annually, even in the CAA. We should always be winning AT LEAST 7 games and be in the playoff hunt.

 Attendance from October on has always been bad, but start winning and people will show up. The brand of football we play too also may have something to do with it. People like to watch the tempo/spread offenses of the Baylor's and Oregon's of the world. With Hemphill gone, it's possible we don't even win 5 next year.

Get Priore out of there and things will improve. I appreciate what he's done for the program, but he's now stagnated. It's looking like all those Big South titles and playoff appearances were more the result of Hofstra's program folding and us having a huge talent advantage compared to the rest of the Big South than him.

Bravo, bravo!!! I agree wholeheartedly.. Problem SB has with coach P is his contract.. We are stuck with him if you like it or not. SB could go 0-22 for the next 2 seasons and he will be our coach. His contract runs through the 2018 season. Read it and weep.

OldSeawolf

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Re: Conference Realignment Rumors
« Reply #35 on: March 02, 2017, 08:18:46 pm »
There are ways to fill the stands, but it will not happen overnight.  Winning certainly breeds enthusiasm which will help fill the stands.  Look at what the signing of Warney did to the basketball program.  Getting that kind of marquis player can do wonders for a team, and its ability to draw fans at the gate.  Is it easy to get that kind of marquis star to come to Stony Brook.....no way!  It takes work and perseverance on many levels, and sometimes takes a bit of luck as well.

Regarding football, you have to start at home on Long Island, IMO.  3MM people live out here and we're the only DI football team on the Island.  There are lots of kids who want to stay home, play football at the D1 level, but know they aren't good enough to play at Alabama or a marquis football program, but are outstanding players.  We need to recruit heavily from the area, and establish a presence, that becomes a magnet for strong local talent.  And most of all, you need to attract a Long Island QB that can be the fulcrum of the team.  Coaching aside, it all starts with the QB.

Here are some ideas on how to fill the stands, and how to obtain the best talent on Long Island.  It takes money to market the team, so we need to budget for these items, but the payoff (prestige and financial) will come down the road:

1) Offer a free full-year academic scholarship to one lucky student every game.  Advertise this in the campus newspapers and with flyers around campus and especially, in the dorms.  No excuse for students not packing the stands every week;

2) SBU athletic staff needs to stay plugged in to the High School football programs on Long Island, particularly the strong ones.  Provide free tickets to High School
Football Programs in the area, on a rotating basis, to help promote the SBU brand.  Do this for every game.  Create a buzz amongst Long Island High School players;

3) Create a free weekly digital magazine for the football team, that is distributed to every Long Island High School football program, and to local community members.  You need the locals to start identifying with the only game in town, and a digital magazine adds credence and visibility to the program;

4) Establish weekly coaching media segments on News12, WFAN, and on Newsday.com without fail;

5) Establish bonuses for coaching staffs and even the AD.  Let part of the compensation packages be contingent on performance on the field.  Winning attracts talent, not only athletically, but academically as well.  Winning fills seats, even if it's 35 degrees outside and raining.

Yes, we are doing some of this already, but we need to do it better, if we want to grow the program, and take that next step.  It's a process, and it takes time.  Attracting talent and winning will result in more talent being acquired, more fan interest, and will snowball as time moves on.

We've come a long way over the years for sure, but there's a much longer and more fruitful journey ahead to get to the next plateau.
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VA_Seawolf

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Re: Conference Realignment Rumors
« Reply #36 on: March 03, 2017, 10:13:18 am »
OldSeawolf,

Those are All EXCELLENT ideas!! You need a job in the athletic department because each of those would definitely drive up attendance AND good players/coaches coming to the program. That right there is how you do it. 1 and 2 are absolutely brilliant. Most kids at SBU (and rightfully so) are VERY academically inclined, unfortunately to the point where a lot of them don't care about athletics or anything else. Giving out a free year of tuition potentially just for attending a football game? That would drive up attendance bigly!

Free tickets for LI high schools is also another great way to drive up interest from local recruits! Hell, invite entire varsity rosters to games with free tickets on a rotating basis so that teams can make a full event out of the game itself. Really get them invested early. Also, we have a tendency to only offer walk-on spots and not scholarships to local players. We might want to look into that. Performance based bonuses for the coaches should be a given and any cost would easily be offset by the exposure if we can go on the kind of run JMU went on this past season. Excellent points.

ibosbu

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Re: Conference Realignment Rumors
« Reply #37 on: March 03, 2017, 10:41:49 am »
Great post OldSeawolf!

ibosbu

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Re: Conference Realignment Rumors
« Reply #38 on: March 03, 2017, 10:49:09 am »
Our biggest problem these past four seasons has been that we suck. Last year was really looking like a breakthrough season where we could have returned to the playoffs, but then we sh*t the bed. No reason we should lose to friggin Sacred Heart. We have way too much talent to be a 5 win team annually, even in the CAA. We should always be winning AT LEAST 7 games and be in the playoff hunt.

 Attendance from October on has always been bad, but start winning and people will show up. The brand of football we play too also may have something to do with it. People like to watch the tempo/spread offenses of the Baylor's and Oregon's of the world. With Hemphill gone, it's possible we don't even win 5 next year.

Get Priore out of there and things will improve. I appreciate what he's done for the program, but he's now stagnated. It's looking like all those Big South titles and playoff appearances were more the result of Hofstra's program folding and us having a huge talent advantage compared to the rest of the Big South than him.

That is a good point. Stars like Maysonet and others from Hofstra created a sudden influx of football talent into Stony Brook football and gave us a huge boost.

Seawolf97

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Re: Conference Realignment Rumors
« Reply #39 on: March 03, 2017, 01:10:56 pm »
I think Old Seawolf made some great new points to promote our football program . I would add advertising locally.  I travelled the Metro North Railroad many times . In the fall all you see on the trains and on the stations was the Army Football schedule posters. In the winter you would see the Fordham Basketball Schedule . Neither program are world beaters but they do put themselves out there for the public to see.  It couldn't hurt to make a deal with the MTA for posters on trains and in stations  with our football schedule and Wolfie up in print, especially stations on the east end of Suffolk County.  Even if only 100 extra  people showed up for  game it could spread by word of mouth .

Chrissy D.

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Re: Conference Realignment Rumors
« Reply #40 on: March 05, 2017, 01:27:21 am »
When local kids are offered a preffered walk on spot, they are given grant money and guaranteed a spot on the roster. Since they are instate residents most recieve full aid for school. By bringing in preffered walk ons it allows you to have 15 - 17 more scholarships on the roster without counting against your scholarship limit. Straight walk ons get no more than a camp tryout, possibly make the team. The team can't offer a preffered walk on a scholarship until after their 2nd year. If they did offer before that then it would count as a scholarship against the PFO's freshman year and thus put the school over the scholly limit for that year. This is why most PFO's are redshirted. By doing this they can be eligible to earn a scholarship for three years. Either way they would still recieve the grant money as long as they remained eligible. The only money PFO's recieve from football is the housing cost for summer camp. This is a good tool that all FBS and FCS schools use, especially state schools. Kids like John Haggert and Jake Carlock recieved scholarships. Anthony Catapano , Stacy Bedell, Isaiah White and Nunez are also examples of local kids on scholarships. Before them Jackolski, Maysonette and Dudley. Although the coach leaves a lot to be desired the preffered walk on program works for the schools. The best example of this is Clay Mathews at USC.
« Last Edit: March 05, 2017, 01:38:12 am by Chrissy D. »

VA_Seawolf

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Re: Conference Realignment Rumors
« Reply #41 on: March 05, 2017, 05:43:06 pm »
When local kids are offered a preffered walk on spot, they are given grant money and guaranteed a spot on the roster. Since they are instate residents most recieve full aid for school. By bringing in preffered walk ons it allows you to have 15 - 17 more scholarships on the roster without counting against your scholarship limit. Straight walk ons get no more than a camp tryout, possibly make the team. The team can't offer a preffered walk on a scholarship until after their 2nd year. If they did offer before that then it would count as a scholarship against the PFO's freshman year and thus put the school over the scholly limit for that year. This is why most PFO's are redshirted. By doing this they can be eligible to earn a scholarship for three years. Either way they would still recieve the grant money as long as they remained eligible. The only money PFO's recieve from football is the housing cost for summer camp. This is a good tool that all FBS and FCS schools use, especially state schools. Kids like John Haggert and Jake Carlock recieved scholarships. Anthony Catapano , Stacy Bedell, Isaiah White and Nunez are also examples of local kids on scholarships. Before them Jackolski, Maysonette and Dudley. Although the coach leaves a lot to be desired the preffered walk on program works for the schools. The best example of this is Clay Mathews at USC.

Thanks for the breakdown. So by using the preferred walk-on status instead of a scholarship we're able to keep scholarship level athletes on the roster without actually using one so we can say offer a full to an out of state kid or a kid with more recruiting options? Is this kind of like the Ivies where they can't give an athletic scholarship but instead give an academic one that covers most/all of it?

Chrissy D.

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Re: Conference Realignment Rumors
« Reply #42 on: March 05, 2017, 09:03:45 pm »
Yes VA u hit it on the nose. Out of state or local recruits with more sholarship options are the ones they give them to. I am not sure how Ivy's give out grant money. I happened to read an article a few months back on the preffered walk on program. Lacrosse uses grant money for locals also because they only have about 13 schollys to give out and sometimes have to break them up and spread out to a few kids. Baseball also only has the same amount and they will use the grants for instate players. Just another benefit of stsying instate for school.

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Re: Conference Realignment Rumors
« Reply #43 on: March 08, 2017, 09:40:55 am »
There are ways to fill the stands, but it will not happen overnight.  Winning certainly breeds enthusiasm which will help fill the stands.  Look at what the signing of Warney did to the basketball program.  Getting that kind of marquis player can do wonders for a team, and its ability to draw fans at the gate.  Is it easy to get that kind of marquis star to come to Stony Brook.....no way!  It takes work and perseverance on many levels, and sometimes takes a bit of luck as well.

Regarding football, you have to start at home on Long Island, IMO.  3MM people live out here and we're the only DI football team on the Island.  There are lots of kids who want to stay home, play football at the D1 level, but know they aren't good enough to play at Alabama or a marquis football program, but are outstanding players.  We need to recruit heavily from the area, and establish a presence, that becomes a magnet for strong local talent.  And most of all, you need to attract a Long Island QB that can be the fulcrum of the team.  Coaching aside, it all starts with the QB.

Here are some ideas on how to fill the stands, and how to obtain the best talent on Long Island.  It takes money to market the team, so we need to budget for these items, but the payoff (prestige and financial) will come down the road:

1) Offer a free full-year academic scholarship to one lucky student every game.  Advertise this in the campus newspapers and with flyers around campus and especially, in the dorms.  No excuse for students not packing the stands every week;

2) SBU athletic staff needs to stay plugged in to the High School football programs on Long Island, particularly the strong ones.  Provide free tickets to High School
Football Programs in the area, on a rotating basis, to help promote the SBU brand.  Do this for every game.  Create a buzz amongst Long Island High School players;

3) Create a free weekly digital magazine for the football team, that is distributed to every Long Island High School football program, and to local community members.  You need the locals to start identifying with the only game in town, and a digital magazine adds credence and visibility to the program;

4) Establish weekly coaching media segments on News12, WFAN, and on Newsday.com without fail;

5) Establish bonuses for coaching staffs and even the AD.  Let part of the compensation packages be contingent on performance on the field.  Winning attracts talent, not only athletically, but academically as well.  Winning fills seats, even if it's 35 degrees outside and raining.

Yes, we are doing some of this already, but we need to do it better, if we want to grow the program, and take that next step.  It's a process, and it takes time.  Attracting talent and winning will result in more talent being acquired, more fan interest, and will snowball as time moves on.

We've come a long way over the years for sure, but there's a much longer and more fruitful journey ahead to get to the next plateau.

http://sbufan.createaforum.com/stony-brook-football/2012-2020-future-of-stony-brook-football/msg12032/#msg12032

we also have a whole separate thread for ideas if anyone wants to read it: http://sbufan.createaforum.com/around-stony-brook/making-sb-better-idea-thread/
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OldSeawolf

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Re: Conference Realignment Rumors
« Reply #44 on: March 08, 2017, 10:07:40 am »

http://sbufan.createaforum.com/stony-brook-football/2012-2020-future-of-stony-brook-football/msg12032/#msg12032

we also have a whole separate thread for ideas if anyone wants to read it: http://sbufan.createaforum.com/around-stony-brook/making-sb-better-idea-thread/

Thanks!  Sorry, if I posted in the wrong thread.  Looks like great minds think alike.... :)

This isn't rocket science. Your additional suggestions are excellent.  Athletics needs  to step back and look at the big picture, and put a plan into place.  Budget issues certainly are always an issue, especially with a state-funded school.  But need to sell these ancillary ideas to Dubin and other bug donors, and put some of this to work, to get to that next level.

We have come very far over the last 20 years, and all those involved in that should certainly be commended.  But, sometimes people become complacent with the status quo, and don't recognize that there is always room for improvement.  And of course, the arm chair quarterbacks don't know the inner workings of the Athletic department either, so we don't always know what is involved either.  Hopefully, we've provided them with some suggestions that can be considered.
« Last Edit: March 08, 2017, 10:10:42 am by OldSeawolf »
How old a Seawolf am I? I followed them during their Final 4 DIII hoops run in 1977-78 (they were called the Patriots then)