Author Topic: 2012-2020: Future of SBU Football - Conference Affiliation, FBS Football, etc  (Read 25769 times)

ecasadoSBU

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Hello guys. I would like to start this topic so that we as fans can discuss what should be the path the Athletics Department should take in regards to our football program.

After a successful 2011 season, and a potential championship-contending season in 2012 what should be our direction if we have increased success for the following two seasons?

I was thinking about the possibilities of SBU moving up on football and skipping a CAA football move and instead search for a MAC inclusion. I know this is hypothetical and there is a lot of "ifs" involved, but as fans we have the right to talk about these things. There is many different paths that can lead us to FBS football in the future (our goal) and I think its interesting to talk about this.

I would surely love Stony Brook joining the Mid-American Conference East in football and set up rivalries against state school Massachusetts, Buffalo, Temple, Akron, etc...

Of course, we can also delay are move up and play in the CAA while we improve and expand our facilities to meet FBS requirements.

Lets join the talk on the endless possibilities of SBU Football's future
« Last Edit: June 04, 2012, 03:25:04 am by ecasadoSBU »
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ry1nik

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Re: 2012-2020: Future of Stony Brook Football
« Reply #1 on: February 06, 2012, 01:11:57 pm »
Interesting topic. A few of us have touched on it in other areas of this forum. I for one don't think FBS football is necessarily the right goal. The reason colleges field teams is to foster school spirit and pride (to attract/retain better students and faculty) and to bring publicity to the university. Of course there's not a one-to-one relationship between these factors. For example, Binghamton (no football) has always had a much higher student satisfaction rating, and places like the the Ivies have all the publicity they need without big-time football.

I think SBU can work towards both goals without going FBS. A good argument could be made for moving to the CAA, as SB would be playing schools that "matter" more. But I think being super competitive in the FCS is a much better end-state than being mediocre (at best) in the FBS. FBS-affiliation in football only matters much if a school has inclusion in a BSC conference. That ain't gonna happen here. I'd rather keep the stadium on the smaller side, and accessible. If I wanted to battle traffic and crowds, I'd to to an NFL game (which I don't). Anyway, my three cents.
 

ecasadoSBU

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Re: 2012-2020: Future of Stony Brook Football
« Reply #2 on: February 06, 2012, 01:54:14 pm »
You have strong points there. But don't you think Stony Brook wants to compete with the other National Universities. The profile of Stony Brook is "a National University oriented in research and graduate work, member of the AAU, but still considerably behind its peers in Athletics".

The question would be whether Stony Brook is looking to follow other peer institutions or would it head in its own direction away from other AAU institutions that offer athletic programs at the highest level. Regarding the Ivy league schools, they are a big-time exception. The "elite" status of Ivy league school allows them to stay at the FCS level and still get mass publicity from other areas besides their athletics. Stony Brook is not an Ivy, and it will never be.

Other peers institution in academics would be Buffalo, UConn, UMass, Penn State, Albany, Ohio State, Wisconsin, Indiana, Virginia Tech, Virginia,  etc. These are all schools that are oriented in research and have a "flagship" status as state universities but with the exception of SUNY Albany all of them offer Athletics, specifically football, at the highest level.

In my opinion, this is the way to go if you are a National University outside of the "Ivy League" and other schools like NYU, MIT, Carnegie Mellon, John Hopkins that do not offer Division I athletics at all.

The infrastructure issues that you point out are important to address, but as always, they can be solved with the expansion of Circle Road and the North, Main, and South Entrances to Nicolls Road. Of course, the three villages have to be taken into consideration and traffic must be directed in such a way that minimally alters the current traffic patterns of the adjacent towns. While the relation between the University and the towns are not the best, in some periods of time even hostile, I'm sure this can be addressed in the best way possible. Traffic would only be a problem if things are not done properly. The current state of CR-97 (Nicolls Road) is more than enough to handle 20-60k people attending a football game on a Saturday afternoon.

Considering we have a large commuter student population that comes in everyday, this wouldn't be much different from the current traffic patterns.

From reading the above, its obvious I support a move up to FBS, I see it as our destiny even though I'm sure many would disagree. I visualize Stony Brook competing for championships with the top universities of the US, fostering regional rivalries with UConn, UMass, Buffalo, Temple, etc (in football that is)
« Last Edit: February 06, 2012, 01:58:11 pm by ecasadoSBU »
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ecasadoSBU

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Re: 2012-2020: Future of Stony Brook Football
« Reply #3 on: February 06, 2012, 02:22:17 pm »
Also, let me add one more point:

With the current instability of the College Football world, and the effects that it will have on the FCS. We will likely see in the future more teams move up to the FBS. Unfortunately the FCS is not economically viable. Its not sustainable due to the lack of revenue it produces for over 90% of its teams. With the exception of a maybe 2-10 schools that have strong fan bases, everyone else looses money by having an FCS program. We have seen what has happened to to other universities having Football programs at the FCS level. They either disappear (like in the case of cross-island rival Hofstra) or they are choosing to move up (like UMass which is currently completing its transition). The more FCS teams that move up to the FBS, the more the talent level suffers, and that will also take more fans away from the FCS. 

If Stony Brook already made the commitment to offer 65 full-scholarship funding in football, then FBS football would be the next logical step
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sbufan

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Re: 2012-2020: Future of Stony Brook Football
« Reply #4 on: February 06, 2012, 02:29:37 pm »
EDIT
« Last Edit: April 17, 2012, 11:52:44 pm by sbufan »

ecasadoSBU

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Re: 2012-2020: Future of Stony Brook Football
« Reply #5 on: February 06, 2012, 02:43:08 pm »
I didn't wanna say it, but that's the perception I get also. It might take 10-15-20 or even 30 years but we will eventually end up in something like the Big East or ACC. That's if we follow the path of universities like Uconn. Consider UConn 20 years ago. They were A10 football members and quickly rose to the BCS by means of the Big East. Now they enjoy 40,000 attendance levels, something no one would've thought back then. UConn is now outnumbering Boston College in terms of fans, while BC has been the traditional BCS team of New England. That jump was fast, and its makes me think that SBU is on the same path.

I don't want to sound like I'm getting carried away, but I'm sure back in 1995 no one expected Stony Brook to have a fully funded Division I-AA football program with an 8k seat stadium and competing for Conference championships and potentially for FCS championship this upcoming season. Who ever said that back then would've been considered crazy or something. Get what I mean? We are growing extremely fast, its no joke.

Add to that the constant donations that we are getting from alumni, we're an attractive school, no way you can deny that...
« Last Edit: February 06, 2012, 02:46:08 pm by ecasadoSBU »
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sbufan

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Re: 2012-2020: Future of Stony Brook Football
« Reply #6 on: February 06, 2012, 02:53:26 pm »
Another example is USF who went from a D1aa start up to the Big East in 8 years. Now, they have a huge benefit of having NFL stadium play their games in on saturdays, but they're not as attractive from an market or academics perspective.

I think in as few as 10 years Stony Brook could be playing in an FBS conference.
« Last Edit: April 17, 2012, 11:54:03 pm by sbufan »

ry1nik

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Re: 2012-2020: Future of Stony Brook Football
« Reply #7 on: February 06, 2012, 03:08:18 pm »
Good people can disagree on this issue, but I still contend that SBU can rise in the ranks of national publics without going BCS. William and Mary, UC San Diego, Davis, Santa Barbara, Irvine...all Top 20 publics by any number of measures without having BCS football (or even any football at all). Prez Stanley seems to think that the Simons gift will help propel SBU into the Top 20. I don't think BCS football is necessary for that. If you think it would be more fun to cheer on a BCS team, I can understand that (though it could be a hassle on game day). But it's hardly necessary for acheiving comparable academic status of the top publics. Athletics is one of few means to an end. The end is adding value to our degrees.

ecasadoSBU

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Re: 2012-2020: Future of Stony Brook Football
« Reply #8 on: February 06, 2012, 03:08:50 pm »
I wouldn't say 10. The infrastructure requirements are huge. We need a large stadium and a lot of community support to have a BCS team in the island. something that can hold us back for 10-20 years. But I do see the FBS as the logical next step in the next decade. This can be accelerated by on-the-field success or delayed so its going to be interesting to see what happens in the next few years.

We can see whats going on in other areas of the campus right now, improvements everywhere. its amazes me to see that (hotel, Rec center, more dorms on the way, a renovated arena, a renovated Union or an entirely new one coming up soon, and of course more research investment).
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ecasadoSBU

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Re: 2012-2020: Future of Stony Brook Football
« Reply #9 on: February 06, 2012, 03:13:46 pm »
ry1nik, I definitely agree with you. this is not the way that Stony Brook "must" go in order to improve academics, they can take other directions to get to the same end . Its just the way that I, and many other fans, may want it to achieve that. I am sure some don't share the same enthusiasm with the idea of FBS or even BCS football, but me? I would love to see Stony Brook competing in the highest level of college football.
« Last Edit: February 06, 2012, 03:25:09 pm by ecasadoSBU »
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jaghatai

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Re: 2012-2020: Future of Stony Brook Football
« Reply #10 on: February 06, 2012, 03:34:30 pm »
For starters, to move up to FBS, we'd need to average 15k/game.  Before even considering the move, we need to expand our facilities and boost the fan base.  Obviously being in the Top 25 is a great start to that.

While we work on that requirement, we are going to watching VERY closely how Liberty and UMass fare.  If they move up and then flounder (both by results and financially), the push to stay the big fish in the small pond will be major.

I think inevitably we are going to move up, but I don't really expect it happening in the near future.  Now bumping to the CAA or A-10 is a very strong possibility as a "transitional step".  Would not be shocked if that happened sooner rather than later.
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sbufan

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Re: 2012-2020: Future of Stony Brook Football
« Reply #11 on: February 06, 2012, 03:47:23 pm »
I wouldn't say 10. The infrastructure requirements are huge. We need a large stadium and a lot of community support to have a BCS team in the island. something that can hold us back for 10-20 years. But I do see the FBS as the logical next step in the next decade. This can be accelerated by on-the-field success or delayed so its going to be interesting to see what happens in the next few years.

We can see whats going on in other areas of the campus right now, improvements everywhere. its amazes me to see that (hotel, Rec center, more dorms on the way, a renovated arena, a renovated Union or an entirely new one coming up soon, and of course more research investment).

If Stony Brook moves FBS, I don't think they'll be playing on campus. They'll have to find a venue that would host their games. Something like whatever that plan was for the new Nassau Coliseum (the lighthouse?). I don't have the answer though. In my mind this is the biggest obstacle.

ry1nik

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Re: 2012-2020: Future of Stony Brook Football
« Reply #12 on: February 06, 2012, 04:07:57 pm »
Sorry, in my previous post I meant "FBS" (not BCS...a whole other level). But to continue the discussion, I wouldn't want to attend a game off campus. When I return for Homecoming, I WANT to visit the campus while attending the game. I don't want another venue; it's a business proposition at that point, not a Homecoming. And if by FBS it means MAC, that's not a bargain either. Playing the Akrons, Western Michigans, and Toledos of the country is no more attractive (maybe less!) than playing New Hampshire, Maine, William and Mary, and Richmond.

seawolf80

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Re: 2012-2020: Future of Stony Brook Football
« Reply #13 on: February 06, 2012, 04:28:21 pm »
I agree with the position that games must be held on campus. Homecoming or not, this is the venue
for a school function of this type. Alums do want to come back to campus. And having games at the
school allows exposure to visitors who may not be familiar with our institution.
Additionally, it is easier for the students to attend on campus than it would be if the game were held
at an off campus site perhaps numerous miles away.
We are not ready to make the jump yet. If at all, it is quite a way down the road.
Even with the uncertain conference landscape, an FCS affiliation ( like the CAA ) is the logical
next step for us.

sbufan

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Re: 2012-2020: Future of Stony Brook Football
« Reply #14 on: February 06, 2012, 05:21:41 pm »
Sorry, in my previous post I meant "FBS" (not BCS...a whole other level). But to continue the discussion, I wouldn't want to attend a game off campus. When I return for Homecoming, I WANT to visit the campus while attending the game. I don't want another venue; it's a business proposition at that point, not a Homecoming. And if by FBS it means MAC, that's not a bargain either. Playing the Akrons, Western Michigans, and Toledos of the country is no more attractive (maybe less!) than playing New Hampshire, Maine, William and Mary, and Richmond.

It would absolutely be a business decision. I understand wanting to play New Hampshire, Maine, William and Mary, and Richmond, but those teams are stuck at FCS - they aren't getting calls from FBS conferences either because they are located in a small media market, have too small of an enrollment, their market already has an FBS team, or some combination. Stony Brook is the exact opposite of those schools - It's a large university within the most sought after media market, a market that doesn't have any any FBS football teams within it's footprint. I'd bet within 4-5 years of Stony Brook's first FBS win or FCS final four they'll be playing FBS football. Stony Brook is too attractive and college football is too big of a business for it not to happen, regardless of how improbable it may look at the moment. Schools like Stony Brook don't stay in the FCS.