I've seen lots of folks respond to the Augie-to-D1 discussion with a line like, "Why can't Augie just be happy being one of the top athletic programs in D2?"
Three days ago Augie won a National Championship in women's softball in what was almost inarguably its most successful season in school history. We're not talking about a conference championship. We're not talking about a regional championship. A NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP. The best team in the entire sport nationwide.
Other than Augie-produced materials (website articles, tweets, etc.), I'm not sure it's even being talked about anymore in any of the local media in any way other than the initial news stories of the win itself. It's only been THREE DAYS. And even in the buildup of postseason games getting the Vikes to the National Championship run, it was a handful of Argus articles and a few TV news stories.
Now think about what happens when all of the local D1s even remotely succeed in the postseason. SDSU's appearances and success in the Summit League tournament (reminder: CONFERENCE tournament) as well as any resulting appearances in the NCAA Tournament (men's and women's) get weeks of coverage. Almost daily from the start of the Summit League Tourney until the team's season ends. (This includes special interest pieces on individual players, stories about the excitement for players in the postseason, etc. Essentially none of that has taken place in this National Championship run for the Augie softball team.)
Think about USD and the hype they got as their women progressed in the Women's NIT.
Then there's the 24-hour, 7-day a week coverage NDSU gets from the Fargo Forum and other local Fargo media during and even after football season. Throw in their men's basketball team's success the past several years and the hype that has earned and the coverage/attention is remarkable.
To be clear, I completely understand that those are larger universities with a significant alumni base and student population. I also know softball isn't football or basketball. But when a National Championship in a still reasonably popular sport doesn't get more than 2-3 days of coverage (and a few articles leading up to the National Championship), it's hard for me to see how it's more fun to "reign at the top of D2 athletics" by comparison to the attention the D1s are drawing for lesser accomplishments.