I don't care what Jim says. That is not the real Ben Franklin. I'm 99% certain.
NMSU and Liberty are set to join CUSA. UConn and Umass are still independent along with Army. I just don’t think any of those teams would be willing to come to Fargo.
The home schedule would probably be heavy on FCS teams with some MAC teams thrown in. Maybe a lower level P5 at US Bank that could count as a home game.
There's no doubt in my mind that if we don't go independent that we won't go at all. I can't see a path where it makes financial sense for all of the rest of the NDSU sports to go to either the MAC or the MWC. The other options on the table are even worse financially. The only conference affiliation that would make financial sense for ALL sports at NDSU would be the Big12 but that has basically zero chance of happening.
This assumes that no conference would want NDSU as a football-only member...which I feel is a very strong assumption.
Back to FBS independence, I would not be making decisions at NDSU because of what happened at NMSU, UConn, or UMass. Those schools suck at football and clearly NDSU does not. The Bison have a regional following, a national brand, a culture of success, and (hopefully) the financial backing of its boosters. I also do not think it relegates fans to having only 3 home games. With several alignments with other schools (admittedly, difficult to establish and maintain) a somewhat regular schedule could be created.
Insert something clever here...
Well there you go. Even the possible independent schools have found homes.
Run the damn ball!! PRO FBS
The only chance going independent has a sniff if they had a GUARANTEE conference invite and used it as a 1-2 year bridge. For example "we will play independent in 2022 and 2023 and start the MWC/MAC or whatever in 2024."
Going independent without a guarantee...what's zero divided by zero...
I'm all for the "Sim City video game" version of FBS independent where we get to be like Notre Dame or BYU and all the fun schools want to schedule us and we get sweet home games
I'm not at all for the reality version of FBS independent where literally not one school will want to play us. We don't bring millions of dollars, hundreds of thousands of fans, millions of eyeballs like the schools above do. We bring a football team that will kick your football team's ass, and not much else. Why play with a honey badger when you can schedule a prairie dog?
NDSU forced the B10 to make a rule to not allow their programs schedule FCS schools for a while. We've been blacklisted from playing B10, B12, and soon the PAC12. That doesn't change with us being FBS.
I never run into any trouble restructuring conferences or scheduling games in ncaa football 14. Just saying. It can be done.
Lardsin must go!
I think NDSU would be unique then!
there's FBS conferences with open weeks during the season that would play.
Play 4 kick ass Non Conference games vs Power 5 and sprinkle in the teams below.
2.1 Army
2.2 BYU
2.3 Liberty
2.4 New Mexico State
2.5 Notre Dame
2.6 UConn
2.7 UMass
NDSU TO FBS. HAVEN'T WE WON ENOUGH?