A new and better FBS thread

[BigHorns]

I have never personally advocated to move just because or at all costs. I also don’t come here with rumors or hearsay. Never have never will. The reality is the NDSU leadership invested in a $50 million dollar football centric practice facility. That facility makes very little sense if we stay FCS. I want leadership to help me and the fanbase understand why they put that at the top of the priority list if an FCS invite wasn’t almost guaranteed by building it. Maybe it is and maybe it’s coming soon. If an invite doesn’t come very soon, that choice makes the decision very questionable given the impacts a similar investment in men’s and women’s bb salaries, recruiting and scheduling could have had. I don’t think there are any lies in that position, it is very much based in reality.

That is my opinion and you are dismissive. Memes and emojis aren’t adult dialogue.

I agree IF it was all NDSU's money, that investing it in basketball could have had a bigger impact on that sport. And, raising the profile of Basketball success would likely make us MUCH more attractive to FBS conferences also. Gonzaga is said to be in discussions with the B12 and others. FBS conferences aren't going to invite us because we built a premium practice facility. Facility wise, higher seating capacity in the dome would be what they look at. Beyond winning, the metrics conferences examine are enrollment, endowment size, stadium capacity, and attendance, along with geography and metro area. They would also more likely want to add a school that has both football and basketball success.

The thing is, this was private funds from people who chose to support football. It's not clear those boosters have any interest in basketball. And it will help us improve football regardless of whether we are in FCS or not. This will be attractive to recruits, and help our practice sessions in the colder months.

[CAS4127]

I agree IF it was all NDSU's money, that investing it in basketball could have had a bigger impact on that sport. And, raising the profile of Basketball success would likely make us MUCH more attractive to FBS conferences also. FBS conferences aren't going to invite us because we built a premium practice facility. Facility wise, higher seating capacity in the dome would be what they look at. They would also more likely want to add a school that has both football and basketball success.

The thing is, this was private funds from people who chose to support football. It's not clear those boosters have any interest in basketball. And it will help us improve football regardless of whether we are in FCS or not. This will be attractive to recruits, and help our practice sessions in the colder months.

The football program has earned the support it gets. Money wasn’t just thrown at it in hopes it would get better. The MBB program has done nothing of that sort, nothing, despite money/facility improvements having been directed at the program. Still not convinced at all that throwing money at MBB will automatically result in a better product, although difficult at this point to be worse.

[BigLakeBison]

I agree IF it was all NDSU's money, that investing it in basketball could have had a bigger impact on that sport. And, raising the profile of Basketball success would likely make us MUCH more attractive to FBS conferences also. FBS conferences aren't going to invite us because we built a premium practice facility. Facility wise, higher seating capacity in the dome would be what they look at. They would also more likely want to add a school that has both football and basketball success.

The thing is, this was private funds from people who chose to support football. It's not clear those boosters have any interest in basketball. And it will help us improve football regardless of whether we are in FCS or not. This will be attractive to recruits, and help our practice sessions in the colder months.

That’s not how it works. Boosters have lots of influence with their dollars but they don’t tell NDSU to build a practice facility. The ath. Dept. wanted a practice facility and the boosters were brought in to support that endeavor. I understand that they likely would not have been able to raise $50 million with a less tangible project like increasing basketball scheduling, recruiting and coaching salary budgets. But if that’s what would/will move the entire athletic department profile forward then that is one of the first few responsibilities listed on the AD’s job description. So a practice facility will improve our football recruiting so that we can win 9 of the next 11 FCS championships and continue to see declining attendance? What’s the purpose? I just don’t see it. Again this is why I say that the AD needs to share the vision and explain the plan. It doesn’t pencil out to me.

[BigLakeBison]

The football program has earned the support it gets. Money wasn’t just thrown at it in hopes it would get better. The MBB program has done nothing of that sort, nothing, despite money/facility improvements having been directed at the program. Still not convinced at all that throwing money at MBB will automatically result in a better product, although difficult at this point to be worse.

Money was thrown at the football program in the early sixties prior to them earning it. Since then they definitely have provided an absolutely remarkable return on that investment.

If an FBS invite comes soon, the practice facility is really helpful in continuing to improve the level of talent we bring in so that we can compete at the FBS level. The benefits of the practice facility are less apparent at the FCS level. Unless winning 9 of 11 championships is unacceptable and we won’t settle for anything less than 11 of the next 11.

[CAS4127]

Money was thrown at the football program in the early sixties prior to them earning it. Since then they definitely have provided an absolutely remarkable return on that investment.

If an FBS invite comes soon, the practice facility is really helpful in continuing to improve the level of talent we bring in so that we can compete at the FBS level. The benefits of the practice facility are less apparent at the FCS level. Unless winning 9 of 11 championships is unacceptable and we won’t settle for anything less than 11 of the next 11.

The MBB program in the 80s had all the money it needed to be good and it didn’t improve. Had it improved at the same rate as football or even WBB, it would have way more support today in terms of $$ and fans.

I can’t support giving someone a bonus for doing nothing more than a below average job.

[BigLakeBison]

The MBB program in the 80s had all the money it needed to be good and it didn’t improve. Had it improved at the same rate as football or even WBB, it would have way more support today in terms of $$ and fans.

I can’t support giving someone a bonus for doing nothing more than a below average job.

Ok. I’ll concede that basketball’s past performance hasn’t warranted more investment. I think you could argue that was maybe more about coaching hires than funding but I’ll concede that the results haven’t been close to football.

BigHorns said the practice facility doesn’t really move the needle for an FBS invite and that stadium size would be much more beneficial in that endeavor. If that is indeed the case, what does the practice facility do for the football program if an FBS invite doesn’t come in the next 10 years? Keep in mind that it seems like our recruiting and player development has been at or near the top of FCS without the practice facility.

[BigHorns]

The MBB program in the 80s had all the money it needed to be good and it didn’t improve. Had it improved at the same rate as football or even WBB, it would have way more support today in terms of $$ and fans.

I can’t support giving someone a bonus for doing nothing more than a below average job.

I do understand this viewpoint. It's also probably much easier to raise money for football because of this.

This is likely how most of our boosters see things, and that's unfortunate. Because the right coaching hire and support can absolutely produce basketball success. There are many examples of this. And big time basketball success would likely fast track us for FBS conferences. The practice facility won't.

[BigLakeBison]

This has been my concern as well and I’ve voiced it here enough times that the horse has been beaten into dust. I don’t agree with how it’s been handled from the PR side but it is what it is. If we were staying FCS we wouldn’t have built the IPF the way we did. My understanding is in that fact.

My way of combatting the apathy with my different friend groups or tailgating groups is just to go ahead and tell people we’re working on going FBS. At this point I’ve heard enough rumblings from people that know and I’ve seen enough to be pretty confident that we’re working on it. I usually say it in response to a “I just can’t keep going to games like this” “I don’t see the point in donating anymore” “why renew my season tickets” comment. 10 times out of 10 it gets other people excited to hear it. If our admin won’t seize the narrative we as fans can continue to do so.

Sure, fans like us can and probably will continue to be ambassadors of the program. However, if the vision isn’t being sold by the leadership and they aren’t leveraging us more as ambassadors, then they deserve some criticism. Not advocating that they get fired. Just believe they need to better on explaining the plan/vision.

[NDSU92]

Sure, fans like us can and probably will continue to be ambassadors of the program. However, if the vision isn’t being sold by the leadership and they aren’t leveraging us more as ambassadors, then they deserve some criticism. Not advocating that they get fired. Just believe they need to better on explaining the plan/vision.

It's unfortunate. I've come to the conclusion that if it truly would harm our chances of going FBS by stating that we wanted to go FBS, then I'm okay with them not saying anything. Whether that's actually the case or not, I don't think so but hey I'm not the expert. At the end of the day they've had 100 chances by now to seize the narrative and they've chosen not to do so, for better or worse. It's not coming and it's probably best to come to peace with it.

Like I said, I've heard enough rumblings and nuanced changes in the messaging to know that they're working on it. Let's just hope it ends up being something we can all get behind.

[BigLakeBison]

It's unfortunate. I've come to the conclusion that if it truly would harm our chances of going FBS by stating that we wanted to go FBS, then I'm okay with them not saying anything. Whether that's actually the case or not, I don't think so but hey I'm not the expert. At the end of the day they've had 100 chances by now to seize the narrative and they've chosen not to do so, for better or worse. It's not coming and it's probably best to come to peace with it.

Like I said, I've heard enough rumblings and nuanced changes in the messaging to know that they're working on it. Let's just hope it ends up being something we can all get behind.

I agree, coming to peace with it is probably best. That being said, for many coming to peace with it is reducing their investment into the program.