Why Not?

[JBB]

This might sound crazy and I haven't really studied it but Idaho (vandals) are DI football. Their stadium only seats 16,100. For the Montana Grizzlies they only drew 14,400 (they sold out San Diego State). We can do better than that in Fargo.

Maybe the BISON and NDSU should be looking at a conference that plays DI football? There must be suitable conferences?

There might be better opportunities out there? The waiting periods wouldn't change. There must be DI ind. or existing conferences that are similar to NDSU in athletic budgets?

[BisonInTexas]

Well, ignoring the fact that NDSU would be playing teams with much higher budgets and would be at a scholarship disadvantage (I don't think that NDSU can fund 85 scholarships for both financial and Title IX reasons), I would be against DI-A if for nothing else but for the lack of a playoff system for football - not that NDSU would ever qualify for such a system if it was DI-A. I can't stand the bowl system and the BCS - it is based on who can pull in the most ratings and attendance, not who is the better team on the field. NDSU will never be a darling of the TV networks on a national scale.

As much as I think that NDSU should be in DI-AA and not it DII for football, I think that they should not be in DI-A. They just don't fit there. The example you cited (Idaho) is one of the dregs of DIA football. They play in a no-name conference (the Sunbelt), that is regularly won by North Texas (just up the road in Denton) with a 5-6 or 6-5 record. Their reward - they get to play in the New Orleans bowl on a Tuesday night. Whoo-hoo! :

That is not what I want NDSU to aspire to - I would rather see them go independent in DI-AA.

Craig

[jimdahl]

The NCAA requirements would make that very difficult:

Div. I-A teams have to meet minimum attendance requirements (17,000 people in attendance per home game, OR 20,000 average of all football games in the last four years or, 30,000 permanent seats in their stadium and average 17,000 per home game or 20,000 average of all football games in the last four years OR, be in a member conference in which at least six conference members sponsor football or more than half of football schools meet attendance criterion.

The only hope would be to get an established conference to admit NDSU. NDSU would need to provide some pretty good incentive to convince an eligible D-IA conference to admit a school that doesn't meet the attendance requirements (especially considering that the current rumors are that the attendance requirements are going to be enforced a lot more strictly in 2005).

[NDSU_grad]

Yeah, playing in a no-name conference like the SunBelt is not the place for NDSU. I really don't think the NCAA can look too hard at those attendance requirements. I highly doubt that Idaho, Boise St., or Nevada-Reno met those requirements (I could easily be wrong, though). That's why I just can't see the NCAA all of a sudden putting their collective foot (or is it feet) down and booting these schools to I-AA. I think the Utah States, Wyomings, and Idahos of this world are in DI to stay. Just my two cents.

[JBB]

I agree with that, but I think the new requirements would be enforced against a school aspiring to move its program up.

[NDSU_grad]

JBB,
You could be right about that. But I guess that goes back to one of my original questions; were schools that moved up within the past five years like Nevada-Reno, Idaho, and Boise St. meeting those requirements at the time?

[mojobison]

Idaho will not be moving down - I'd bet on it. The only conference that would make sense for NDSU is the MAC. Northern Illinois provides a pretty good example for how to move up from DI-AA to DI-A.

But, holy smokes, first things first. Getting NDSU a conference for sports other than football, getting Team Makers to raise $2 million a year, becoming a dominant DI-AA football program, getting those stupid waiting periods reduced, and getting our BB programs into the big tourney - those should be our priorities. Accomplishing all that would put NDSU into a good position to move up in football but only if DI-A reforms itself.

[JBB]

I just hope we arent the Northern Illinois of DII ball. Right now our conference situation is certainly defined as unsettled or worse.

The only added expense of moving up is the addtional football scholarships. Everything else is already "sunk into the deal", except coaches salaries. I think they would have to go up dramatically.

Would the Mac or the Wac be any worse then the Mid Con?

[BisonInTexas]

I just hope we arent the Northern Illinois of DII ball. Right now our conference situation is certainly defined as unsettled or worse.

The only added expense of moving up is the addtional football scholarships. Everything else is already "sunk into the deal", except coaches salaries. I think they would have to go up dramatically.

Would the Mac or the Wac be any worse then the Mid Con?

Wouldn't the expense be double the number of additional football scholarships to comply with Title IX (i.e. women's sports would have to be added)? This expense would not be trivial, and I just don't see that the payoff would be worth it. NDSU will find a conference in DIAA - Taylor has staked his job on it.

Craig

[NDSU_grad]

This is little off topic, but the more I look at the Horizon League the more enticing it seems for our non-football sports. Butler has decent name recognition, as well as maybe Wisconsin-Green Bay (it's where Koenig from Fargo North is going) and if you check out ESPN.com it sounds like they have a decent possibility of getting an at-large team into the tournament. They currently have nine teams, so I don't know if having SDSU as a travelling partner would appeal to them or not.
About the DI thing, I agree that it should be first things first. Let's get established there and see what happens.