A new and better FBS thread

[taper]

Liberty was a very unique case.

They applied for a waiver, after going to major media publications threatening a lawsuit on religious discrimination grounds. The backstory is that a few FBS conferences with openings directly told them they wouldn't be considered due to their religion/politics. If they had evidence of that, it was a pretty strong hand to play. The NCAA granted them a waiver, and it is the only FBS waiver I can ever remember being granted in the past 20 or so years.

JMU applied for a FBS postseason/playoff waiver last year and was denied. They slipped into a bowl game due to lack of enough eligible teams, but were not considered for the CFP or NY6. They threatened a lawsuit, then backed down. They were officially ineligible due to transition rules, and did not win their appeal.

All of this to say a legal challenge is a crapshoot at best. It might work, but there really isn't a strong precedent to our situation, or to anyone trying to form a new FBS conference without following the established rules.

And, winning against the NCAA wouldn't be enough. The CFP, which is what really matters, is a separate corporation formed directly between the conferences and media companies. It's why basically all FBS teams have now joined a conference. Trying to force your way into the CFP agreement would be a second battle, and likely even tougher than being declared FBS by NCAA. Notre Dame is the ONLY independent team that contractually has access to the CFP, and they are an ACC affiliate.

And yet, every school you mentioned got what they wanted despite NCAA bylaws. There absolutely is no deadline that we'll be locked out forever. A new conference isn't simple, but we've done it before. Since it's clear a G5 invite isn't coming this is very likely our only path to FBS. Are you pro FBS unless it's difficult?

[WhoRepsTheLurker]

And yet, every school you mentioned got what they wanted despite NCAA bylaws. There absolutely is no deadline that we'll be locked out forever. A new conference isn't simple, but we've done it before. Since it's clear a G5 invite isn't coming this is very likely our only path to FBS. Are you pro FBS unless it's difficult?

Again, on 1660 today they fielded this very question - 'why can't we just make a new conference?'

It was soundly and immediately dismissed as impossible, so it doesn't sound like NDSU sees this as a viable option, at the same time that they seem confident we'll move up. Go figure ...

[NI4NI]

Is there a path through pairing with SDSU and leveraging our mutual successful histories?
13 championship game appearances in the past 13 seasons. (11 championships)
I cannot understand why a conference would not want us? Sure it's threat to the conference bottom feeders, but winners in life don't view things in that way.
This should be an easy sell. I don't get it.

[Professor Chaos]

Is there a path through pairing with SDSU and leveraging our mutual successful histories?
13 championship game appearances in the past 13 seasons. (11 championships)
I cannot understand why a conference would not want us? Sure it's threat to the conference bottom feeders, but winners in life don't view things in that way.
This should be an easy sell. I don't get it.

Because the quality of the football program doesn't matter at least not as much as other things. Missouri St has a shit football program but they're a better fit for CUSA not only due to fitting more into the conference's geographic footprint but they have a lot more people in the general area to help drive up media contracts and give CUSA schools visibility to more prospective students and athletes in that area.

Get ready because the next school that'll make the FBS jump before NDSU could very well be Tarleton St who wasn't even D1 until a few years ago but they'll again be a better fit with CUSA than NDSU for the same reasons Missouri St is.

[BigHorns]

And yet, every school you mentioned got what they wanted despite NCAA bylaws. There absolutely is no deadline that we'll be locked out forever. A new conference isn't simple, but we've done it before. Since it's clear a G5 invite isn't coming this is very likely our only path to FBS. Are you pro FBS unless it's difficult?

I'm just saying the best path in is to join MWC or MAC. We should be lobbying the hell out of them, and it does sound like those conversations have been happening.

If someday the doors actually lock, then sure, try whatever we have the funds and support to do. Threatening a lawsuit is easy, but wins you no friends. Actually winning a lawsuit is difficult and expensive. Your statement they all got what they wanted is a bit of a stretch. Liberty was stuck in independent status a very long time, and was losing millions upon millions of dollars buying home games until they finally got a conference invite. JMU didn't get considered for the NY6, and by a lot of metrics should have been in. And nobody else in recent history has been able to join FBS outside a conference invite. It's a last resort path, and not one that has any level of certainty.

[BigHorns]

Again, on 1660 today they fielded this very question - 'why can't we just make a new conference?'

It was soundly and immediately dismissed as impossible, so it doesn't sound like NDSU sees this as a viable option, at the same time that they seem confident we'll move up. Go figure ...

It's not a rational gamble until all other avenues have been fully exhausted.

There would be huge expenditures, with a low probability of success. The system is aligned against it.

[BigHorns]

Because the quality of the football program doesn't matter at least not as much as other things. Missouri St has a shit football program but they're a better fit for CUSA not only due to fitting more into the conference's geographic footprint but they have a lot more people in the general area to help drive up media contracts and give CUSA schools visibility to more prospective students and athletes in that area.

Get ready because the next school that'll make the FBS jump before NDSU could very well be Tarleton St who wasn't even D1 until a few years ago but they'll again be a better fit with CUSA than NDSU for the same reasons Missouri St is.

I'm not sure CUSA will add any more schools for a while. 12 is a pretty good number for a conference, and allows them to go to divisions if they choose with some cross-divisional play. That cuts down travel costs for the conference. But if CUSA does expand further, the Texas schools and other nearby regions (ASun, Southland, OVC, even CAA) will certainly get called before the Dakotas, for all the reasons you state.

One school under the radar I think could move to CUSA is NC A&T. Not this year, but potentially within the next 3-5 years.
CUSA filled in Georgia with Kennesaw, North Carolina and South Carolina schools along with Texas would be obvious next targets.

[HerdBot]

It's not a rational gamble until all other avenues have been fully exhausted.

There would be huge expenditures, with a low probability of success. The system is aligned against it.

Nothing has been exhausted. He hasnt contacted any conferences or lobbied anyone, much less put feelers out to like minded schools

ML isn't a visionary like GT and he hopes someday a lawsuit is a reason to wait. Just a retarted logic. Considering he isn't retarded and is very smart, he's just talking out of his ass and trying to pretend like there is hope

Small time mentality

[NDSUstudent]

If NDSU, Montana, Montana State, SDSU and Idaho all got together and said we want to go FBS...They would bust through barriers just like Liberty did, just call their bluff with a strong case for inclusion. It takes vision and guts to make that happen, which I sadly see very little of.

[Professor Chaos]

If NDSU, Montana, Montana State, SDSU and Idaho all got together and said we want to go FBS...They would bust through barriers just like Liberty did, just call their bluff with a strong case for inclusion. It takes vision and guts to make that happen, which I sadly see very little of.

This would be the ideal scenario for NDSU IMO. In addition to vision and guts it also takes solidarity between multiple schools which is tough to achieve and maintain through what would surely be a tumultuous process.