Big Sky: One less football team?

[JackJD]

Article in yesterday's Idaho Statesman newspaper about budget woes...discusses primarily Idaho State. The Idaho State interim AD interviewed in the story is named Tingley. The article includes the following:

'Tingey said one school in the Big Sky Conference is weighing whether to drop football entirely. He said he considered dropping a sport, but the football game with Oklahoma and a $400,000 game at Arizona State may help eliminate that possibility.'

No indication of which school he was referring to.

[JimmyJack]

Re: Big Sky: One less football team?

Any guesses?

[jackmd]

Re: Big Sky: One less football team?

Any guesses?

I think there is probably more than one school weighing their options. My guess, in the end, none of them actually cut the FB program. We know its not going to be UM or MSU and the Idaho St. AD made it sound like its not them.

I think most of the states in the SW are in a big budget hole so Sac St, UNC, Weber, and NAU are all probably looking hard at ways to work with less money. I'm not sure about Portland St. and Eastern Washington. Which DII team in Washington just dumped FB? Was it Western Washington? Anyways, time will tell.

[West-River_Jack]

Re: Big Sky: One less football team?

If they need another member with football I understand that the University of North Dakota is still looking for a permanent home.

[JimmyJack]

Re: Big Sky: One less football team?

My money's on Sacramento State.

[Hammersmith]

Re: Big Sky: One less football team?

The #1 candidate at the moment is NAU. Arizona is facing a $1.8 billion shortfall for FY2009 and more than $3 billion for FY2010. Under a current proposal, $631 million of the shortfall will come from the state's university system over the next 18 months. That kind of cutback would cripple all the universities including NAU. Also, NAU is only one sport above the non-FBS minimum of 14. If forced to cut a sport, football is the only choice that would make a significant difference. I think we would all agree that cutting your major revenue generating sport is foolish in the long run, but NAU athletics might be forced into a corner with no other way out.

This all assumes that the current plan, or one very similar, is actually enacted. I am sooo happy I'm living in a state with a $1 billion surplus rather than a deficit(for now).

Napolitano Departs, AZ GOP Cannibalizes Education to Meet Budget Shortfall

[JimmyJack]

Re: Big Sky: One less football team?

The #1 candidate at the moment is NAU. Arizona is facing a $1.8 billion shortfall for FY2009 and more than $3 billion for FY2010. Under a current proposal, $631 million of the shortfall will come from the state's university system over the next 18 months. That kind of cutback would cripple all the universities including NAU. Also, NAU is only one sport above the non-FBS minimum of 14. If forced to cut a sport, football is the only choice that would make a significant difference. I think we would all agree that cutting your major revenue generating sport is foolish in the long run, but NAU athletics might be forced into a corner with no other way out.

This all assumes that the current plan, or one very similar, is actually enacted. I am sooo happy I'm living in a state with a $1 billion surplus rather than a deficit(for now).

Napolitano Departs, AZ GOP Cannibalizes Education to Meet Budget Shortfall

Good info, Hammersmith. Thanks.

[joeboo22]

Re: Big Sky: One less football team?

If I had to guess it'd be UNC, but I like others think that if they were forced to cut they'd just go down to D-II and join the RMAC.....

[JackJD]

Re: Big Sky: One less football team?

I think Hammersmith's guess is the best guess so far. But it's hard to believe NAU will actually pull the plug on football.

[jacksfan29]

Re: Big Sky: One less football team?

If I had to guess it'd be UNC, but I like others think that if they were forced to cut they'd just go down to D-II and join the RMAC.....

Sac State or UNA. I would lean towards Sac State, but Hammersmith's Arizona article puts a new twist on the AZ issues. There is no way UNC goes down to the RMAC and it is highly unlikely they would drop football or make a move into DII. That would be like SDSU dropping into the NSIC. Besides, the RMAC would not accept them.

I'm not exactly sure why you keep harping on UNC, outside of FB they are a mid-pack team in the Big Sky. Football will come around when they bring in a coach who knows the area and understands he must challenge CSU and Wyoming if he is to be successful.

As for funding, the Colorado University system has issues right now (like all Western states other than Utah), but if any schools are in trouble they are Western, Adams and Mesa. UNC also have access to some of the Monfort money and an ok alumni base in the Northern Front Range.

[joeboo22]

Re: Big Sky: One less football team?

Sac State or UNA. I would lean towards Sac State, but Hammersmith's Arizona article puts a new twist on the AZ issues. There is no way UNC goes down to the RMAC and it is highly unlikely they would drop football or make a move into DII. That would be like SDSU dropping into the NSIC. Besides, the RMAC would not accept them.

I'm not exactly sure why you keep harping on UNC, outside of FB they are a mid-pack team in the Big Sky. Football will come around when they bring in a coach who knows the area and understands he must challenge CSU and Wyoming if he is to be successful.

As for funding, the Colorado University system has issues right now (like all Western states other than Utah), but if any schools are in trouble they are Western, Adams and Mesa. UNC also have access to some of the Monfort money and an ok alumni base in the Northern Front Range.

Its not that I'm harping on UNC, I think its a great school, and good athletically its just that if you are going to cut a program its probably because of finances and UNC is believed to have some problems in that area.

[Hammersmith]

Re: Big Sky: One less football team?

Just wanted to say that NAU will probably not drop football. While NAU has one more sport than the FCS minimum of 14, they only have the minimum number of men's sports(6). If they drop football, they would have to drop out of Division I. I can't imagine that would happen.

I should have looked deeper into the NCAA rules before. Sorry.