shaft

Where are you getting $250-$300 for games from? Schools regularly pay $700+ for one shot OOC games. Didn't we drop a $600 gig to get these $800 payouts from LSU?

I think everyone agrees 5 to 7 wins is realistic for this squad. Anything less than 5 wins would be a disappointment, but calling 7 wins a miracle seems off base. The idea that the team could be one game better than last year and beat an fcs team seems pretty reasonable.

I feel bad for the kid, because I'm scared to disagree with a 300 lbs. 12 year old up.

And yet another breaks down into "we need free tickets."

...and that's why Dickey isn't here anymore. Despite the DD success in the early days of the Sun Belt he failed to convert that momentum into building the program and Out Of Conference wins. 2001 - Miracle season. Go bowling for the first time in 40 years, but we were also 5-6. 2002 -Great year. Win the bowl against Cincy 2003 - Great year. Beat Baylor, go bowling, but couldn't beat Memphis. 2004 - Good year. The rest of the SBC was pretty bad, go bowling, but we got exposed in the bowl against Southern Miss. Things like "stealth recruiting" and "buick ball" made sense in 2000-2002. But as the program began to establish itself, DD failed to make upgrades to the coaching staff, play calling, and recruiting practices. I think DD got a raw deal being fired mid-season after he'd had a heart attack. I think RV could have waited six weeks and the team would have ended up with 1 or 2 more wins that year. Dodge was a total failure. He had the personality to be a head coach, but is assistant coach choices did him in from day one. Mac got a huge break playing a bad Indiana team at home. But I feel like he's a guy that use momentum from wins like that, where DD couldn't capitalize on a better win over Texas Tech.

Since we're the Mean Green couldn't we just set up DCTA bus tours to go by Mean Joe's place in Flower Mound.

I'm a big believer in achievable goals and selling out an fcs game isn't realistic. When was the last sell out? Baylor in 2003? The game is the main product, game day is the secondary product. It hard to overcome the fact that we're playing a team many fans don't want to see. A better approach would be "operation fan". What could we do and coordinate as fans to increase attendance. Sure a sell out is the long trerm goal, but it's not achievable out of gate. Especially against a bad fcs school.

Couldn't we just have Mean Joe Green man the t-shirt cannon?

But let's be honest. If he transferred to UNT we would welcome him with open arms.

I'm wondering what impact the 2012 bowl bans might have on bowl season. If I've got this right there are 35 bowls with 70 slots. In 2011 we had 72 teams make the cut, but USC was the only banned team and WKY got left out. In 2012 there will be 3 teams with bowl bans; Ohio State, North Carolina, and Penn State. So this should mean every team that goes 6-6 should be guaranteed a bowl because there is a shortage of teams to compete for the slots.

I heard a rumor athletics is the window to a university

The "we're being left behind" crowd has yet to respond to a single point in this thread about how that won't happen. And now were making assumptions that the new elitist D1 will only be 4 conferences? So which one goes away the ACC or the Big 12? The NFL works because of anti-trust exemptions and a revenue sharing platform. Why are these individual conferences and schools going to give up their tv deals to be part of an across the board new system? UT proves a school is not going to give up any of their own deal to help out anyone else.

I don't think a split in D1 will occur. Its not in the "haves" best interest. First of all it would take a lot of politics to let big state schools go off and leave their little buddies behind. Second, the "have nots" get a vote and wouldn't go willingly. Third, why would there be more money for the big five conferences? They already make their own tv deals, why would ESPN pay more ACC games if the MWC was in a different division. Fourth, the "have nots" could simply refuse to play the "haves". Good luck filling out your bowl slots when your mid-level Big Ten teams have to play the SEC teams for their OOC games.

Let's be honest NMSU doesn't need to stay in D1/FBS. They have failed to invest in their program, they made the wrong choice leaving the SBC for the WAC, they went 0-12, and they have the longest bowl drought in the NCAA.

1. There was nothing mythical about number one versus number two. 2. I like the number of first year coaches on the schedule.

One of the benefits of CUSA is the league contribution towards bowl travel. I remember reading CUSA picks up the travel tab for their bowl teams, which why no one complains about going to the HI bowl.

Bowl realignment will follow conference realignment. While bowls like the Armed Forces and Liberty may want to go with the hometown team there is opportunity for the Belk bowl in Charolette and another bowl in San Antonio. I would like to see the CUSA champ vs. the MWC champ in the faux Cotton bowl and get out of the HI bowl. CUSA West vs Big 12 in the new San Antonio bowl (the former potato bowl) CUSA East vs Big East in the Belk or Beefy bowl And let the remaining tie-ins rotate their preference for available CUSA teams.

You mean the school that threw away a century of tradition and rivalries for cash and chance to go 6-6 in a good year.

Boise left. As much as I was hoping for complete chaos, it didn't happen. I'm still not sold on the long term viability of the Big East.

The new system does not expand access to the mid-majors to the big bowls, only a better chance at the national championship. 1-4 get the playoff spot, but that means every other year the really big bowls (rose, sugar, etc) will still select traditional or all hype match ups. Just look at last years Sugar Bowl, they are going to take the big name every time. Hopefully the playoffs will generate enough new revenue for the little(er) guys to make up not getting the occasional BCS bowl.

Wasn't he part of the Reggie Bush trade so the Saints have the rights to him. Saints platoon of running backs lets them keep guys like Chris Ivory on the practice squad and pull them up when they need them.

I make economic development incentives for a living and I wouldn't say these deals "far outweigh" the costs. And for what it's worth the NFL does have a fund that contributes to new stadium construction.

Stadiums have a minor economic impact. A downtown Dallas stadium would have been the catalyst to make the area around the ACC work and brought some life back to the West End. A Fair Park Stadium would have made enough money to cover the operating cost for the entire park, wouldn't have spurred any real development in the area. Arlington bought themselves an identity with the stadium. San Antonio tried the same thing with the Alamo Bowl.

Wow, twit, tw*t, chic, girl aren't we an accepting bunch. Instead of refuting the merits, or lack there of, in the article we attack the author's gender.

1. Dont we do that aleady with games against OU, LSU, and UT. 2. Are we really complaining about payday ooc games in the same footprint as our conference.