Mavs moving towards football

Harry · October 20, 2011

Some of you know, my Dad played football at what was then Texas Arlington now UTA. He later transferred to UNT and got his BBA and MBA and is a Mean Green Club member and season ticket holder. He received a letter yesterday from UTA Athletic director Pete Carlon, announcing that a new athletics only fundraiser had been hired. The letter went on to state that while UTA's WAC participation was not contingent on UTA adding football that the university was in a good position to rekindle the program, and that hitting the fundraising goals could make it happen even faster.

I think UTA (and the UT System) realizes that this market offers value to them with football and will press forward with restarting the program within the next 3-5 years. I don't have a problem with this other than as a UNT fan we need to do everything we can to better position ourselves until it happens.

oldguystudent · October 20, 2011

Maverick Stadium is a 12,500 seat Multipurpose Facility that plays host to all types of Sporting, Charity, Festival and Special Events year round.

The prospect of bringing back football is intriguing, but I'd say they've got a major facilities hurdle unless they want to pay Jerry a million bucks a game to play in a 75% empty monolith.

MDH · October 20, 2011

Let's see if the WAC can continue as an FBS conference first.

SilverEagle · October 20, 2011

I never understood why UTA dropped football. If it was purely financial, they could have dropped down to D-II or the non-scholarship leagues that Tarleton and Sul Ross were in.

Trivia question. Who was the last Head Football coach for UTA?

oldguystudent · October 20, 2011

If it was purely financial, they could have dropped down to D-II or the non-scholarship leagues that Tarleton and Sul Ross were in.

DII would have only worked until the 1991 season when the NCAA, with few exceptions, required schools to field all sports at the same division. UC Santa Barbara had to scrap their football team because of this. They were D1 at everything else with a D2 football team.

Non-scholarship 1-AA in the Pioneer or Patriot League would work, but the travel expense would be enormous, and I don't know if they even existed at the time UTA dropped football.

drex · October 20, 2011

Pete Elliott?

Cerebus · October 20, 2011

Not sure if any of you have noticed this, but enrollment growth at UTA has swamped UNT's.

Their total enrollment is now almost 34k, ours actually shrunk a little from last fall's 36k.

ETA: We used to have almost 7k more students than them in 2005.

Edited October 20, 2011 by Cerebus

SilverEagle · October 20, 2011

Pete Elliott?

Nope. And I think you meant Harold (Bud) Elliott. Who was the head coach when UTA beat TCU back in the mid-70's. He had some great wishbone teams while coaching at UTA.

Hint about the last coach. In college he played QB at TCU under Abe Martin.

Edited October 20, 2011 by SilverEagle

EdwardRRooney · October 20, 2011

Before I graduated from UTA we tried very hard to even get them to consider bringing back the football team. This is good news. I hope it comes to fruition.

adman · October 20, 2011

Not sure if any of you have noticed this, but enrollment growth at UTA has swamped UNT's.

Their total enrollment is now almost 34k, ours actually shrunk a little from last fall's 36k.

ETA: We used to have almost 7k more students than them in 2005.

Isn't the big jump in enrollment at UTA over the last few years due mainly to a bad economy and many unemployed/underemployed people going back to school?

EdwardRRooney · October 20, 2011

Isn't the big jump in enrollment at UTA over the last few years due mainly to a bad economy and many unemployed/underemployed people going back to school?

Possibly. But, I don't believe admission standards are any more strict than at UNT. Tuition is the same if not more at UTA as well.

Edited October 20, 2011 by EdwardRRooney

SilverEagle · October 20, 2011

Isn't the big jump in enrollment at UTA over the last few years due mainly to a bad economy and many unemployed/underemployed people going back to school?

Well, all colleges benefit in that way....especially community colleges. But in UTA's case I'm guessing that because of their reputation as a (for lack of a better term) engineering/technical (where most of the new jobs are) school they are drawing a lot more than they would otherwise.

rcade · October 20, 2011

The prospect of bringing back football is intriguing, but I'd say they've got a major facilities hurdle unless they want to pay Jerry a million bucks a game to play in a 75% empty monolith.

They didn't tear down Maverick Stadium. It only seats 12,500 but could be expanded.

Marty · October 20, 2011

I never understood why UTA dropped football. If it was purely financial, they could have dropped down to D-II or the non-scholarship leagues that Tarleton and Sul Ross were in.

Trivia question. Who was the last Head Football coach for UTA?

I believe it was Chuck Curtis.

Huff · October 20, 2011

I believe Marty is correct. Chuck Curtis was a darned good football coach and had UTA playing pretty well when they decided to drop the program. When UTA opened their "new" football stadium North Texas was the opponent. We were coached by Jerry Moore in those days. It was televised by ESPN. That network was nowhere near the big deal that it is today. It was a good game......and North Texas won. I would love to see them add football and get North Texas on the schedule. It would be fun.

DeepGreen · October 20, 2011

Just what we need, another UT-whoever.

Cerebus · October 20, 2011

Isn't the big jump in enrollment at UTA over the last few years due mainly to a bad economy and many unemployed/underemployed people going back to school?

Many people are returning to school for that exact reason, the real question is why is UTA gaining faster than us? Programs offered? Location? Cost?

Green Mean · October 20, 2011

Many people are returning to school for that exact reason, the real question is why is UTA gaining faster than us? Programs offered? Location? Cost?

Could be a little of everything. If I recall I don't remember them being that far behind us as far as enrollment was concerned. They have a lot of well known business/engineering/science programs and also many people go to UTA in hopes of eventually transfering to UT and a lot of UT and UT System graduates do grad school there.

But all the reasons you stated above are correct.

Cerebus · October 20, 2011

If I recall I don't remember them being that far behind us as far as enrollment was concerned.

In 2005 they were ~7000 people behind us. Now that gap is much smaller. In addition, our enrollment shrank from last years fall numbers.

I am sure the University is looking into this, but it is still troubling.

rcade · October 20, 2011

I never understood why UTA dropped football. If it was purely financial, they could have dropped down to D-II or the non-scholarship leagues that Tarleton and Sul Ross were in.

The school claimed it was losing nearly $1 million a year on a program that drew 5,600 fans a game.

http://www.uta.edu/sportsexpansion/

MeanGreenTexan · October 20, 2011

In 2005 they were ~7000 people behind us. Now that gap is much smaller. In addition, our enrollment shrank from last years fall numbers.

I am sure the University is looking into this, but it is still troubling.

I remember this coming out earlier this year... Our Freshmen class was larger than ever, but overall, the enrollment shrank. Maybe upperclassmen are transferring? Maybe we have fewer graduate students? Maybe Lee Jackson is buying off students to transfer to Dallas? :ph34r:

ForneyGreen · October 20, 2011

I remember this coming out earlier this year... Our Freshmen class was larger than ever, but overall, the enrollment shrank. Maybe upperclassmen are transferring? Maybe we have fewer graduate students? Maybe Lee Jackson is buying off students to transfer to Dallas?

We're 364 students smaller this year, but we're evidently smarter... Brighter Students

oldguystudent · October 20, 2011

We're 364 students smaller this year, but we're evidently smarter... Brighter Students

I can tell you from the perspective of the MBA program that there is a move away from quantity and toward quality. Thankfully, I snuck in before they made that decision!

adman · October 20, 2011

the real question is why is UTA gaining faster than us? Programs offered? Location? Cost?
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risinggreen · October 20, 2011

Isn't the big jump in enrollment at UTA over the last few years due mainly to a bad economy and many unemployed/underemployed people going back to school?

Don't know if it's true or not, but someone told me that the jump is primarily due to a huge number of new online students who never see campus.