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On the Prowl: Moving On Up?
Boise State can legitimately claim a BCS Bowl victory, ten seasons after they were crowned champions of I-AA. It seems fitting then that message boards, ablaze with the creative fire of boredom and not having anything else to talk about, would be begin to discuss the legitimacy of other I-AA powers being successful at the FBS level.
However there is a boulevard of broken dreams leading you to the ultimate glory story of Boise State. Be careful to avoid panhandlers like Buffalo, Middle Tennessee State, Arkansas State... well, basically anyone in the Sun Belt. Oh, and Idaho.
It's been said by many in the world of cyberspace and generally assumed in the national media that the most elite FCS programs would be adequate as FBS mid-majors. But is that true? I decided to take a closer look, using some of the FCS elite as a measuring stick.
Appalachian State:
This program has exploded into the consciousness of all kinds of football followers, especially the Michigan Wolverines and their fans. Can one of the best in FCS go toe-to-toe with the best in BCS? Ask anyone with an opinion, and the answer is invariably nay. But let's look at some other facts: Appalachian State showed itself respectfully against LSU the year it won the I-AA National Championship for the first time. LSU was definitely one of the best in the nation at the time. However, let us not forget that they got pasted 36-8 by not-nearly-as-good Kansas. They followed that up with a 23-10 loss to NC State the following season. While many gleefully pointed out that ASU was one of the FCS' best at the time and couldn't beat a piddly ACC squad, it turned out later that NC State wasn't as bad as people thought.
Simply put: put the Mountaineers into a conference they could compete in FBS (Sun Belt, MAC, CUSA, WAC) and they would do fairly well as it stands right now. One thing we always forget though... there are financial and logistical things to look at as well. Appalachian State draws over 20,000 fans for their biggest home games right now. It could be assumed that those fans would maintain that same interest with FBS rivals, but who would they be? If ASU were to go to FBS, the closest and most natural conference to take them would be the Sun Belt. Could you get fans to show up to watch games against UL-Monroe, Middle Tennessee, or Western Kentucky?
Montana:
A stadium that holds 23,500, and is filled every home game. Numerous titles at the I-AA/FCS level. A ton of natural regional rivals. Montana seems like the most feasible fit for FBS of any of the FCS teams right now.
There's just one problem: their fans are not interested.
They watched as Idaho joined the I-A ranks in 1996, promptly getting their heads beaten in by superior opponents. Montana continued beating Idaho long after Idaho made the jump, despite the move to "better" competition. The interest that was there prior to the move diminished, and Idaho is now apocalyptically bad. Montana continued beating Idaho long after Idaho made the jump, despite the move to "better" competition.
One can't help but think that the good people following Griz football noticed this and said "no thanks." Let it again be said that Montana would no doubt have little trouble making an adjustment to say, the WAC after a brief stint as either an independent or a member of the dreaded Sun Belt. But again, their fans prefer to have a dominant program at one level rather than a middling one at another.
Northern Iowa:
One of only three state schools, all of which play at the Division I level. A loyal following with a rekindled interest in other sports as well. An impressive facility with an obvious home field advantage. Plenty of I-AA success.
And sadly, that's about it.
I continue to maintain belief that the only reason UNI has not made a jump to I-A is because of the Black and Gold Shadow looming in front of it. There's really only room for one dominant football program in a state such as Iowa (ask Idaho about this concept), and alas, it remains the Iowa Hawkeyes of the Monolithic Ten. That's okay by me, because UNI would no doubt be relegated to the ranks of MAC team/Big Ten jobber.
Then something else happened around 2004. UNI's basketball conference became a national household name despite the fact that its membership consists of five I-AA schools, a I-AA nonscholarship school, and four teams that don't even have football and haven't had it for quite some time. That's right: THE MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE.
(hushed and reverent silence here)
Now UNI, like a few other programs in FCS, is in the position of knowing that if they were to jump to FBS, they'd likely have to leave the Valley for the MAC, which is at this point a large step down in prestige for their swelling basketball program. Money is to be made in the MVC if this trend continues, and football ain't cheap. SOMETHING has to be funding it.
UNI is now in a boat with Georgetown, Villanova, UMass, and Southern Illinois: if you have a successful basketball program, it will usually take precedence. That's not necessarily fair, but it's at least an objective observation.
Conclusion
I'm rarely a supporter of teams moving to the FBS. When Western Kentucky left the Gateway, I was more than a little irritated. Greener pastures do not likely await the Hilltoppers, who can look forward to being a guarantee game for Louisville in the near future. The good news is that when WKU left the Gateway, they were replaced by North Dakota State and South Dakota State, which is a lot like trading a Delino DeShields card for a Carl Yastrzemski and Roberto Clemente.
But I digress. There are plenty of former FCS powers littering the bottom of FBS, and there's almost always a perfectly logical reason as to why. In the case of almost anyone from the Sun Belt, it turns out that mild success at one level will not necessarily transfer into sucess at a more expensive level. Ask Marshall. It seems that karma has finally caught them. Boise State is arguably the flagship school in Idaho, and is fairly well funded. They also were blessed with great coaching during their transition. This above all is likely the reason why they are successful. For everyone else, life can be hard. It's harder of you harbor delusions of grandeur.
Boise State can legitimately claim a BCS Bowl victory, ten seasons after they were crowned champions of I-AA. It seems fitting then that message boards, ablaze with the creative fire of boredom and not having anything else to talk about, would be begin to discuss the legitimacy of other I-AA powers being successful at the FBS level.
However there is a boulevard of broken dreams leading you to the ultimate glory story of Boise State. Be careful to avoid panhandlers like Buffalo, Middle Tennessee State, Arkansas State... well, basically anyone in the Sun Belt. Oh, and Idaho.
It's been said by many in the world of cyberspace and generally assumed in the national media that the most elite FCS programs would be adequate as FBS mid-majors. But is that true? I decided to take a closer look, using some of the FCS elite as a measuring stick.
Appalachian State:
This program has exploded into the consciousness of all kinds of football followers, especially the Michigan Wolverines and their fans. Can one of the best in FCS go toe-to-toe with the best in BCS? Ask anyone with an opinion, and the answer is invariably nay. But let's look at some other facts: Appalachian State showed itself respectfully against LSU the year it won the I-AA National Championship for the first time. LSU was definitely one of the best in the nation at the time. However, let us not forget that they got pasted 36-8 by not-nearly-as-good Kansas. They followed that up with a 23-10 loss to NC State the following season. While many gleefully pointed out that ASU was one of the FCS' best at the time and couldn't beat a piddly ACC squad, it turned out later that NC State wasn't as bad as people thought.
Simply put: put the Mountaineers into a conference they could compete in FBS (Sun Belt, MAC, CUSA, WAC) and they would do fairly well as it stands right now. One thing we always forget though... there are financial and logistical things to look at as well. Appalachian State draws over 20,000 fans for their biggest home games right now. It could be assumed that those fans would maintain that same interest with FBS rivals, but who would they be? If ASU were to go to FBS, the closest and most natural conference to take them would be the Sun Belt. Could you get fans to show up to watch games against UL-Monroe, Middle Tennessee, or Western Kentucky?
Montana:
A stadium that holds 23,500, and is filled every home game. Numerous titles at the I-AA/FCS level. A ton of natural regional rivals. Montana seems like the most feasible fit for FBS of any of the FCS teams right now.
There's just one problem: their fans are not interested.
They watched as Idaho joined the I-A ranks in 1996, promptly getting their heads beaten in by superior opponents. Montana continued beating Idaho long after Idaho made the jump, despite the move to "better" competition. The interest that was there prior to the move diminished, and Idaho is now apocalyptically bad. Montana continued beating Idaho long after Idaho made the jump, despite the move to "better" competition.
One can't help but think that the good people following Griz football noticed this and said "no thanks." Let it again be said that Montana would no doubt have little trouble making an adjustment to say, the WAC after a brief stint as either an independent or a member of the dreaded Sun Belt. But again, their fans prefer to have a dominant program at one level rather than a middling one at another.
Northern Iowa:
One of only three state schools, all of which play at the Division I level. A loyal following with a rekindled interest in other sports as well. An impressive facility with an obvious home field advantage. Plenty of I-AA success.
And sadly, that's about it.
I continue to maintain belief that the only reason UNI has not made a jump to I-A is because of the Black and Gold Shadow looming in front of it. There's really only room for one dominant football program in a state such as Iowa (ask Idaho about this concept), and alas, it remains the Iowa Hawkeyes of the Monolithic Ten. That's okay by me, because UNI would no doubt be relegated to the ranks of MAC team/Big Ten jobber.
Then something else happened around 2004. UNI's basketball conference became a national household name despite the fact that its membership consists of five I-AA schools, a I-AA nonscholarship school, and four teams that don't even have football and haven't had it for quite some time. That's right: THE MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE.
(hushed and reverent silence here)
Now UNI, like a few other programs in FCS, is in the position of knowing that if they were to jump to FBS, they'd likely have to leave the Valley for the MAC, which is at this point a large step down in prestige for their swelling basketball program. Money is to be made in the MVC if this trend continues, and football ain't cheap. SOMETHING has to be funding it.
UNI is now in a boat with Georgetown, Villanova, UMass, and Southern Illinois: if you have a successful basketball program, it will usually take precedence. That's not necessarily fair, but it's at least an objective observation.
Conclusion
I'm rarely a supporter of teams moving to the FBS. When Western Kentucky left the Gateway, I was more than a little irritated. Greener pastures do not likely await the Hilltoppers, who can look forward to being a guarantee game for Louisville in the near future. The good news is that when WKU left the Gateway, they were replaced by North Dakota State and South Dakota State, which is a lot like trading a Delino DeShields card for a Carl Yastrzemski and Roberto Clemente.
But I digress. There are plenty of former FCS powers littering the bottom of FBS, and there's almost always a perfectly logical reason as to why. In the case of almost anyone from the Sun Belt, it turns out that mild success at one level will not necessarily transfer into sucess at a more expensive level. Ask Marshall. It seems that karma has finally caught them. Boise State is arguably the flagship school in Idaho, and is fairly well funded. They also were blessed with great coaching during their transition. This above all is likely the reason why they are successful. For everyone else, life can be hard. It's harder of you harbor delusions of grandeur.
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