Will JMU Regret Not Jumping to Sunbelt?

[MDaniels84]

When it's all said and done, I'd like to thank JMU for that gift on the 9 yard line that helped us complete our 3 peat of National Championships, and gave us a boost heading into FBS adding to the foundation of our current success.

I can see Pierre Banks jumping on that ball (while totally man handling their tight end) like it was yesterday.

[EastHallApp]

GameDay in Boone would be cool one day. The reality is that they do one FCS site per year but rarely do G5, and if they do it's probably a service academy or breakout team like Houston (I didn't check my records on this).

FCS sites give them that "little guy" change of pace feel; G5 are too big for that but not big enough for the "game of the week" vibe.

If they'd been on that schedule in our championship years I expect we might've gotten a visit. Now, we'll just have to keep growing until we are on the national radar to have a shot.

[Rekdiver]

Don't you know Herbstreit loves being at an irrelevant division school on game day

[bcoach]

As a parent of a student at JMU, they're NOT yearning for a FBS call. Gonzo's friend is the majority not the minority. And their administration is extremely comfortable being the big fish in their little pond. Their administration is committed to being a national brand, but they believe they can do it as an FCS program in tandem with their academic profile. They've got multiple capital campaigns underway, new Business building, new (on campus) basketball arena, and much more. Unlike our knucklehead chancellor, theirs embraces athletics and alumni sports fans. He has actively lobbied for ESPN Game Day to come to Harrisonburg and recognizes the national exposure it provides to the school. CE by contrast, fights to make it harder for fans and students to get to Thursday night games. The alumni loyalty at JMU is extremely strong. For this reason, we should be very nervous if they ever do make the jump. They are a sleeping giant less than 4 hours from Boone and they pose much more of a threat to our on the field successes than UNCConcord, Liberty, ODU or any other "local" FBS/G5 program.

I know some JMU grads and they are very happy where they are. Why do we think everyone needs to want what some of us want?

[Capt. Ed]

As a parent of a student at JMU, they're NOT yearning for a FBS call. Gonzo's friend is the majority not the minority. And their administration is extremely comfortable being the big fish in their little pond. Their administration is committed to being a national brand, but they believe they can do it as an FCS program in tandem with their academic profile. They've got multiple capital campaigns underway, new Business building, new (on campus) basketball arena, and much more. Unlike our knucklehead chancellor, theirs embraces athletics and alumni sports fans. He has actively lobbied for ESPN Game Day to come to Harrisonburg and recognizes the national exposure it provides to the school. CE by contrast, fights to make it harder for fans and students to get to Thursday night games. The alumni loyalty at JMU is extremely strong. For this reason, we should be very nervous if they ever do make the jump. They are a sleeping giant less than 4 hours from Boone and they pose much more of a threat to our on the field successes than UNCConcord, Liberty, ODU or any other "local" FBS/G5 program.

No doubt, JMU does many things well and I do respect them. But, App State nervous about competing with them? No way in hell.

We're scrappers who love to compete anywhere, any time. We want to be tested against the best. We don't limit ourselves to insure success for fear of not looking good.

So, JMU, bring it on. Step outside your UVA wanna be campus, your big fish in a mud puddle athletics, your inflated academic reputation, your over inflated egos and see how you do in the real world.

[Yosef84]

JMU has every reason to be happy with things are they are right now. Whether they ultimately regret not moving up depends on the developments in the landscape. If things get even more stratified and they find themselves trapped in a division with less and less significance, the questioning will start. It also depends on the opportunities that are available once things become obvious. Right now everything is great for them.

[BTK2000]

I would say as long as they are financially stable they will be happy. If we look at athletics as on of the outreach/ marketing arms of a school I hear more about JMU than I do about ODU/ many other g5 teams, so I would say they are doing fine