SayYesToTheRock wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 5:16 pm

Ignoring the AAC, which at this stage is a pipe dream...

My ideal conference looks something like this:

yosef13 wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 4:39 pm

Yep, all of this is connected. NIU is shrinking because the state is shrinking. App and other NC universities are growing because NC is growing.

NC was the 9th largest state in the last census . If you combine NC and SC we are the 5th largest in the country. NC was 4th in overall increase in population over the past decade, only behind Texas, Florida, and California, with no slow down in slight.

NC will likely be the 5th or 6th most populated state in 10 years. Insane. Most of our universities will struggle to keep up with the demand, and will ultimately become more competitive as a result.

I imagine I will see App at 25k to 30k in my lifetime.

ah59396 wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 6:21 pm

yosef13 wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 4:39 pm

Yep, all of this is connected. NIU is shrinking because the state is shrinking. App and other NC universities are growing because NC is growing.

NC was the 9th largest state in the last census . If you combine NC and SC we are the 5th largest in the country. NC was 4th in overall increase in population over the past decade, only behind Texas, Florida, and California, with no slow down in slight.

NC will likely be the 5th or 6th most populated state in 10 years. Insane. Most of our universities will struggle to keep up with the demand, and will ultimately become more competitive as a result.

I imagine I will see App at 25k to 30k in my lifetime.

I’m trying to imagine where we put 10k more students!

I never thought I’d see the day we have 20k. We have an exceptionally forward thinking administration. I love this school.

VNova wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 6:23 pm

ah59396 wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 6:21 pm

yosef13 wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 4:39 pm

Yep, all of this is connected. NIU is shrinking because the state is shrinking. App and other NC universities are growing because NC is growing.

NC was the 9th largest state in the last census . If you combine NC and SC we are the 5th largest in the country. NC was 4th in overall increase in population over the past decade, only behind Texas, Florida, and California, with no slow down in slight.

NC will likely be the 5th or 6th most populated state in 10 years. Insane. Most of our universities will struggle to keep up with the demand, and will ultimately become more competitive as a result.

I imagine I will see App at 25k to 30k in my lifetime.

I’m trying to imagine where we put 10k more students!

I never thought I’d see the day we have 20k. We have an exceptionally forward thinking administration. I love this school.

Now if we can only get the state dollars per student increase we so desperately need.

Rick83 wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 4:14 pm

AppInDC wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 3:57 pm

APPdiesel wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 2:43 pm

VNova wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 1:05 pm

APPdiesel wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 12:09 pm

MAC schools will step down to FCS before the Sunbelt voluntarily absorbs 4 of their programs.

Restructuring as an FCS conference probably isn't a bad idea for them. Get their games back on Saturdays, don't have to suckle at the ESPN teat anymore, fans actually get excited again, alumni return to campus, enrollment increases.

I don't think football has much to do with their enrollment issues. NIU in-state tuition, cheapest on campus housing/meal plan, and fees amounts to $102,000 for four years. That's not including books, cost of travel, etc. Eastern Michigan costs $99,250 over 4 years with everything. Kent State is about $108,000 with everything.

For comparison, App State is about $64,000 for four years now.

If you can't afford to go to the school, football isn't going to help much. With that said, a drop to FCS could help drive down costs of attendance and at least stabilize enrollment.

I didn't say bad football = drop in attendance. I said good football = increase in attendance. It's exactly what took App State from 12,000 students in 2006 to almost 20,000 in 2020.

I'm sure the increasing visibility of the football program has drawn some students but I'd be cautious about chalking all of App's enrollment gains to sports. Western Carolina has an awful football program and they have increased from 8-9k to close to 12k in the same time period.

I suspect App's enrollment gains are more closely related to more people going to college plus being located in a fast growing state.

I believe that the state has been running a tuition reduction program at Western to induce students to attend. This is anecdotal but several really strong students from the school where my wife teaches ended up attending Western because it's super cheap to go there now.
Your assertion may be correct but I'd be curious to see how the number of applications compare when looking pre-first national championship (or at least pre-Michigan) to after. My perception is that it's much more competitive now as you have more students applying for the limited open slots. An App professor told me that the state has basically mandated that App reach 20,000 students, which we're close to now.
So, the football success may not be the sole, or main driver, to the increase in the total student population (ie the state mandate) but I believe the quality of students that are now attending has strengthened significantly because of the higher number of applicants (football notoriety) and many strong students seem to be increasingly listing App as their first choice. Most of the kids at my wife's school identified App as having a beautiful campus and great football...

ah59396 wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 11:25 am

hotrod2001 wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 11:20 am

Nah, The MAC is like its own little world and too far north.

If the Sun Belt were to expand, it'd probably bring up another FCS program or two like JMU, EKU and A&T. That or push UT Arlington to bring their program back, something they've toyed with for a few years now.

That’s fair.

Do you think the MAC will survive as an FBS football conference?

EastHallApp wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 5:19 pm

SayYesToTheRock wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 5:16 pm

Ignoring the AAC, which at this stage is a pipe dream...

My ideal conference looks something like this:

I like it. Personally I’d take either UAB or Troy and leave JMU in FCS, but otherwise this is the ideal.

Appstate88 wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 8:49 pm

I like it.... What would the Divisions look like? Who would you put in each division?

Appstate88 wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 10:11 pm

Good breakdown.What if we divided the divisions so only one from each state can be in each division?

EastHallApp wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 5:19 pm

I like it. Personally I’d take either UAB or Troy and leave JMU in FCS, but otherwise this is the ideal.

Appstate88 wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 8:49 pm

EastHallApp wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 5:19 pm

SayYesToTheRock wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 5:16 pm

Ignoring the AAC, which at this stage is a pipe dream...

My ideal conference looks something like this:

I like it. Personally I’d take either UAB or Troy and leave JMU in FCS, but otherwise this is the ideal.

I like it.... What would the Divisions look like? Who would you put in each division?

AppDawg wrote: ↑

Fri Jan 10, 2020 3:54 pm

I don't get the desire to add south florida schools. I thought the mantra was to reduce the mileage between schools. The F_U's are nearly equidistant with LaLa & Monroe. Give me the Bama schools, Troy/UAB - even South Bama before the F_U's.

AppDawg wrote: ↑

Fri Jan 10, 2020 3:54 pm

I don't get the desire to add south florida schools. I thought the mantra was to reduce the mileage between schools. The F_U's are nearly equidistant with LaLa & Monroe. Give me the Bama schools, Troy/UAB - even South Bama before the F_U's.

AppStFan1 wrote: ↑

Fri Jan 10, 2020 7:28 pm

I was about to say I love what was proposed except I don't want the FL schools just for travel.

SayYesToTheRock wrote: ↑

Fri Jan 10, 2020 7:54 pm

AppDawg wrote: ↑

Fri Jan 10, 2020 3:54 pm

I don't get the desire to add south florida schools. I thought the mantra was to reduce the mileage between schools. The F_U's are nearly equidistant with LaLa & Monroe. Give me the Bama schools, Troy/UAB - even South Bama before the F_U's.

Football isn’t the issue. We ideally need a league where we eliminate trips that far for secondary sports and basketball. Our other sports will have to go every year.

AppStFan1 wrote: ↑

Fri Jan 10, 2020 7:28 pm

I was about to say I love what was proposed except I don't want the FL schools just for travel.

Travel to and from the Florida Adjective Universities isn't ideal. But the closest G5s (outside the AAC) to them are Georgia Southern, Georgia State, and Troy. If the Sun Belt and C-USA split along regional lines, the F_Us would almost certainly be in the newly-formed eastern conference with us. It makes the most sense.

The upside is, with the F_Ss in an opposite division from App, trips to Miami and Boca would be infrequent. Plus it would give App increased access to Florida for recruiting.