POLL: What would you choose for UMass football?

[harbo]

Just curious. What is your preference for the future of UMass football?

[harbo]

While I really like the idea of the legitimate FCS playoff system, it sure was fun watching Andy Isabella torch Georgia for 219 yards on their own turf.

[KahunaK]

FBS or D3.

[Sheck]

FBS if we are in a conference, FCS otherwise.

[McKinney]

I think UMass should stay where it is in FBS. Although I'm not really sure how long FBS will remain the top division if these ever-greater superconferences were to break off from the NCAA. At which point I would guess the remaining FBS & FCS may merge? I'm not sure.

[UMass02]

People who want football to move to D2 or D3 should be prepared to see the flagship set sail along with football. Can’t wait for the UMass vs. Westfield State rivalry basketball game to determine the MASCAC winner! Just ask a University of Hartford alum how that transition is going!

[harbo]

Just curious. Two seasons later, has your vote changed? I am actually upgrading to 1A football only, based on the guaranteed inflow of the ESPN money. Granted, continued lack of success could make ESPN go search for better, more profitable, alternatives (like a JMU), which could impact our improving hoops programs, solid hockey program, and other competitive programs like lacrosse.

[minutefanjsf]

Always FBS only. The money is better even with the losing. They will get better.

[m626t]

I'm at the same place as before...1A all the way.

[ZooMass84]

People who want football to move to D2 or D3 should be prepared to see the flagship set sail along with football. Can’t wait for the UMass vs. Westfield State rivalry basketball game to determine the MASCAC winner! Just ask a University of Hartford alum how that transition is going!

Exactly

[harbo]

Do we NEED to join a league, and does that league NEED to be a big name? Our other sports would not need an insurmountable upgrade and most of our facilities are solid.

[ZooMass84]

Always FBS only. The money is better even with the losing. They will get better.

Exactly!!!! The money IS always better (and that's the motivation). We get much more $$$ for body bag games than FCS. But there is NO guarantee they will get better. Almost impossible to get worse. I guess 0-12 is worse.

[Bob1975]

Our long-term prospects as an independent in Football are untenable. The priority should be to find a conference. Given the quality and location of our Football Program, I believe it is highly unlikely that anyone would consider us as a Football only member. The goal should be to find a conference for all sports that is also acceptable for non-football sports, which I do not believe is the MAC or Conference USA today.

At least for now, the status quo is probably the best avenue to pursue. This gives us time to see what the shake out will be from conference realignment. There is always the potential that the Power 5 conferences will be consolidated into 3 or 4, leaving teams on the outside looking in, who would need to form new conference affiliations. This would have the potential for us to join with regional teams in new or revamped conferences outside of the power 3 or 4. Hopefully, these would be schools that also value Basketball. The status quo, for now, would also give us time to see what Frank can do with the basketball program.

The administration should set some kind of reasonable time period to wait. Once this time period has elapsed all avenues should be on the table. If conference realignment does not present us with any Football conference options, we are still in the bottom 10 of FBS, and if the Basketball program both Women and Men find success in the A10 then going back to the CAA for Football seems to make sense. If the basketball programs are floundering then maybe something like the MAC would make sense, if they would have us, which is questionable to me.

[minutefanjsf]

Our long-term prospects as an independent in Football are untenable. The priority should be to find a conference. Given the quality and location of our Football Program, I believe it is highly unlikely that anyone would consider us as a Football only member. The goal should be to find a conference for all sports that is also acceptable for non-football sports, which I do not believe is the MAC or Conference USA today.

At least for now, the status quo is probably the best avenue to pursue. This gives us time to see what the shake out will be from conference realignment. There is always the potential that the Power 5 conferences will be consolidated into 3 or 4, leaving teams on the outside looking in, who would need to form new conference affiliations. This would have the potential for us to join with regional teams in new or revamped conferences outside of the power 3 or 4. Hopefully, these would be schools that also value Basketball. The status quo, for now, would also give us time to see what Frank can do with the basketball program.

The administration should set some kind of reasonable time period to wait. Once this time period has elapsed all avenues should be on the table. If conference realignment does not present us with any Football conference options, we are still in the bottom 10 of FBS, and if the Basketball program both Women and Men find success in the A10 then going back to the CAA for Football seems to make sense. If the basketball programs are floundering then maybe something like the MAC would make sense, if they would have us, which is questionable to me.

Going back to the CAA makes zero sense financially. There were 10k fans for a Saturday after Thanksgiving this year to watch the worst team in FBS. FCS years this would have been a playoff game and we would have been lucky to get 3500. And, we have to pay to host the playoffs. (I’ve been season ticket holder since 1999 and have gone to every home game including playoffs during that time except for E Michigan two years ago. Yesterday the crowd surprised me and was much better than any first round FCS playoff in Amherst). The only way through this is to get better. Need substantial investment in facilities and coaching salaries. We have been nickel and diming our way for the last 10 years. Smoke and mirrors, whatever other cliches you can think of we’ve been doing it. UMass has not been serious about the move to FBS.

[JoleonLescottsHair]

Going back to the CAA makes zero sense financially. There were 10k fans for a Saturday after Thanksgiving this year to watch the worst team in FBS. FCS years this would have been a playoff game and we would have been lucky to get 3500. And, we have to pay to host the playoffs. (I’ve been season ticket holder since 1999 and have gone to every home game including playoffs during that time except for E Michigan two years ago. Yesterday the crowd surprised me and was much better than any first round FCS playoff in Amherst).

For the top 25 all time crowds at McGuirk, ONE has come during the FBS era. One. The program’s first FBS game. Nothing comes close since. And if you have been to every home game (which is to be applauded),including playoffs since 1999, you’ll already know that yesterday’s crowd of a little over 10,000 was 7,000 shy of the FCS playoff sell out in Amherst (against UNH) in 2006. Similarly, the year before you got your season tickets, 12,108 watched the FCS Minutemen defeat Lehigh at McGuirk in the 1998 playoffs. I’m not sure why ‘first round’ is the metric you’ve chosen, but clearly FCS success has more than equal appeal to a final game of a 1-11 season.

It is a fairly common refrain from FBS boosters that 1AA is a financial loser. Maybe so. But can anyone share the actual numbers of the last eleven years? I’ve heard the argument, but never seen the numbers. What does our FCS v FBS balance sheet look like? Do “buy” games offset 22 more scholarships and poor attendance or other associated coats? Does getting hammered by, say, a Florida State put us in the black? Given the argument that FBS is a financial necessity, how do our 14 A10 brethren, 10 of the 11 teams in the Big East, and every team but BYU in the West Coast Conference mange to survive without playing FBS football?