kreed5120

More like we can barely afford to fund the program as is. What's the alternative? Take money away from a football program that's already near the bottom of the MAC in funding and using it to pay a mid six figure buyout to bring in another coach?

I'm not really sure, nor care. What I do know is BGSU has a TE with over 100 yards receiving and a TD at the half against a top 10 ranked Penn State team. He played his high school ball at McKinley. It would be nice if we could keep the best MAC caliber recruits from our area away from our rivals.

Rutgers doesn't even look good and they're handing it to Akron. This looks like another 2-10 or 3-9 season for the Zips. When does basketball season start again?

Ohio's roster seems to be the only one that didn't see major turnover. It's probably fair they're the preseason favorites as it will take all the other contending team time to build chemistry. What's important is that we fully hit our stride come March.

Intramural football or Esports, while nice to offer students to enhance the college experience, isn't paying the bills. That's why I specifically made mention that it would be nice if it could be used more for concerts or other major events as those actually bring money to the school. You were probably right that Blossom makes it challenging to do.

I don't feel it has to be an either or. Likely all 3 things contributed to declined attendance.

@Captain Kangaroo also didn't account for the revenue from the CFP. The MAC's share would be $1.8 million per school. That improves the situation some. If you exclude the football stadium, which is a sunk cost, the football program generates enough revenue that it about breaks even. It might slightly still be in the red. The stadium is a huge burden on the athletic department financially. It would be great if they could utilize it more to host concerts or whatever else to help generate additional revenue. The same would be true for the JAR. There just must not be any demand for that for whatever reason.

Rutgers had a few horrendous years under Chris Ash. With Schiano at the helm they're a below average-to-mid Big 10 team, which puts them on par or slightly above top echelon MAC caliber teams. If we can keep this within 17, I'd be pleased.

Honestly, I feel that's tough to judge at this stage. We likely won't face another pass rush remotely as talented as OSU the rest of the season. We couldn't really judge the downfield passing because frankly Finley was getting lit up while waiting for the play to develop. If we see the same struggle against a good, but not great, Rutgers squad then I'll agree.

If being a fundraiser for the athletic department is the objective, they're failing there as well. The debt financing on Infocision the last I saw alone was $4.5 million. If you add in all the other costs (scholarships, travel, staff pay, coach buyouts, equipment, etc.), at best they're operating at a slight deficit. That's assuming 100% of the TV money and other shared conference revenue is allocated to football since its the main driver.

I think this team will go 4-8.

I don't have the figures, but I'd imagine we're near the bottom. As several of the ADs mentioned, we spread out our spend into sports like soccer and basketball. Many MAC schools are throwing everything they have at football, which is a big reason why the MAC has regressed so much in MAC basketball. You only have Akron, Kent, Toledo, and Ohio spending on the sport.

Even if Akron stumbled into being good, I feel it would be challenging to get enough fans to games to make it an exciting atmosphere. A big issue is they built Infocision too big as they had delusions of grandeur. Nothing says small time like going to a game and having a whole row of bleachers to yourself. The Rubber Duck's have a lot going for them. It's very family friendly with ticket and concession prices. The ballpark is small and intimate, which creates a fun atmosphere. If you took those 4k fans at Rubber Duck's games and spread them out across Progressive Field, the game would begin to feel as sad as an Oakland A's game. That's what Akron is currently facing.

Last year we lost to both Eastern Michigan and Western Michigan. Why are you trying to count wins before games are played? Nothing is a guaranteed. I don't see any team in the MAC like those Buffalo teams of a few years back where they're head and shoulders better than every team. No team is too good that it makes me scared to play them. In fact, I'd prefer a 'tougher' schedule. We play enough cupcakes OOC. Why would I want to play more during conference play?

Ah okay