I agree with everything here, except the bolded part. For one, looking at attendance records of the Akron Aeros and Cleveland Force in Summit County, they weren't playing the New York Yankees or Manchester United. Nobody cared, the teams were competitive, and the fans had a great time at the game.
#2 I doubt the common football fan knows the difference between Eastern Kentucky and Eastern Michigan. Or which one is at Ohio States level. IN fact, the Morgan State drew more fans than Miami, NIU, and UMess.
And #3, bringing in name opponents is pretty much impossible, beating them even more. I'd love to see home and home series against Cincinnati, Pitt, WV. Even Army. But how do we get there?
I'd love to win the Daytona 500, but my budget allows me to bracket race at Dragway 42 several times a year. I don't think I'm gonna make the Daytona starting grid anytime soon...