Any space for UMass football in all this conference madness? | Page 3 | The Boneyard

Any space for UMass football in all this conference madness?

ScottVib said:
UMass reportedly tried to get a football-only invite from CUSA; the conference declined
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UMass's only real option would be MAC but I think that ship has sailed going full membership. Teams in Ohio have no interest in them. Buffalo has no interest in leaving MAC. Why leave geographical fit for AAC teams that are left? That contract is going way down next time it comes up.
 
The problem UMass is dealing with is that they want to keep all other sports in the A-10. No one is going to let them park football and only football in their conference.
 
IF UConn gets an invite, UMass would seemingly have to beg the MAC for full membership if they want to survive. Ideally bringing Temple along with them. If not then Marshall or WKU? Just don't see any path of independence left at that point when all the other independents are basically gone.

Even further hypothetical if this happens.. when the ACC crumbles in five years do the weaker ACC NE schools (Syracuse, BC, possibly Pitt) with no home also go MAC? If so, it actually puts UMass in a great position compared to today.
 
I think UMass & Delaware (if they chose to move up) would make sense to the MAC; UMass & Western Kentucky probably could've paired up last year and gotten into the MAC, after MTSU got cold feet and reportedly pulled out of a WKU/MTSU to the MAC pairing. UMass is running into the issue of needing to be willing to move all sports to get a home for football though... and they are still unwilling to leave the A-10 (although the A-10 payout really isn't great and the travel is just as bad as the MAC)
 
I don't see the MAC adding anyone. ESPN has squeezed them as a conference and UMass adds travel expenses with no upside revenue wise. UMass has a problem if the AAC stays south. To me, with their lack of institutional support, they should go back to FCS. They are hanging their hat on Don Brown, who is old school and in his mid 60's. No other coach has had any modicum of success in Amherst (Football) so there really is no where else to go.
 
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I don’t think they should go Fcs but they kinda support things at a bare minimum. The contracts from G5 conferences pay so little that what they are doing with pay games could be just as much. also their stadium is not large enough and had to play at Gillette. Brown took a pay cut to be HC. Whipple doubled his salary to be an OC. As far as success I believe they are hoping to get lucky.
 
I would be in favor of adding UMass to the Big East, and figuring out a home for both of our football programs, maybe as football only within the AAC.

The primary mission of UConn's athletic program should be to destroy BCU's and Syracuse's athletic programs. There is no way into a P-Whatever unless those two programs are annihilated. UConn can lock down Connecticut and market into New York, and Syracuse has major problems both athletically and academically. Landing a death blow on BCU is going to be tougher. We could use UMass' help, and to make that help worth something, we have to help them. UMass has a lot more alumni in Massachusetts than BCU does, and probably a lot more alumni in Boston too.

There is basically no down side to this strategy. First of all, the status quo may be death. UConn can continue to do everything right, and we will continue to be boxed out because BCU and Syracuse are deemed to own the northeast. If we align with UMass, one of three things will happen:

1) UConn and UMass will eat away at BCU's fanbase, which will be easily measurable in a streaming world, and BCU will be weaker and weaker, and UConn and UMass will emerge as the premier programs in New York and New England. UConn and UMass become more viable as conference additions.

2) UMass continues to not be great, and is not viable as a conference addition, but UConn does become the most popular program in New England, by far, on streaming in part because UMass eats into BCU's fan base.

3) BCU and Syracuse continue to be viable athletic programs and none of the major conferences are interested in UConn as an addition. We are no worse off than if we did nothing with UMass.
 
When UConn leaves the so-called Big East for either the ACC or B12, they can take our spot if it isn't grabbed by BC.
 
nelsonmuntz said:
I would be in favor of adding UMass to the Big East, and figuring out a home for both of our football programs, maybe as football only within the AAC.

The primary mission of UConn's athletic program should be to destroy BCU's and Syracuse's athletic programs. There is no way into a P-Whatever unless those two programs are annihilated. UConn can lock down Connecticut and market into New York, and Syracuse has major problems both athletically and academically. Landing a death blow on BCU is going to be tougher. We could use UMass' help, and to make that help worth something, we have to help them. UMass has a lot more alumni in Massachusetts than BCU does, and probably a lot more alumni in Boston too.

There is basically no down side to this strategy. First of all, the status quo may be death. UConn can continue to do everything right, and we will continue to be boxed out because BCU and Syracuse are deemed to own the northeast. If we align with UMass, one of three things will happen:

1) UConn and UMass will eat away at BCU's fanbase, which will be easily measurable in a streaming world, and BCU will be weaker and weaker, and UConn and UMass will emerge as the premier programs in New York and New England. UConn and UMass become more viable as conference additions.

2) UMass continues to not be great, and is not viable as a conference addition, but UConn does become the most popular program in New England, by far, on streaming in part because UMass eats into BCU's fan base.

3) BCU and Syracuse continue to be viable athletic programs and none of the major conferences are interested in UConn as an addition. We are no worse off than if we did nothing with UMass.
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This is an amazing Manifesto.

UMass isn’t stealing anyone’s fans.
 
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DMTCYNAW said:
I personally wish them all the best ALWAYS, as long as UConn beats them. A strong/growing UMass football is good for us, too. that being said, does anyone know of talk/discussion on where they are during all this ongoing conference stuff? Sincerely hoping they find a home as well, before their runway ends.
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Sleep Yawn GIF
 
UConn
UMass
BC
Army
Rutgers
Syracuse
Temple
Pitt
Navy
Maryland
Penn State
WVU

It would be a decent academic conference with minimal travel costs. Athletes would love it.

But it’s far more likely that I’ll be abducted by aliens this morning than that would ever happen.
 
There might be room in Conference USA or something. Idk.
 
NowInStorrs said:
There might be room in Conference USA or something. Idk.
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CUSA has consistently told UMass they were not interested in adding the Minutemen for football only. UMass isn't willing to leave the A-10 for full membership in CUSA.. so the matchup between the sides isn't there.
 
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ScottVib said:
CUSA has consistently told UMass they were not interested in adding the Minutemen for football only. UMass isn't willing to leave the A-10 for full membership in CUSA.. so the matchup between the sides isn't there.
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The leverage of the G5 conferences may be less in a streaming environment than it was in linear. The value of UMass and UConn to those leagues is probably quite a bit more than it was in linear. Worth talking about.

UConn and UMass should just go directly to the CFP board and demand a pro rata share equivalent to other G5 schools. I doubt the P4 commissioners would put up much of a fight. The whole CFP set up violates every antitrust principle, and the only reason the P4 get away with it is by buying the G5 off.
 
Redding Husky said:
UConn
UMass
BC
Army
Rutgers
Syracuse
Temple
Pitt
Navy
Maryland
Penn State
WVU

It would be a decent academic conference with minimal travel costs. Athletes would love it.

But it’s far more likely that I’ll be abducted by aliens this morning than that would ever happen.
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It's part retread of the old Big East, but it's not a bad slate. Need an act (or two) from God to get Penn State...I keep thinking how different could things have been for the Big East had Penn State been permitted to join all those years ago.
 
Past Division 1 FCS Champions include Boise St, Marshall, App State, UMass, and JMU that are now FBS.

UMass has had a less advantageous FB path in FBS than UConn, but currently they are in a similar position. Both have potential greater than their current status.
 
nelsonmuntz said:
I would be in favor of adding UMass to the Big East, and figuring out a home for both of our football programs, maybe as football only within the AAC.

The primary mission of UConn's athletic program should be to destroy BCU's and Syracuse's athletic programs. There is no way into a P-Whatever unless those two programs are annihilated. UConn can lock down Connecticut and market into New York, and Syracuse has major problems both athletically and academically. Landing a death blow on BCU is going to be tougher. We could use UMass' help, and to make that help worth something, we have to help them. UMass has a lot more alumni in Massachusetts than BCU does, and probably a lot more alumni in Boston too.

There is basically no down side to this strategy. First of all, the status quo may be death. UConn can continue to do everything right, and we will continue to be boxed out because BCU and Syracuse are deemed to own the northeast. If we align with UMass, one of three things will happen:

1) UConn and UMass will eat away at BCU's fanbase, which will be easily measurable in a streaming world, and BCU will be weaker and weaker, and UConn and UMass will emerge as the premier programs in New York and New England. UConn and UMass become more viable as conference additions.

2) UMass continues to not be great, and is not viable as a conference addition, but UConn does become the most popular program in New England, by far, on streaming in part because UMass eats into BCU's fan base.

3) BCU and Syracuse continue to be viable athletic programs and none of the major conferences are interested in UConn as an addition. We are no worse off than if we did nothing with UMass.
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I love this. If we add Duquesne and Marshall we can try to take out Pitt and WVU too
 
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Tyler2Rings said:
I love this. If we add Duquesne and Marshall we can try to take out Pitt and WVU too
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Or we could keep doing the same thing we have done for 20 years, including listening to the morons who think that if UConn goes 8-4 in football one year we will get a P4 invitation.

UConn has spent two decades listening to athletic department leaders and fans who have absolutely no idea why things happen, but get upset when we do exactly what they want and do not get invited into a major football conference. Maybe doing more of the same is a bad idea.
 
UMass' issue is it's unwillingness to leave the A-10. If they were willing to leave the A-10 they could've been WKU's partner to go to the MAC last year once MTSU got cold-feet. As it stands, WKU & Delaware could be the duo headed to the MAC (if the Blue Hens move up).
 
huskymedic said:
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Why is Delaware considering moving up? Why have so many teams already moved up? The incremental guarantee game money a FBS gets does not come close to justifying the incremental cost of upgrading. How do they justify this financially? They aren't all stupid. These schools must think that incremental revenue will offset the incremental cost.
 
nelsonmuntz said:
Why is Delaware considering moving up? Why have so many teams already moved up? The incremental guarantee game money a FBS gets does not come close to justifying the incremental cost of upgrading. How do they justify this financially? They aren't all stupid. These schools must think that incremental revenue will offset the incremental cost.
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Has not been a successful move by UMass...

2013: 1-11
2014: 3-9
2015: 3-9
2016: 2-10
2017: 4-8
2018: 4-8
2019: 1-11
2020: 0-4
2021: 1-11
2022: 1-11
 
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