Independent Scheduling

[ConnHuskBask]

I'll just put this here.....UCLA cannot get seats sold to a visiting Oklahoma...

"Who builds a football stadium 30 minutes off campus!"

 

[Guapo]

"Who builds a football stadium 30 minutes off campus!"

One of the only other schools that do it...and the Rent ain’t exactly the Rose Bowl.

 

[Dream Jobbed 2.0]

Aloha,

Good job in reminding the faithful here of where most of the football studs come from: CA, TX, FL & GA & other southern states. There's NO WAY that UConn will ever get kids from CA & TX on a regular basis. So, what's to draw many of the better southern players up to play FBS Independent football up at c-cold, far-away, irrelevant-in-football UConn? It's certainly not our football tradition.

UConn will never draw those kids, especially after at least 10 years now of bottom-feeding in FBS. Kids want to play for winning programs w/ tradition, near their homes, in rivalries against their friends, or in the really big games if they're great. The SEC offers both. So, we aren't getting them up to 1-11 Storrs. New England doesn't grow any of them. We grow hoopsters.

In 2012, the established football powers & NCAA big shots changed the rules. "Football-uber-alles" became the cry & the new reality with college football realignments. UConn got lost in the shuffle. It sucks but that's it - banished in an insanely costly, free-fall to the foreign, distant campus purgatory of the AAC.

It's not the coaches faults entirely either. It's UConn's lack of a longstanding positive reputation outside of the region for FBS football & our constant futility that keeps us from getting the better recruits, & invited into the better leagues.

Note: I hate to say it, but Jimmy Calhoun's less-than-honorable past NCAA history in recruiting battles also had something to do with the Huskies being left out in the cold by the ACC during realignment as well, another story. Cheating is a double-edged sword, Jimmy.

Since 2012, knowledge about the terrible, long-term effects of football on players' health has been firmly established & promoted by all, even the NFL. CTE, early dementia & suicide are no joke to be laughed off as coaches often used to do. Today, millions of knowledgable parents prevent their children from playing tackle football, a sport that shortens brains & lives, all well-documented. That's the main trend that aint going away. Tackle football, as we know & love it, will eventually go away. These people aren't weak. They're just smart enough to make the connection & make changes that promote healthy children. It's a healthy trend, IMO.

Conversely, it's been documented that African-American parents of many aforementioned Southern football studs are the main group still pushing their kids into football - because they have other pressures, like preventing gangs from trying to recruit their children, to deal with. So, they're still available - but not to the UConn's of the Northeastern college football spectrum.

The point is: Why waste time & spend many more millions on the losing proposition that is FBS football for UConn, even as an independent?

Skipping the downsizing steps from FBS-to FBS Independent-to FCS is the smart, fiscally-prudent move.

FCS football in the CAA is the best way for UConn to go, to rebuild traditional, regional rivalries against teams that UConn fans know, actually hate & want to beat & care about the games. No empty seats there. And UConn will save millions by not traveling to those far away campuses. I mean, what was UConn doing playing at Tulsa? Who cares?

CURRENT TREND: Only 24 FBS football programs made money last year. All of the rest of the hundreds of participating schools (FBS-FCS-Div II & III) LOST money on college football. COSTS! Wake up Connecticut & UConn fans - we need a new fiscal approach.

UConn football joining the FCS would provide a fresh start in a positive direction, one that will serve future UConn students & supporters much better than being a hired, money-grubbing loser as an FBS Independent scrounging for games that don't mean a thing to us.

Maybe the lack of independent scheduling by the AD that's rattling the OP is a sign that UConn leaders still don't know how long they'll be willing & able to commit to FBS Independent football.

C'mon, UConn athletics is $40 mil in debt! Collegiate bankrupt athletic budgets today are not feasible for most schools & football costs are most of the budget & increasing exponentially. Let's not throw more bad money after bad money spent, for pride!? Let's cut our losses & go to the CAA of the FCS. It's the logical move if there is to be any level of sustainable football for UConn. The studs will never consistently come up to play at UConn in the numbers to make us an FBS winner again.

UConn has made its bed with the Big East commitment as a basketball school. Football will just have to take a back seat for now, just as basketball had to adjust in 2012.

alohachris

I’ll buy anyone a beer at the USF game if you can tell me wtf this post is even about

 

[Dream Jobbed 2.0]

More evidence aresco’s dream to add BYU will never happen.

Great series for these two programs.

Makes too much sense

 

[Hogoff]

I'll just put this here.....UCLA cannot get seats sold to a visiting Oklahoma...

Yeah, but at least they are giving the tickets away to season ticket holders instead of anyone who wants one. That’s how you keep loyal fans, so when things turn around they don’t have to start trying from scratch to get ticket sales up.

 

[Dream Jobbed 2.0]

Thing is - every one on this list has yet to schedule their annual FCS game. So we have to convince these schools to skip their cupcake game which is not easy.

Well the good news is....
...actually the bad news

Those teams can schedule us as an easy win and we won’t demand enough money to not have to cancel our athletic department.

 

[SonsOfNutmeg]

One of the only other schools that do it...and the Rent ain’t exactly the Rose Bowl.

Miami (FL) also...

 

[Guapo]

Miami (FL) also...

Miami, UCLA and UConn

All schools noted for their great student attendance!

 

[SonsOfNutmeg]

Miami, UCLA and UConn

All schools noted for their great student attendance!

I agree, it’s an issue. Should have never built the stadium in East Hartford. It’s really done nothing for that town. But it is what it is...

 

[Waquoit]

... the Rent ain’t exactly the Rose Bowl.

Agreed, better sightlines and easier in/out at The Rent.

 

[Dooooooomed]

Would be an excellent day for a scheduling nugget.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

Would be an excellent day for a scheduling nugget.

Was thinking the exact same thing myself. Guess that nugget that was teased earlier in the week ended up falling through.

 

[huskymedic]

I'll just put this here.....UCLA cannot get seats sold to a visiting Oklahoma...

UCLA is offering season ticket holders four free extra tickets for Oklahoma game

UCLA, 0-2, hosts the No. 5 Sooners on Saturday. And the program clearly wants a full stadium.

sports.yahoo.com

 

[Dream Jobbed 2.0]

Is that giant open section the band being on the field?

 

[shizzle787]

I have compiled a list of P5 schools that we can realistically get a home and home series with in weeks 1-5 of every year starting in 2022.

ACC: Boston College, Wake Forest, NC State, Syracuse, Virginia, UNC, Duke, Georgia Tech
B1G: Maryland, Indiana, Rutgers, Illinois, Purdue
Big 12: Kansas, Iowa State, WVU
Pac 12: Wash State, Oregon State, Arizona State, Arizona, Colorado
SEC: Missouri, Kentucky, Vanderbilt

Every year our first five games should be home and home series against five of these 24 schools.

We should also play one pay day game against an elite Power 5 school every year at the end of the year when they play their cupcake game. Here is a list of schools acceptable to whore out to:

ACC: Clemson, Florida State
Big 10: Ohio State, Michigan
Big 12: Oklahoma, Texas
Pac 12: USC
SEC: Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Auburn, LSU

We will also have to play UMass and and an FCS team every year and one of either BYU or Army every year.

That leaves three games a year to play with. I suggest a home and home with an AAC team, a MAC team, and a C-USA team.


Here is a realistic schedule for say 2023:

Week 1: Duke
Week 2: @Rutgers
Week 3: NC State
Week 4: @Syracuse
Week 5: @Temple
Week 6: Marshall
Week 7: @FAU
Week 8: Boston College
Week 9: @Army
Week 10: Lafayette
Week 11: @Georgia
Week 12: UMass

Would you complain about a home slate of Duke, NC State, Marshall, Boston College, Lafayette, and UMass?

I know I wouldn't.

 

[whaler11]

lol shizzle yeah they are going to get SEVEN p5 games in a season.

seven lol

 

[shizzle787]

lol shizzle yeah they are going to get SEVEN p5 games in a season.

seven lol

Laugh all you want but the math is there. Most years it would be six; it just so happens BC is already scheduled as a late season game. Keep in mind we already have 3 P5 games scheduled that year. Is it unrealistic that big SEC school will whore us out for their cupcake game and is it unrealistic that we could get P5 series against low-hanging fruit the first 5 weeks of the season?

 

[whaler11]

Laugh all you want but the math is there. Most years it would be six; it just so happens BC is already scheduled as a late season game. Keep in mind we already have 3 P5 games scheduled that year. Is it unrealistic that big SEC school will whore us out for their cupcake game and is it unrealistic that we could get P5 series against low-hanging fruit the first 5 weeks of the season?

shizzz... come on. six home games and seven P5 games? Notre Dame barely pulls that off.

 

[shizzle787]

shizzz... come on. six home games and seven P5 games? Notre Dame barely pulls that off.

It would be six P5 games most years (1st five weeks and second to last week for SEC payday game) and six home game (one FCS). It is not unrealistic. Week 5 would have to be against an ACC team that plays a conference game in weeks 1-4.

 

[whaler11]

It would be six P5 games most years (1st five weeks and second to last week for SEC payday game) and six home game (one FCS). It is not unrealistic. Week 5 would have to be against an ACC team that plays a conference game in weeks 1-4.

please stop. its absurd. they are going to be lucky to avoid home and home with UMass and NMSU.

 

[shizzle787]

please stop. its absurd. they are going to be lucky to avoid home and home with UMass and NMSU.

LOL. BC moved our series forward in 2022-2023 to let us schedule UMass. They actually helped us out. You know why? Because more butts go in their seats when UConn comes to town than any ACC school except Florida State and Clemson.

And I fixed it back to six with Temple instead of Kansas because Kansas wouldn't be open week 5.

 

[whaler11]

LOL. BC moved our series forward in 2022-2023 to let us schedule UMass. They actually helped us out. You know why? Because more butts go in their seats when UConn comes to town than any ACC school except Florida State and Clemson.

yeah the schedule is going to be 6 home games and 6 p5 teams. this is totally going to be what happens.

 

[shizzle787]

yeah the schedule is going to be 6 home games and 6 p5 teams. this is totally going to be what happens.

They are low-level P5 games and we already have 3 P5 and 3 home games scheduled for that year.

 

[whaler11]

They are low-level P5 games and we already have 3 P5 and 3 home games scheduled for that year.

ill meet you back here when if they actually play that season but your fantasy is lol absurd

 

[shizzle787]

ill meet you back here when if they actually play that season but your fantasy is lol absurd

It's absurd to schedule Syracuse and Rutgers in the beginning of the season when they are in the OOC portion of their schedule?