American Athletic Conference

[MoValley John]

It's often been repeated, but now that I look it up it doesn't appear to be true. It doesn't change the rest of what I said though. I don't think that it's worth the trouble.

Allowable, doable and worth the trouble are three different things. In theory, Wichita State could start up a FBS program next year. Not only would it not be worth the effort, it is practically not doable. To be FBS, you need to play a minimum of five home games against FBS opponents, provide a total of 200 scholarships in 16 sports and total 60% of all football contests must be against FBS opponents.

This is really only doable if you begin your program already in a FBS league. You are never going to find five decent FBS teams willing to travel to your upstart stadium for a buy game and home and homes are out of the question. Well, you could find five teams if you harvested five Sun Belt teams, but then you probably wouldn't manage to average 15,000 in attendance, also a requirement. You would have zero in TV money and you just increased your athletic budget $3-4 million on buying those five required games from Sun Belt opponents.

If Wichita State entered secretive conversations with the MWC, the MWC could add Wichita State as a full member and Wichita State could begin as a FBS team. The MWC is not doing that, too many other options.

Starting an independent program at the FBS level is legal, but not worth the trouble and probably not even doable.

[Shockerman]

The Blue print on how to do this is already out there (see UTSA and Old Dominion as examples). Both have been a smashing success. To say that adding football isn't doable because we would have to be independent or start at FBS year one is an uneducated opinion. Can we afford it and be successful? Well that is the 100 million dollar question. I would argue that we can't not afford to do it. It is our only ticket out of the Valley and if it got us into the AAC and likely the P5/6, it is a no brainer.

[MoValley John]

The Blue print on how to do this is already out there (see UTSA and Old Dominion as examples). Both have been a smashing success. To say that adding football isn't doable because we would have to be independent or start at FBS year one is an uneducated opinion. Can we afford it and be successful? Well that is the 100 million dollar question. I would argue that we can't not afford to do it. It is our only ticket out of the Valley and if it got us into the AAC and likely the P5/6, it is a no brainer.

I was simply answering the can Wichita State go directly FBS question. The answer, technically, is yes. Worth the effort or even doable, almost definitely not. FCS is the only pragmatic way to start. And even then, you better hope your AD and president begin with backroom discussions with C-USA, the AAC and the MWC to lock in a conference move in short order. The worst thing Wichita State could do is to start a football program at the FCS level with no possibilities of moving to FBS.

[Kung Wu]

Let's just buy Pitt State's program. Football coaches, players, the whole nine yards. Then with the enhanced recruiting by being FBS we would have a Big-12 caliber team from day one, and BOOM. Plus if we just bought out Pitt State and made that the Wichita State University at Pittsburgh Campus we would have an instant raucous fan base scattered all over eastern Kansas. We could even continue to play the exhibition games at their stadium.

[60Shock]

Great idea. I knew we could count on Kung Wu to come up with the ultimate solution.

[wu_shizzle]

Let's just buy Pitt State's program. Football coaches, players, the whole nine yards. Then with the enhanced recruiting by being FBS we would have a Big-12 caliber team from day one, and BOOM. Plus if we just bought out Pitt State and made that the Wichita State University at Pittsburgh Campus we would have an instant raucous fan base scattered all over eastern Kansas. We could even continue to play the exhibition games at their stadium.

That's WuSUP.

[Shockerman]

Co-op with the Gorillas? I love it!

[MadaboutWu]

Think of the mascot mosh-up possibilities!

[UofMemphis]

It's AAC or bust for Wichita. We would have healthy rivalry's with Memphis, Cincinnati, Houston, Tulsa, and Tulane. It would be a huge boost for Baseball and we fit in with those basketball programs perfectly. Put Navy Football in the West and we can balance out the conference as an all sports member.

Our commish is obsessed with the idea of adding BYU and Army football-only (14 football/11 all-sports), and seems to have no desire for basketball only members after what happened with the C7/Big East.

If not BYU...then UMass all-sports and Army football only (14 football/12 all-sports)

I'd just add WSU and be done (12/12)

[ripemupshocks]

I'm not sure UTSA is the example we should use in terms of restarting football at WSU. The differences are many. Texas is a football first state. Kansas is not. The population of Texas is eight times larger than the population of Kansas. The population of San Antonio is four times larger than the population Wichita. The student population at UTSA is 2.5 times larger than the student population at WSU. The Athletic Department budget at UTSA is only $150,000 higher that the Athletic Department budget at WSU. The UTSA athletic department is subsidized at 61% (39% self sufficient). The WSU athletic department is subsidized at 28% (72% self sufficient). The basketball program at UTSA plays in a 4,000 seat arena. The average attendance last season was 1,264. The UTSA basketball budget is four times smaller than the basketball budget at WSU. The UTSA head coach has a record of 111-133. UTSA basketball has never won any of the conferences they have been a member of. UTSA is 1-4 in the NCAA Basketball Tournament. UTSA plays football in an off campus 65,000 seat stadium (Alamodome) built and maintained by the city of San Antonio. Aaaannnndddd, the average attendance at UTSA football games has dropped each season since restarting the program, from 35,521 in 2011 to 29,214 in 2013. The way UTSA is going, they'll to have to ask for donations just to buy a box of RED INK.

[DUShock]

I want football at Wichita State.

I do not want to risk the success of basketball to get it, not that this is even a possibility. The recent success of HCGM's program has caused me to considerably moderate my position.

[Dave Stalwart]

Is there a way to start up football and have Gregg Marshall coach the team?

[WuShock Reaper]

Is there a way to start up football and have Gregg Marshall coach the team?

Okay, you just stole my idea that I was thinking a few minutes ago. Seriously!!!!

How about this instead and plus Marshall is to smart to become Football Coach even though he is just like the "Worlds Most Interesting Man - I don't always recruit football players, but when I do, they play basketball for me instead." What if we get rid of Sexton, actually we don't have to get rid of Sexton completely, but make him something like "Director of Athletics Emeritus", then make Marshall Director of Athletics?

[Bob Sacamano]

How about this instead and plus Marshall is to smart to become Football Coach even though he is just like the "Worlds Most Interesting Man - I don't always recruit football players, but when I do, they play basketball for me instead."

When Cotton is drafted number one overall in the next NFL draft, it's going to do wonders for our football team.

[ShockerGorilla]

When Cotton is drafted number one overall in the next NFL draft, it's going to do wonders for our football team.

Safety or linebacker?