This isn't going to go over well, but it needs to be said.
I get that moving to the ACC or the BigXII is the best move for us in the long term, especially in basketball. The question that needs to be stated though, is what makes all of you think we're entitled to an automatic BCS bid? We went to the fiesta bowl last year, played the #1 team in the country and got our butts handed to us, and were then sent home with our tails between our legs, and on the flight home we our owner decided a turtle was better than a beaten dog with no bite.
We've shown over the past few years that we can hang with the big boys, but not for an extended period of time. We haven't finished a year in the top 25 ever, we've won one outright conference championship in a down league. Mind you, I do think it was our destiny to win last year, we haven't won a title while the Pitts, wvu, and Ville's of the world are on down swings/rebuilding eras.
Our body of work doesn't entitle us to much. Our basketball programs are our cash cow until we can put together a winning tradition. This leaves us in a place where it almost benefits us to either a) stay in the big easy and dominate for a few years in a down conference (and play one hell of an OOC) or b) go independent in football, play who we want, and latch on to a bcs conference and take their bowl bids like ND has done to us for so many years. Then have the provision that if we finish in the top 10 we get a bcs bid.
This would actually help recruiting. A guaranteed game vs. Miami every year or a guaranteed game against UCF? Temple or Penn St? It just makes sense.
Feel free to agree or disagree. But since all of you seem to already know what's best for the program, I wanted to add my two cents
I get that moving to the ACC or the BigXII is the best move for us in the long term, especially in basketball. The question that needs to be stated though, is what makes all of you think we're entitled to an automatic BCS bid? We went to the fiesta bowl last year, played the #1 team in the country and got our butts handed to us, and were then sent home with our tails between our legs, and on the flight home we our owner decided a turtle was better than a beaten dog with no bite.
We've shown over the past few years that we can hang with the big boys, but not for an extended period of time. We haven't finished a year in the top 25 ever, we've won one outright conference championship in a down league. Mind you, I do think it was our destiny to win last year, we haven't won a title while the Pitts, wvu, and Ville's of the world are on down swings/rebuilding eras.
Our body of work doesn't entitle us to much. Our basketball programs are our cash cow until we can put together a winning tradition. This leaves us in a place where it almost benefits us to either a) stay in the big easy and dominate for a few years in a down conference (and play one hell of an OOC) or b) go independent in football, play who we want, and latch on to a bcs conference and take their bowl bids like ND has done to us for so many years. Then have the provision that if we finish in the top 10 we get a bcs bid.
This would actually help recruiting. A guaranteed game vs. Miami every year or a guaranteed game against UCF? Temple or Penn St? It just makes sense.
Feel free to agree or disagree. But since all of you seem to already know what's best for the program, I wanted to add my two cents