Have been on the Slac St site and others saying a that Big Sky changes are coming. But was ridiculed there because everything never changes.
In 2011 or so, a Denver U blogger said that Montana and Montana St almost went to the WAC when it needed more members. That source said they pulled out just before UTSA, Texas St and UT-Arlington joined because the Montanas didn’t want to be in a conference with such bad travel. NMSU needed Texas schools and Cal Poly and UCDavis could not go FBS then because of the then ongoing California budget crisis.
So the Montanas forced through adding North Dakota and South Dakota (who didn't accept) to the Big Sky, which also have FBS desires, and adding UCDavis and Cal Poly to the Big Sky as they wanted future FBS partners. That blog is now deleted.
UCDavis has also deleted a website that they claimed had taken massive donations for an expanded stadium. Never believed that UCDavis would be content as a lowly FCS team for long. When the budget situation was better, Davis hired former Boise St coach Hawkins who brought their program up from the depths.
A year ago the Big West invited UCSD and Cal St Bakersfield to go to 11schools. Both of those schools had asked before and were rejected, but suddenly the Big West did an about face in spite of dividing their NCAA money between more mouths. IMHO, UCDavis and Cal Poly will leave for the WAC and they told the Big West early or face financial penalties.
Dixie St and Metro St of Denver will announce their plans to move in January to DI. They claim the WAC is interested, but that is only a cover story for their intentions which is the Big Sky.
The WAC has enough schools that have wanted to be FBS for years, but it only made sense when the WAC again gets the CFP money in 2025,but they need to qualify as a new FBS conference then. The WAC can still invite schools to FBS, so if a group of schools want it, it would be so much cheaper than getting a schedule independently like Liberty has done.
The new WAC will be
West
UCDavis - Sac St
Cal Poly - Cal Baptist
NMSU - GCU
East
UTRGV - Sam Houston St
McNeese St - Lamar- Incarnate Word
FBS only for Wichita St and Mo St
Non fb for UMKC and Oral Roberts
The Big Sky will be reduced to
N Arizona
S Utah
N Colorado
Idaho St
Portland St
Seattle and Utah Valley will be non fb schools
Dixie St and Metro St will be added this year
CWU and perhaps Azusa Pacific
Montana, Mont St, EWU, Idaho, and Weber St will all leave for the Summit which will also start fb and eventually go FBS and will partner with the WAC. The Dakotas school were just a few years from DII in 2011 but are now mature enough and have facilities and donors that could support a move up.
Denver and Omaha will be happy because they both depend on UND for their hockey rivalries, which is all three biggest sport financially.
Tarleton St has already said it wants DI with the Southland.
PUFW has already wanted the Horizon League and W Illinois will want in the OVC or Horizon.
Davis fans have brains so these thought are not beyond them. UCDavis has always had FBS plans.
Sioux, thanks for stopping by. I certainly don't have a pulse on FBS and FCS politics, but i don’t see UC Davis making the big jump anytime in the near future. And I dont see any evidence that we have always had FBS plans, other than some posts on this board. Heck, weve had changes in Chancellors, ADs, and coaches. Any aspirations from previous adminitrators would be long gone.
UCDavis and Cal Poly would have moved up earlier in this decade, but state budgets derailed that. For a research school, playing in FCS or DII is downright embarrassing for college administrators.
The only thing I’ve heard May and Blue say is they want to be successful on the field and in the classroom and that they want athletics to be the “front porch” of the university. Sac State has said similar lately. I don’t know if that is really FBS speak. I mean, what gets you mileage... being a big fish in the FCS pond (and we’re not yet until we prove year over year success) but not getting much media play or being irrelevant in FBS and playing mostly irrelevant teams, and if you have a really good year go to the Dollar General Bowl that nobody’s heard of and still getting no media play? Just ask Boise State and UCF how hard it is to break into the circle of relevance. But I see your point that enrollment-wise, UCD and Sac are larger than most FCS schools.
Coastal Carolina moved up to FBS with under 8000 attendance and under 10k seats. They expanded their stadium to nearly 20k and went to a bowl game their first year eligible.
Except for the facility cost, FBS may be cheaper than FCS. Playing at UC or UCLA or some P5 will get you 3 times the rate of an FCS school. Tie in the CFP payment, conference TV and bowl deals and the increased media (counts as advertising), and it's cheaper at FBS if you have an FBS conference.
These projected conference shuffles are interesting to speculate upon but I rarely find them convincing, especially when there isn't solid evidence to back them up. Personally, I'd rather make some more deep runs in the playoffs before we entertain the thought of becoming perennial Salad Bowl contenders.
All of the,Montana's, Weber St and the Dakotas have made major improvements to their student athlete practice facilities. EWU will make some decisions this month.
But lo and behold UCDavis just invested $40 mill in an enhanced facility to make further in roads on FBS recruiting and renamed the stadium UC Davis Health Stadium, while the AD gets naming rights.
An attempt to wrest away athletes from Fresno and,SJSU in the future.
I like to dream to but @Siouxfan' description of the WAC looks like a nightmare to me. I'm holding out hope for a great run of success at FCS over the next 3-5 years, and sliding into SJSU's spot in the MWC when they inevitably throw in the towel.
The MWC won’t take an FCS UCDavis. They will take a FBS UCDavis.
When the Big 12 loses Texas and Oklahoma and perhaps Kansas, the MWC will lose some schools too. Davis will almost be first to get a call if you are FBS. UTEP, Rice, and UTSA will be the others.
The Big Ten is currently at 14 teams...It makes football scheduling unmanageable. I think they currently play the other 6 teams in their own division and two teams in the other. If you're in the West you might play Rutgers and Indiana....or you might play Michigan and An Ohio State University. I believe that will change in the next year or two and teams will play the six in their own division and three in the other division.
In basketball teams now interupt the non-conference early season to play two conference games in early December before finishing the month with tournaments and non-conference games.
Ironically at one time there were ten teams in the Big Twelve and twelve teams in the Big Ten.
Think of how a new WAC would open up the field for UCDavis sports other than fb.
Baseball: Davis will be the favorite.
MBb: NMSU will be hard to overcome, but your no longer in a SOCal league.
Soccer M&W: Davis the favorite
W Volleyball: Davis the favorite
Most women’s sports: Davis the favorite
Some sports that the WAC doesn’t sponsor, you’ll remain in the Big West. But that means you have to give them notice, which you did by ensuring Bake and UCSD are in.
After FBS is transitioned, you’ll shoot to the top of the MWC list.
lol- take it easy DavisAggie. I'm not sure I see it happening the same way as Siouxfan envisions, but its interesting to read ideas from another perspective.
I heard that Hawk has been making secret recruiting trips in the hopes of landing another great quarterback that would take him into FBS territory. It’s a recruit that no one has really heard of, some almost say that he “came out of the sky”. The kid is a 6’ 3” stud with a rocket arm and almost reddish eyes. I forget his first name but his last name is Kent and comes from a small town of Krypton located I don’t know where. Maybe some of you have more info...
Siouxfan....your suggestions are interesting in a hypothetical, armchair philosopher sort of way, but I don't see any likelihood in the foreseeable future of directional and "at" teams from California playing directional and "at" teams from Texas in a common league.
Of more immediate concern to you, it looks like it may be time to take a break from gazing into the future and focus on the UND hockey team in the present. Bad weekend for the Skating Hawks.
"An equestrian team would offer a roster of up to 55 students, and a rowing team could carry 55-70 students. Rugby (as many as 30), beach volleyball (20) and fencing (22) would each allow fewer participants, according to the release."
72 very good! But do take note that there are also trans horses on the team. Geldings. I would argue they count towards TIX. . . But maybe they should be banned?. . . Oh, oh, in trouble- no politics allowed on this site! No!