FCS vs. GROUP OF 5 vs. POWER 5
Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2022 12:05 am
With the recent talks of Texas and Oklahoma potentially moving to the SEC, and talks of USC and UCLA potentially joining a Big 10 Conference that includes Rutgers… experienced college football fans like me get excited. It’s fun watching big time programs strategically making moves that put them more in line to capitalize on the new college football era that were in today. Fact is, the PAC 12 is a weak conference, and teams like Washington State, UCLA, Arizona and Arizona State are the cause. Somehow these once respected Power 5 programs just fell off a cliff never to recover. The lack of top tier players on these rosters make ya wonder…where’s the new version of Reggie Bush, or Christian McCaffrey in the PAC12? Or Vince Young, Patrick Mahomes, Kyler Murray…? Fact is, these P5 programs have fallen behind in recruiting, and the lack of elite level talent is why.
The Southeastern Conference is dominating this new College Football Playoff world and it’s starting to become obvious. When a program-defining recruit is being courted the game begins, your favorite program offers a full ride and the recruit begins to judge what your program offers. If the star recruit only has B10 offers, who does he choose? Does he pick Indiana over Michigan State!? What about Purdue over Michigan? Does he have a better chance at a large NFL contract at Iowa or Ohio State? Surely facilities play a part in all this.
Well, they do. First thing’s first, top recruits will always choose the best overall programs… that includes facilities, televised games and the likelihood of being a top pick in the NFL draft. The best programs nationally will get the best recruits, wins & championships. On the P5 level that’s extremely difficult because large, beautiful facilities cost big bucks. Next, on the Go5 level, it’s also difficult because (by some coincidence) you don’t have the huge budgets and alumni to demand, then pay for those nice, on-campus stadiums. Maybe the university won’t provide you with a stadium at all. Maybe you have to play in some NFL team’s stadium or even worse. Lastly at the FCS level, you have all those problems and more, including sometimes being a school that no one has ever heard of. For some FCS programs it can be a death spiral, no money for facilities, no revenue from facilities, and so on. Programs that don’t heavily invest in facilities that rival those in their division, and also those of their conference-mates will always suffer.
A rule I would love to see imposed on all NCAA Division 1 football is a mandatory minimum on stadium capacity. Also a strong recommendation towards on-campus sites. Surely this would take time but I strongly believe that it would not only make Division 1 Football better, but would also make lots of programs better by forcing them to choose if they’d actually prefer to stay in their current division. I’d love to see division requirements like this:
Strictly Enforced with a 3 - 5 year maximum. One year grace period during new build or expansion only.
Power 5 - 50,000 capacity min.
Group of 5 - 30,000 capacity min.
FCS - 10,000 capacity min.
This bridges the gap between FCS and Go5 some. It also bridges Go5 and P5, watching a Go5 game will be more in line with some smaller P5 games.
This would immediately put a strain on athletic programs throughout the nation, and it would be totally justifiable. P5 programs would always have the option to simply drop down the Go5 and not spend a dime. Same with Go5 and FCS programs, Go5 programs could simply drop down to FCS Football, FCS teams that choose not to comply will be placed in Division 2.
Neg on the idea: it would force Rutgers, SMU and New Mexico State to do this and would make Southern Utah, UNLV and East Tennessee State to do that…
Benefits: it would strengthen major college football immediately, remove the weeds and make P5 conferences smaller and more competitive. It would strengthen Go5 as well, when multiple programs unwilling to budge and invest in their programs, go bye bye. Finally, it would improve FCS football dramatically! Any programs not willing to seriously put their best foot forward will be gone. Lastly, the remaining serious FCS programs will be even better, and the fallen Go5 programs will add real recognition and competition. All that adds up to stronger conferences with fewer stragglers and more National Championship contenders.
The Southeastern Conference is dominating this new College Football Playoff world and it’s starting to become obvious. When a program-defining recruit is being courted the game begins, your favorite program offers a full ride and the recruit begins to judge what your program offers. If the star recruit only has B10 offers, who does he choose? Does he pick Indiana over Michigan State!? What about Purdue over Michigan? Does he have a better chance at a large NFL contract at Iowa or Ohio State? Surely facilities play a part in all this.
Well, they do. First thing’s first, top recruits will always choose the best overall programs… that includes facilities, televised games and the likelihood of being a top pick in the NFL draft. The best programs nationally will get the best recruits, wins & championships. On the P5 level that’s extremely difficult because large, beautiful facilities cost big bucks. Next, on the Go5 level, it’s also difficult because (by some coincidence) you don’t have the huge budgets and alumni to demand, then pay for those nice, on-campus stadiums. Maybe the university won’t provide you with a stadium at all. Maybe you have to play in some NFL team’s stadium or even worse. Lastly at the FCS level, you have all those problems and more, including sometimes being a school that no one has ever heard of. For some FCS programs it can be a death spiral, no money for facilities, no revenue from facilities, and so on. Programs that don’t heavily invest in facilities that rival those in their division, and also those of their conference-mates will always suffer.
A rule I would love to see imposed on all NCAA Division 1 football is a mandatory minimum on stadium capacity. Also a strong recommendation towards on-campus sites. Surely this would take time but I strongly believe that it would not only make Division 1 Football better, but would also make lots of programs better by forcing them to choose if they’d actually prefer to stay in their current division. I’d love to see division requirements like this:
Strictly Enforced with a 3 - 5 year maximum. One year grace period during new build or expansion only.
Power 5 - 50,000 capacity min.
Group of 5 - 30,000 capacity min.
FCS - 10,000 capacity min.
This bridges the gap between FCS and Go5 some. It also bridges Go5 and P5, watching a Go5 game will be more in line with some smaller P5 games.
This would immediately put a strain on athletic programs throughout the nation, and it would be totally justifiable. P5 programs would always have the option to simply drop down the Go5 and not spend a dime. Same with Go5 and FCS programs, Go5 programs could simply drop down to FCS Football, FCS teams that choose not to comply will be placed in Division 2.
Neg on the idea: it would force Rutgers, SMU and New Mexico State to do this and would make Southern Utah, UNLV and East Tennessee State to do that…
Benefits: it would strengthen major college football immediately, remove the weeds and make P5 conferences smaller and more competitive. It would strengthen Go5 as well, when multiple programs unwilling to budge and invest in their programs, go bye bye. Finally, it would improve FCS football dramatically! Any programs not willing to seriously put their best foot forward will be gone. Lastly, the remaining serious FCS programs will be even better, and the fallen Go5 programs will add real recognition and competition. All that adds up to stronger conferences with fewer stragglers and more National Championship contenders.
