Playing S Oregon and Willamette does not make me excited at all. And playing at TCU. Why?
Rumor has it that we are trying to get a "name" program for the opening game back at "Jeld-Wen". I hope so. Southern Oregon will not pack it in (neither will Willamette).
If the only other option is 2 money games then it's probably not that bad. Probably not a playoff contender this year, but perhaps a little momentum can be built for the uneducated fan with an extra win, 6 home games in the new stadium, and the chance at a winning record.
Yeah Sperbeck put 2 non-D1’s on the schedule in his second year. As terrible is it is considering the playoffs, it really isn’t that terrible of an idea for a rebuilding program (which Sac State was in when he scheduled 2 non-D1’s). It would be preferable to find another FCS school in a similar situation, but given the FCS schools that are far and few between, I’m sure finding a comparable OOC FCS schools is easier said than done.
Willamette? Are you serious? I played them twice in college. They beat us in Salem, but we returned the favor in Moorhead. I had one of my best career games against them.
And people give Montana shit for playing D2 schools...Willamette is D3.
Courage is being scared to death, but saddling up anyway. - John Wayne
Yes, Willamette is DIII, and S Oregon is not even DII (they are NAIA). The Duck and Beaver booster who follows us occasionally is not going to want to spend a Saturday watching us play these teams. And with us playing both Montana and EWU on the road, that means the only shot we have at a decent home game attendance-wise is Montana State, unless we can somehow entice Sacramento fans to come here in November.
What this schedule does is reinforce the wrong idea in the city that our football program is (and to some, always has been) second rate. We should be looked at as a DI program in our city and this type of schedule does not show it.
You're smart Jalmond. In general, I'd prefer my Eastern Eagles play up rather than down. These two wins against lesser teams not only will not improve your Vikings' play against Big Sky competition, they won't count toward a playoff berth if the Vikings turn out to be worthy. I know finding FCS teams to play out of conference isn't easy, but playing down is a no win situation in my opinion.
I don't want to bust anyone's bubbles but I'm a realist and there is no way that Portland State University will have enough money in the next 5 years to be able to join the WAC. There are much more successfull teams at the FCS level for years with much more money that haven't been able eto make the jump to the FBS. This just isn't a realistic proposal.
