Should SUU join the Big Sky?

[Wildcat Ryan]

SUU presents quite a challenge all right. They have won a total of four FCS games in the last four years, about the same as UNC. Both should be DII; they might be able to compete with Chadron and CWU, maybe.

Well i cant deny that we have stuggled in the past but we are moving in the right direction and i can see us winning many more games in the near future in the FCS. And D2? Please outside of football im pretty sure we could even beat a few of your sports team, for example out basketball team. Football yes we have been lacking but we are getting better. Hope to see you guys in the near future

Your right T-Bird, there is more to the Big Sky than just football, your basketball team would have done well in the Sky last year. Yeah it might take a few years to make SUU really competitive in football, heck it took Weber 40 years to be competitive, but moving up to a bigger conference would make it a little easier to get the better athletes. I mean the Montana fans on Egriz think they could compete with the WAC and Mtn West right now, even though there is no way in hell, but a few years down the road when they get the better recruits, who knows maybe. I would like SUU in the Sky, but I would be happy just to see Weber play SUU again.

[Fresno St. Alum]

should SUU join the Big Sky, umm yes. Close the thread its settled

[AZGrizFan]

Well i cant deny that we have stuggled in the past but we are moving in the right direction and i can see us winning many more games in the near future in the FCS. And D2? Please outside of football im pretty sure we could even beat a few of your sports team, for example out basketball team. Football yes we have been lacking but we are getting better. Hope to see you guys in the near future

Your right T-Bird, there is more to the Big Sky than just football, your basketball team would have done well in the Sky last year. Yeah it might take a few years to make SUU really competitive in football, heck it took Weber 40 years to be competitive, but moving up to a bigger conference would make it a little easier to get the better athletes. I mean the Montana fans on Egriz think they could compete with the WAC and Mtn West right now, even though there is no way in hell, but a few years down the road when they get the better recruits, who knows maybe. I would like SUU in the Sky, but I would be happy just to see Weber play SUU again.

Well, using your logic, UM would immediately be MORE competitive in the WAC than SUU would be in the Big Sky.

[Wildcat Ryan]

Your right T-Bird, there is more to the Big Sky than just football, your basketball team would have done well in the Sky last year. Yeah it might take a few years to make SUU really competitive in football, heck it took Weber 40 years to be competitive, but moving up to a bigger conference would make it a little easier to get the better athletes. I mean the Montana fans on Egriz think they could compete with the WAC and Mtn West right now, even though there is no way in hell, but a few years down the road when they get the better recruits, who knows maybe. I would like SUU in the Sky, but I would be happy just to see Weber play SUU again.

Well, using your logic, UM would immediately be MORE competitive in the WAC than SUU would be in the Big Sky.

???????????

What logic?

[AZGrizFan]

Well, using your logic, UM would immediately be MORE competitive in the WAC than SUU would be in the Big Sky.

???????????

What logic?

Exactly.

[Wildcat Ryan]

All I said is it might take SUU a few years to be competitive in football, I did not say SUU would just come in and dominate, just like Montana, to say Montana would imediately be competitive in the WAC is far from the truth, if UM ever did "move up" then it would take a few years before they even began to be competitive, thats all I said.

[collegesportsinfo]

should SUU join the Big Sky, umm yes. Close the thread its settled

My turn. Should SUU join the Big Sky? No, not now and not unless they drop to 7 members and fear losing more (and the autobid).

[Cap'n Cat]

should SUU join the Big Sky, umm yes. Close the thread its settled

My turn. Should SUU join the Big Sky? No, not now and not unless they drop to 7 members and fear losing more (and the autobid).

Ralph!!

Whassup???

[dbackjon]

My turn. Should SUU join the Big Sky? No, not now and not unless they drop to 7 members and fear losing more (and the autobid).

Ralph!!

Whassup???

Ralph? Nah, not even close...you are thinking of a different website, feliner

[JALMOND]

OK, my first post here on this wonderful site. So great having two sites to talk about FCS football. I'll get as spoiled as my Ducks and Beavers friends who all have 8 or 9 sites to talk Pac-10 fooball.

Obviously, if SUU was to go to the Big Sky it would have to be all sports. The last school that was in the Big Sky for just one sport was Gonzaga and they left in 1979. This would be a win for the T-Birds as the football team would go to a more stable conference and the basketball teams would cut down tremendously on their travel.

But how would the Big Sky take to having SUU? Another school in a small venue that is very difficult to fly to (fly to Las Vegas, bus three hours or fly to Salt Lake, bus for three hours). A school that has not, nor has it ever, set the football or basketball landscape on fire. The Big Sky also benefits from having the 4 core schools (Montana, Montana State, Idaho State and Weber State) all within an easy day's drive from each other. SUU could be a travel partner for NAU, but with no freeway connecting Flagstaff and Cedar City directly, winter driving between the two could be extremely trecherous (almost easier to drive through Las Vegas). Also, the commissioner for the Big Sky likes the nine team conference and has not been too receptive of adding a tenth. I just don't see the benefits of the conference taking SUU at this time. If the Great West does fall apart, the Big Sky may be forced to take SUU, along with Davis and Cal Poly at that time. Also, from what I hear, San Diego is not likely to increase football scholarships. They seem satisfied with being a "basketball" school and keeping athletics down to the WCC level.

[dbackjon]

JALMOND - Gonzaga was a full member (but without Football) from 1963 (Big Sky Conference founding) to 1979, when they joined the WCC.


And yes, Cedar City is a pain to get too - worse than Flagstaff

[collegesportsinfo]

JALMOND - Gonzaga was a full member (but without Football) from 1963 (Big Sky Conference founding) to 1979, when they joined the WCC.


And yes, Cedar City is a pain to get too - worse than Flagstaff

But a worthwhile drive for the asthetics...just not the football

[Wedgebuster]

Other sports, what other sports?

[Fresno St. Alum]

Cappy, that's Quinn, head of the collegesportsinfo website.

[Mike Johnson]

And yes, Cedar City is a pain to get too - worse than Flagstaff

You can fly from Missoula to Cedar City (yes, Cedar City has a commercial airport) for less than $400 round trip about the same price as a round trip between Missoula and Flagstaff.

If you prefer to fly to a bigger airport, it is about two and half hours to Cedar City from Las Vegas, compared to 2 hours and ten minutes from Phoenix to Flagstaff. I have driven from Las Vegas to St. George many times--about an hour and a half or maybe a little more and Cedar City is somewhat less than an hour from St. George.

If you want to bus from Missoula, it is about 11 hours to Cedar City and 17 hours to Flagstaff.

Cedar City isn't as hard to get to as is often suggested.

It would be easier for all eight of the other Big Sky teams (not including NAU) to get to SUU, than it is to get to NAU.