FAM is movin to division 1-A football...I HATE to see this happen...this is killing 'Classic' football games
http://www.famu.edu/index.php?subaction=showfull&id=1058980471&archive=&cnshow=news&start_from=
FAMU Ready for Leap But Move to I-A May Prove Costly posted:23 Jul 2003
FAMU Ready for Leap But Move to I-A May Prove Costly
By Alex Abrams
Tallahassee, Fla. - Troy State athletics director Johnny Williams received a visit in May from half of Florida A&M's athletics staff.
Rattlers officials were looking into the possibility of upgrading their football program from the lower-tier Division I-AA to Division I-A, and they wanted to speak with schools that had made the same move.
Troy State was the last school to do so, completing a four-year journey in 2002 to become a Division I-A football program.
"The advantage they [FAMU] have that we didn't have is that they already have a national appeal," Williams said. "They go to Cincinnati or Miami and pack in crowds. They have a huge fan base."
And now the Rattlers have the NCAA's approval to become the first historically black college to go to Division I-A.
On Monday, the NCAA Reclassification Committee approved FAMU's application to become a Division I-A program, something the school has looked to do for more than a decade.
"The NCAA has placed the ball on the 1-yard line, and we are certainly going to score," FAMU president Fred Gainous said.
The Rattlers, who report for two-a-day practices on Aug. 6, will play the upcoming season in Division I-AA before going to Division I-A in 2004.
A handful of other schools have made the move from Division I-AA in the past decade, including Central Florida in 1996 and South Florida in 2001.
But should FAMU follow suit by entering the ranks of high-stakes college football, where schools can make millions or lose them as quickly?
Williams agrees with FAMU's decision to upgrade its program. Since Troy State went to Division I-A in 2002, contributions from the school's boosters have at least doubled, and five-year, $80,000 leases for 27 luxury suites in Movie Gallery Veterans Stadium have been sold.
", we had 11 national championships in Division II and we were struggling to get money from the state legislature," Williams said.
But supporting a major college football program isn't cheap. FAMU must raise its football budget from $2 million to at least $4 million to cover the costs associated with having a Division I-A program, including more scholarships, additional coaches and facility improvements.
In addition, the school must raise its total athletics budget from approximately $6 million to $9 million.
Florida A&M interim athletics director J.R.E. Lee III said yesterday that the school has already raised enough money for its first year in Division I-A through fund-raisers and football classics, and it should be "a lot easier" to meet the second-year's goal.
Lee also added that FAMU will soon begin its search for a conference affiliation. The Sun Belt Conference and Conference USA have been mentioned as possibilities.
"We expect to not have any [trouble finding a conference] because simply we bring so much to the table," Lee said. "I think any conference that might see us as a good addition will find that to be the case."
But not every school has reaped the financial rewards of becoming a Division I-A program. On June 10, Tulane University's board of trustees voted 27-0 to keep the school's football program in Division I-A, despite losing $7 million a year.
Georgia Southern athletics director Sam Baker opposes the sentiment that a school must have a Division I-A football program in order for its athletics program to be financially successful.
Despite the Eagles winning six Division I-AA national championships since 1985, Baker insists his program won't follow FAMU to Division I-A.
"Why would you want to move from a level that you can be very successful at to a level that the track record is not very good for the schools that made that move?" Baker said. "... I don't understand that thinking."
Baker said his school's athletics program operates on a $6.5-million budget, which matches FAMU's but is far lower than the $25 million he believes it takes to be competitive in Division I-A football.
But Lee believes FAMU could show other Division I-AA programs how to make the move in ranks without experiencing the financial pitfalls.
"I don't know how much we'll be seen as a role model for other schools," Lee said. "But maybe other schools of the same size will see they have that same opportunity to do what we did."
Originally posted by Leslie:
[b] </font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by einnod23:
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A couple of years ago, I saw Prairie View basketball take the SWAC, and gain a berth in the NCAA's. With road tops and home shorts. I said to myself, Daaaaaaaamn! You know some of these colleges are in trouble. Nothing new - we jumped out of the CIAA a few years back and I believe Howard(correct me if I am wrong) jumped out of the MEAC also - if it was not Howard then it was another school - its called follow the money....sad but true. [/QB]</font>[/QUOTE]