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Any Weber State fans interested in WAC??

dancingNMSUaggie1

dancingNMSUaggie1

Member
Hey Weber State fans. NMSU Aggie fan here. Just was wondering if Weber State fans were interested in the WAC? You have the population and support from your town it seems. You would be great travel partners for Montana, Idaho, and Utah State. What do you guys think?
 
dancingNMSUaggie said:
Hey Weber State fans. NMSU Aggie fan here. Just was wondering if Weber State fans were interested in the WAC? You have the population and support from your town it seems. You would be great travel partners for Montana, Idaho, and Utah State. What do you guys think?
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Hello and welcome NMSUaggie,

I also believe Weber would be a very good fit in the WAC, as we are both competitive in football and basketball in the Big Sky, we are in a very good location for travel, and I believe that if we became affiliated with a FBS conference we would have even more fan support. However, I believe Utah State would try to deny us membership at all costs, so I don't expect such a move to ever occur. We are in too close of proximity to make them feel comfortable. They probably fear that we will steal some of their top Utah recruits. USU fears WSU, that's why they won't play us in football, even though it is a logical possible rivalry that could bring in a lot of $$$ each year.
 
YES!!! we would love to move up. there is one thing holding us back and the only reason we are not being mentioned as a serious candidate: football attendance.

we averaged 6,500 last season and we had 7 wins and made the playoffs and finished 17th nationally. that is not good. this yr we are averaging about 8,500 after 2 home games.

basketball and all other sports we would be a shoe in.

weberhoops.com from a few weeks ago about basketball attendance:


9/15/10
Off Season Update: Part 2
2009-10 Home Attendance
The 2009-10 season saw an attendance increase of 16% from 2008-09. The 2010 average was 5,310 with a single game high of 9,272. In 2009 the average was 4,598 with the highest single game attended being 7,401. Weber State had the 21st highest DI attendance average in the Western United States. Excluding the Pac10, WSU had the 12th highest average in the West. WSU's 5,310 average was higher than: the entire Big West, 3 MWC teams, half the WAC, 8-of-9 WCC teams and higher than USC of the Pac.

There are 334 NCAA Division I men's basketball programs, 31 conferences, 4,995 games were played, 25,164,431 fans, 5,038 national attendance average.




i think we would be a good fit for the wac. but i dont think we can get the football support needed unless we were already fbs. what do u think wsucatfan? afterall we have had a 10 win season and 7 win season both playoff teams but we still aren't seeing 15,000 a game.
 
i have wondered. had we hired mac 10 yrs ago (i realize that wasnt possible) would we be considered a candidate to present to the wac this week? mac needs more time to build the program i think. not that he isn't providing results but, take a look at all the upgrades we have had since we hired him and things that are still happening over the next few yrs.

did anything ever happen before mac like this?
 
catcat said:
i think we would be a good fit for the wac. but i dont think we can get the football support needed unless we were already fbs. what do u think wsucatfan? afterall we have had a 10 win season and 7 win season both playoff teams but we still aren't seeing 15,000 a game.
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I agree with everyone's posts so far, but I still think the reason we don't get support for football is who we play. We have a lot of football fans in Utah and I think if WSU were to make the move up to FBS are attendance would grow 4x. We could start scheduling BYU, home and home, 2-1 at the most (they need games now that they are independent) Utah at WSU, USU, etc. I think it would only be a matter of time until WSU would have to expand the stadium, horseshoe design around the north. But that said, prepare to pay more, that season family pass isn't going to cost the same if we go to the big league...
 
Honestly, the biggest issue for Weber isn't attendance, community (i.e. fan support), or programs. We all know that if Weber were to make the jump these things would either fall into place, or are already ready for the jump. It is money. Weber has one of the smallest athletic budgets in the Big Sky.

This is also a serious issue with UM. I believe UM wont be accepting a bid because of their monetary woes. As much as they think they can compete, which I believe they can, they don't have the money to consistently fund their programs. UM students are going to take the brunt of their jump, that is if they even jump up to the WAC. I wouldn't doubt seeing at least a $75-$100 increase in student fees, just to support an AD's wet dream. The WAC, I know Benson is making fairly lofty promises, but the 5M isn't a sure thing, I doubt the WAC gets nothing from Nevada and Fresno State, if they do it'll be far less than 10M and it'll only be around ONCE. Also, that money will have to be divided between the other WAC schools. So that doesn't leave much for UM.

UM constantly is wetting themselves over Boise's success, but logistically, financially, and administratively I don't see the parallel between the two schools. Boise is juxtaposed with TCU, UM with App State. There is a huge difference. Honestly, I think the WAC should fold and the best schools left join the Sky. There really isn't that much glory being invited to the Outhouse bowl.

As for Weber, monetarily there is no way. I would love playing NMSU, USU, UI, and SJSU every year though. There would be some great rivalries and it would become a very strong regional conference. Honestly, I think that the Sky and WAC should merge, but first get rid of La Tech, Hawaii, SAC, and Portland State.
 
However, I would love seeing bigger and better teams coming to Ogden. Being a WAC member would be pretty sweet.
 
talhadfoursteals said:
Honestly, the biggest issue for Weber isn't attendance, community (i.e. fan support), or programs. We all know that if Weber were to make the jump these things would either fall into place, or are already ready for the jump. It is money. Weber has one of the smallest athletic budgets in the Big Sky.

This is also a serious issue with UM. I believe UM wont be accepting a bid because of their monetary woes. As much as they think they can compete, which I believe they can, they don't have the money to consistently fund their programs. UM students are going to take the brunt of their jump, that is if they even jump up to the WAC. I wouldn't doubt seeing at least a $75-$100 increase in student fees, just to support an AD's wet dream. The WAC, I know Benson is making fairly lofty promises, but the 5M isn't a sure thing, I doubt the WAC gets nothing from Nevada and Fresno State, if they do it'll be far less than 10M and it'll only be around ONCE. Also, that money will have to be divided between the other WAC schools. So that doesn't leave much for UM.

UM constantly is wetting themselves over Boise's success, but logistically, financially, and administratively I don't see the parallel between the two schools. Boise is juxtaposed with TCU, UM with App State. There is a huge difference. Honestly, I think the WAC should fold and the best schools left join the Sky. There really isn't that much glory being invited to the Outhouse bowl.

As for Weber, monetarily there is no way. I would love playing NMSU, USU, UI, and SJSU every year though. There would be some great rivalries and it would become a very strong regional conference. Honestly, I think that the Sky and WAC should merge, but first get rid of La Tech, Hawaii, SAC, and Portland State.
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you said 'honestly' in every paragraph. lol

attendance, community (i.e. fan support)
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increase that and it increases money! the more tkts you sell the more money you make. its very simple. the more you win the more donors contribute. raising student fees 75-100 is no big deal when they are already paying 500 a semester. also we have twice as many students as UM.

and like wsucat said, tkt prices would go up which equals more money. a family pass at usu is $750 i believe, while its only $100 at weber. fans would gladly pay more for bigger teams coming to ogden.
 
Who on here really believes that Utah or BYU would actually come to play a game at Stewart Stadium??
That is a pipe dream. Even if Weber was in the WAC, neither of them would come!! Do you think that New Mexico State, SJSU, or New Mexico are "bigger and better" teams than Montana or Eastern Washington? Both of those teams would give any of the WAC teams more than they would want, and the betting line on those would be even. Except for costing a lot of money to increase travel to Hawaii, La Tech, and etc, what is the real benefit of moving??????????
 
smjcpa said:
Who on here really believes that Utah or BYU would actually come to play a game at Stewart Stadium??
That is a pipe dream. Even if Weber was in the WAC, neither of them would come!! Do you think that New Mexico State, SJSU, or New Mexico are "bigger and better" teams than Montana or Eastern Washington? Both of those teams would give any of the WAC teams more than they would want, and the betting line on those would be even. Except for costing a lot of money to increase travel to Hawaii, La Tech, and etc, what is the real benefit of moving??????????
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Six months ago I would have told you a lot of the changes that have happened were pipe dreams. BYU being independent means they are going to need teams to fill out their schedule, if they will play USU at USU Friday night why would they not play WSU if we are in the same WAC conference. Sure it might take a 2-1 or 3-1 but eventually that could change as WSU grows.

Why are we really comparing the bottom dwellers of the WAC against the top teams of the Big Sky, doesn't that in and of itself prove how much better the WAC is than the Sky...

UM vs Hawaii :arrow: Hawaii this year probably wins by 35+
USU vs WSU :arrow: a few years ago we probably stomp them, not this year though, next year... I hope so
Idaho vs MSU or EWU :arrow: Idaho is improved - just killed UNLV 30-7, but it would be closer still Idaho wins
Lousiana Tech vs UNC :arrow: If, If UNC wins it would be the highlight of their program
SJSS vs Sac St. :arrow: both are only in their conferences for the other teams to recruit in Cali.
New Mexico St vs PSU or ISU :arrow: I don't even think I have to address this one

Just a thought about the money... Is there a chance that Jerry Graybeal's new job they created was foresight towards moving up?
 
After Nevada, Boise and Fresno leave who is the top of the WAC? The only one that comes to mind is Idaho. There is not much of a "top" of the WAC. IMO the WAC is on a par with the Big Sky. Sure, ISU and UNC have a ways to go, but the bottom of the WAC is not much better. Travel costs go WAY up, level of teams coming to Ogden doesn't change much, and no additional revenue from the conference. Attendance may or may not increase, but to me the negatives outweigh the positives.
 
smjcpa said:
After Nevada, Boise and Fresno leave who is the top of the WAC? The only one that comes to mind is Idaho. There is not much of a "top" of the WAC. IMO the WAC is on a par with the Big Sky. Sure, ISU and UNC have a ways to go, but the bottom of the WAC is not much better. Travel costs go WAY up, level of teams coming to Ogden doesn't change much, and no additional revenue from the conference. Attendance may or may not increase, but to me the negatives outweigh the positives.
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for me the attendance goes WAY up. if usu or hawaii was in town this week and not ewu the place would be packed. we woudl have more support, more alumni support if we move up which translates to a boat load more money that we are used to.

not to mention the 50 cents we'd get for making it to the 409 Stain Bowl! :lol:
 
What a lot of you guys are missing is the stigma of being an FCS team in a FBS state. People here don't know that Weber State is Div. I, most people think we're still a Div. II school. Just the fact that we lose that stigma will increase popularity and attendance from the uninformed public.

As far as competition there is no way the Sky is on-par with the WAC, even when Nevada and Fresno leave. Sure the Big Sky's top 3 would give all their teams a run for their money, but probably would only beat their bottom 3. The Sky has some very good teams each year in the the top 3, and some absolute garbage teams each year in their bottom 3.
 
An invite to the WAC would be nice, but I just don't think WSU's phone is ringing off the hook with Karl Benson's constant calls. I hope I am wrong on this though. But is it better to join probably the worst D1 conference in america, or stay in the best FCS conference in the west? I would like to see a yearly USU vs WSU game in the WAC, or possibly go to a bowl game. But I would also like to see a yearly Big Sky game between WSU and Southern Utah, and continue going to the playoffs. I do think that IF WSU joined the WAC then they would draw more fans for sure though.
 
Welcome to the board dancingNMSUaggie

I say no, I like the playoff system, i like fighting for a REAL championship, and needing a GOOD Record to make the playoffs, you can make a bowl game if you have 6 wins, Yeah 6-6 and the weakest most pittiful bowl game does not intrigue me.

On the topic of attendance, the only time Stewart Stadium gets any more filled than what we get now is when Utah State would visit every other year, and it wont be because there is alot more Weber fans. BYU, Utah would NEVER play at Stewart Stadium, we are already hearing rumors that Utah wont even come to the DEE anymore, why would a PAC 10/11/12 team come play at our house? BYU goes indy, they might schedule Weber, but they wouldnt play here it would always be at BYU. Hawaii has stated that they want to go INDY, so all our games will be at Hawaii (If they would even schedule us). People wont come out to see us play Idaho, New Mexico State or SJSU because they are not big name schools. Idaho's Stadium is smaller than ours.


And even with the additions of say Montana, Weber, Texas State and Texas SA, Denver Seattle etc, the WAC would look like and get treated like an even worse conference than the Sunbelt. THe WAC champ could go undefeated and would always get denied the BCS BUSTER SPOT, thats how unattractive the WAC will be. Right now Weber is part of one of the STRONGEST FCS conferences being the Big Sky, why would we want to move to the soon to be WORST FBS conference?


NO, I dont like the Idea.
 
The WAC is really going to suck, and for a long time as well. Two thirds of the teams are going to be new arrivals to FBS. They will be the weakest league in the country for quite some time. I wouldn't touch the WAC at this point. I think that three or more of the left over schools will be bailing on the WAC soon anyway. The WAC is dead.
 
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