bengalcub said:
... The Men’s programs will never succeed without a massive influx of $$$ and community support.
... It’s unlikely positive change will ever happen. Call me a bad fan or whatever you want. I have been a die hard fan for 41 years.
.... the Bengals will most likely never achieve any success on a consistent basis.
.. I will acknowledge that things can turn around and become great.... but the reality is the Idaho State football program will probably NEVER become a consistent contender.
You’ve got to be kidding. I think Idaho State has a great football program. I also believe they are a great fit in the Big Sky Conference. As a fan of the Big Sky since 2003, I acknowledge that you’ve known ISU FB much longer than I have, however, there’s more to a program’s success than “they need money”.
It’s my opinion that fans of FB programs in this conference look at Montana & WaGriz stadium and think “I wish that was us”. But instead of that being a negative, people should take that as a challenge. Idaho state isn’t any worse than Portland State, Northern Colorado or UC Davis, so it’s pathetic to see fans of a good program feeling sorry for themselves.
Idaho St needs two things:
- 1| Much better recruiting & maybe shifting its pipeline slightly to obtain better HS & JC recruits.
- 2| A quality renovation to Holt Arena.
I’m not familiar with the coaching staff or AD at ISU but by shifting the search for skill position players to NoCal & SoCal ISU will eventually have more All American players, with that more Big Sky titles & more NFL players that can give back & donate like Michael Roos did for EWU.
And as for the oldest enclosed stadium in the country... it’s time for change. As a former ISU recruit, I thought it would be so cool to have my home stadium be inside of a dome! I can’t emphasize that enough how cool I thought it would be. How many other kids think that way? FYI I’m not a huge fan of the Red turf at EWU but it’s worked! The new turf looks great but I think ISU has many options when it comes to renovation of their stadium. For example:
- Replacing the roof, possibly with a section or sections that allow natural light.
- Painting the seats one color. Or a different color scheme.
- Doing something different with the endzone areas of Holt Arena. This area always felt tight, cramped & unpolished.
- Possibly following NAU’s lead. NAU built their new pressbox areas inward & lost some seating during their renovation of the Skydome but it looks good.
- Lighting. NAU & UNI have excellent lighting in their facilities, this is something that’s needed Holt Arena. When these brighter lights come, Holt Aren should have a “new look” if not, the brighter lights won’t help.
These changes are cost friendly & will fit in any stadium ‘Maintenance & Renovation’ budget. Especially for an Arena that is the oldest enclosed stadium on a college campus in the United States.
These changes won’t guarantee Idaho State to win the Big Sky Conference Championship each year, but they don’t have to!! All they need to do is make the Bengals a contender, and make watching them a special experience for Bengal fans. Whether they are five years old or 45-ish.
