Big Sky Commissioner at WSU 7/14/11

[n.ogdencat]

What is the future of Wildcat Athletics?
What are the issues within the NCAA conferences?
What about the changes in the Big Sky Conference?
Why do twitter feeds say "Aggies in the Big Sky?"

On Thursday, July 14, 2011 from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Weber State Young Alumni will host Doug Fullerton, the Commissioner of the Big Sky Conference at the Lindquist Alumni Center. He will be making a presentation on the future of the Big Sky Conference and the changes to the conference and what the future holds for Weber State athletics. This is a terrific opportunity to hear from a Division I NCAA conference commissioner on what is impacting college sports, and what a university must do to progress. Following the commissioner’s presentation, Jerry Bovee, Athletic Director for Weber State will discuss how these changes will affect the Wildcats. Both will be available for a question and answer session following their presentations. If you are a Wildcat fan, this will be a very informative event you will not want to miss!

Recently, Commissioner Fullerton successfully piloted the conference through the expansion and has added a number of excellent institutions to the Big Sky Conference. His efforts have solidified the conference and turned it into a regional power. His expansion efforts will bring much appreciated exposure to the Big Sky and to Weber State University. Commissioner Fullerton has been eagerly addressing the recent financial dilemmas that are affecting various FBS football programs, and has invited the University of Idaho and Utah State University to join the Big Sky Conference as a viable option to athletic and institutional solvency.

The event is Free to the public however, the Young Alumni Association, are requesting participants to make a donation to support the Young Alumni Scholarship Fund.

 

[talhadfoursteals]

Why hasn't this been posted on Weberhoops? This is a pretty big deal for a university to host the conferences commissioner.

 

[weberwildcat]

someone report on here. i would love to attend but i am not available.

 

[wsucatfan]

This would be bigger news if it was the WAC Commissioner at WSU... But I am also interested to hear what is said.

 

[Wildcat 100]

This would be bigger news if it was the WAC Commissioner at WSU... But I am also interested to hear what is said.

me too, please keep us posted....thanks

 

[SDHornet]

Very cool that WSU hosted the BSC Commish. Anyone have some input as to what was discussed? Specifically:

With the added full members, will the BSC hoops tournament organization change? If so, will a predetermined location be selected to provide for increased TV exposure and easier fan access?

What is going on with UND and their never ending name debacle? Can the BSC kick them out to save everyone the travel costs?

Now that the BSC revenue is to be shared between even more members, are there plans to increase revenue and exposure for the conference?

When the Big Sky TV contract is renew or renegotiated, can the BSC mandate/demand a better quality image and a dependable signal feed for every sport they televise?



Yes, I realize these questions are biased and contain a lot of griping. :mrgreen:

 

[weberwildcat]

http://standard.net/topics/sports/2011/07/14/big-sky-conference-dreams-big" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[SDHornet]

Interesting article and interesting statements from Fullerton. I am curious to know if he was only 40% serious when UND was invited?

 

[Weber Pirate]

When the invite was given to UND it was expected that USD would also follow suit and join along with them. It wouldn't be nearly as bad had that happened. I think that if Fullerton would have had any indication that one or the other would not accept, the invite would not have been made to either one. Now it looks like he is looking for a way to withdraw the invite. It will happen if they don't change their mascot. :twocents:

 

[SWeberCat02]

Interesting article and interesting statements from Fullerton. I am curious to know if he was only 40% serious when UND was invited?

Yeah he dropped the ball on the UND invite.

Hey Hornet, what is the general feel amongst Sac St fans about moving to the WAC. I ask because there has been some discussion on this topic on the Utah St fan forum, with the argument that Sac and PSU would be good invites due to their being located in larger markets.

http://www.usufans.com/Forums/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=12930" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[SWeberCat02]

When the invite was given to UND it was expected that USD would also follow suit and join along with them. It wouldn't be nearly as bad had that happened. I think that if Fullerton would have had any indication that one or the other would not accept, the invite would not have been made to either one. Now it looks like he is looking for a way to withdraw the invite. It will happen if they don't change their mascot. :twocents:

I really think the original plan of inviting both schools was a bad one anyway (too many schools and too big of a geographic footprint). Neither school should have been considered at all. Fullerton panicked when all the western FBS conferences started to expand/shift. He was trying to position the conference for when the conference was raided by the WAC, which has never happened. But if he was going to invite both schools he should have waited until both schools signed on for sure.

 

[SDHornet]

When the invite was given to UND it was expected that USD would also follow suit and join along with them. It wouldn't be nearly as bad had that happened. I think that if Fullerton would have had any indication that one or the other would not accept, the invite would not have been made to either one. Now it looks like he is looking for a way to withdraw the invite. It will happen if they don't change their mascot. :twocents:

I understand this was the case, but you think Fullerton could have attached a condition into the invite saying that it only stands if both UXD’s accept the invite. Maybe there are legal issues with that but who knows. Fullerton should have done a better job at looking out for the existing membership and realizing how terrible of a travel situation it would be for the conference if only one of the Dakota’s accepted an invite.

 

[SDHornet]

Interesting article and interesting statements from Fullerton. I am curious to know if he was only 40% serious when UND was invited?

Yeah he dropped the ball on the UND invite.

Hey Hornet, what is the general feel amongst Sac St fans about moving to the WAC. I ask because there has been some discussion on this topic on the Utah St fan forum, with the argument that Sac and PSU would be good invites due to their being located in larger markets.

http://www.usufans.com/Forums/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=12930" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Well the last time I discussed that on this board my head was bit off. I recommend heading to sacbuzz and running a search for “WAC” threads. We had a lot of discussion last year and quite frankly I think everyone is tired of running different scenarios and what not. Plus combine that with the pathetic fiscal standing of CA and even if we wanted to move to the WAC, I don’t think it is fiscally viable at this point.

Personally I am on the fence. One day I might feel it’s a great idea, another day I might feel it’s a terrible idea. I think a lot of Hornet fans feel the same way. The discussion is nowhere near as intense as it is on eGriz, but there have been some discussions. In the past, the Sac president and AD publicly stated that going to the WAC was a goal, but that was prior to all the WAC raids and I don’t think they have publicly stated their intentions.

http://hornets.bigskyfans.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=1309" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I agree that the WAC is making a move on larger markets. It’s the only way that conference can have a positive financial outlook. Adding PSU and Sac State would be great for the WAC, but I don’t think either school is in a position to move in the next 3-5 years. The main problem with the WAC now is that it is essentially the same as the BSC but with the higher costs of FBS. We would add one regional member (SJSU, assuming they stay put) but replace WSU for USU, ISU for UI, and a bunch of Texas schools no one in Sac will care to see. We would be changing one far flung conference for another and I don’t see fans filling the seats for that lineup.

On the other hand the WAC would open some doors. Home OOC games with regional teams could be possible immediately (Nevada, Fresno State, SDSU, UNLV) and with facility improvements home OOC against marquee teams could be possible (Cal, Stanford maybe a few other Pac-12 schools). Also the ESPN deal would allow for regional telecasts of events which could increase interest. I think an added fundraising boost would be seen if a move was made. It would be harder for alumni and fans to ignore Hornet athletics if it were in the WAC. Ultimately I don’t see the benefits outweighing the costs; non-BCS bowls are a huge expense for participant schools & coaching salaries are continually escalating. These costs could be outweighed if the WAC can establish a presence out west (CA specifically to minimize travel), produce a better product and land a lucrative TV deal with added markets.

Like I said, it’s a tough sell and there are many pros and cons. The bottom line is...well the bottom line. If the financials make sense, I think a move will be made. :twocents: