http://www.patriotleague.org/sports/m-fo...10aac.html

Georgetown is an associate member here and Fordham, who decided to start offering FB scholarships last year, may have to look for a new conference. Fordham is not eligible for the PL's automatic bid.

Fordham will play two FBS members in 2011 as a result of offering scholarships (Army and Connecticut). Colgate was interested in playing Syracuse on a semi-regular basis as the game would count towards bowl eligibility for SU if Colgate offered football scholarships.

Looks like Fordham might have to find a new place for FCS football.

I wonder if the CAA would be interested. Would certainly help schools like UNH and Maine, with Hofstra and Northeastern dropping football, Rhode Island downgrading to the NEC, and UMASS possibly heading to FBS.

CAA could be interested if it were to house Charlotte as well.

I heard it suggested on another message board that both UNH and Maine may be looking to ditch the CAA in the near future. With Rhode Island leaviing and UMass and potentially Nova moving to FBS, only those two schools would be left in the northeast. It would put them on an island. I don't know that I agree with this, but it was message board fodder.

(12-17-2010 04:58 PM)army56mike Wrote:  I heard it suggested on another message board that both UNH and Maine may be looking to ditch the CAA in the near future. With Rhode Island leaviing and UMass and potentially Nova moving to FBS, only those two schools would be left in the northeast. It would put them on an island.

Where would UNH and UMaine go? There certainly isn't a comparable option out there competition wise to the CAA. The northern half is dropping the sport, dropping down, or moving up, but I'm not sure what options they have.

The only realistic option if geography is their concern is the Northeast Conference. If the budget is overly strained, perhaps they ditch UDel and Nova for Sacred Heart and St. Francis. UNH would get the auto-bid every year for a while, but I suspect they would be pulled down to the NEC level competition wise, rather than pulling the conference up.

I believe you only need six schools for an FCS conference to have an autobid. UNH and Maine could align w/Stony Brook (currently playing in the Big South), Delaware, Fordham & Villanova. Assuming 'Nova stays at the FCS level.

Meanwhile the CAA as a football conference would have a heavy presence in Virginia (four schools: ODU, W&M, Richmond, JMU), Towson & Georgia St. And if Charlotte is interested. Maybe merge w/Big South football (Charleston Southern, Liberty, VMI, Gardner-Webb, Presbyterian & Coastal Carolina) where there are plenty of schools within a common footprint.

Maine and NH will most likely follow RI and drop down to the NEC if UMass moves up to the MAC. Fordham is looking to move up and may also join the NEC. There is talk that the CAA wants to get a combination of Fordham, Albany and Stonybrook. This being done in an attempt to keep the Northern teams viable. NH is not in bad shape, but Maine's facilities are all inadequate and there is no $$ to improve them. Maine will most likely drop next. Neither NH nor UMass can afford to be the only CAA in NE. The travel costs are already bleeding them.
Ironically, there was a rumor that Hofstra dropped football to concentrate on basketball and push for an A-10 invite. They were being talked up as a replacement for Fordham. Supposedly the A-10 was unhappy with Fordham. The A-10 wants a flagship program in NYC and Fordham had done nothing to become that. Hofstra was hoping to step in.
UDel is not going anywhere. It is a premiere team in the premiere FCS conf. It even packs its stadium and does well financially. The only place that UDel may go is up to FBS level as part of a group with some of the other CAA's. That rumor has been circulation for a couple of years now.

Where did you come up with the teams Fordham, Albany, Stoneybrook? Is this your opinion or rumor or fact? Also, the CAA will have to pay attention to the mix of teams they invite, if they do at all. They are a hybrid conference much like the BEast and Big South.

(12-21-2010 08:25 AM)army56mike Wrote:  Where did you come up with the teams Fordham, Albany, Stoneybrook? Is this your opinion or rumor or fact? Also, the CAA will have to pay attention to the mix of teams they invite, if they do at all. They are a hybrid conference much like the BEast and Big South.

If you are asking me, I went strictly w/geography and it was opinion. Stony Brook is football-only in the Big South and left the NEC because they wanted to offer more FB scholarships (I believe the NEC has a limit lower than the FCS limit of 63) and the NEC, at the time, did not have an autobid to the FCS playoffs. Fordham is going to offer scholarships regardless of whether the rest of the PL does. In 2012, Fordham will be removed from the PL schedules and needs to find a home.

New Hampshire, travelling to Stony Brook, Fordham, Philly area schools (Delaware & 'Nova) would be better than travelling to Virginia and points south.

(12-17-2010 12:46 PM)mattsarz Wrote:  http://www.patriotleague.org/sports/m-fo...10aac.html

Georgetown is an associate member here and Fordham, who decided to start offering FB scholarships last year, may have to look for a new conference. Fordham is not eligible for the PL's automatic bid.

Looks like Fordham might have to find a new place for FCS football.

Maybe Georgetown, too.

(12-21-2010 02:11 PM)DFW HOYA Wrote:  

(12-17-2010 12:46 PM)mattsarz Wrote:  http://www.patriotleague.org/sports/m-fo...10aac.html

Georgetown is an associate member here and Fordham, who decided to start offering FB scholarships last year, may have to look for a new conference. Fordham is not eligible for the PL's automatic bid.

Looks like Fordham might have to find a new place for FCS football.

Maybe Georgetown, too.

Are you aware if Georgetown voted in favor for FB scholarships or had that position? I always assumed that Georgetown was not in favor of adding scholarships based on its existing funding of the sport. Lafayette was vocally against adding them.

Go G'town. Build that program up..... all the way up..... and dobit fast.

I'd like to see Georgetown step it up. Washington, D.C. is football crazy. If the Hoyas moved up to FBS and actually had a decent team the entire city would jump on the bandwagon...

(12-21-2010 08:25 AM)army56mike Wrote:  Where did you come up with the teams Fordham, Albany, Stoneybrook? Is this your opinion or rumor or fact? Also, the CAA will have to pay attention to the mix of teams they invite, if they do at all. They are a hybrid conference much like the BEast and Big South.

If you're asking me, it is a little more than just strait geography. I am a college football junkie and so I surf around all over the place reading about what is going on and where. This is all speculation coming from conversations with UMass fans and Fordham alumni.

Albany is a geography guess. They are as close to UMass, NH and Maine as the CAA could find. However, there seems to be no interest in making the investment to move up to the CAA.
Fordham has been looking to upgrade for a few years. The idea of moving up in the FCS world really gained momentum two years ago when Hofsta dropped football. I don't think they can pull a jump up to the CAA. Most likely will explore the NEC option.
StonyBrook is a combination of both. It already plays at a higher level than either Albany or Fordham and has travel issues like the NE CAAs. Pushing up to the CAA would at least mean regional rivalries in conf that it does not have now.

(12-21-2010 10:52 AM)mattsarz Wrote:  

(12-21-2010 08:25 AM)army56mike Wrote:  Where did you come up with the teams Fordham, Albany, Stoneybrook? Is this your opinion or rumor or fact? Also, the CAA will have to pay attention to the mix of teams they invite, if they do at all. They are a hybrid conference much like the BEast and Big South.

If you are asking me, I went strictly w/geography and it was opinion. Stony Brook is football-only in the Big South and left the NEC because they wanted to offer more FB scholarships (I believe the NEC has a limit lower than the FCS limit of 63) and the NEC, at the time, did not have an autobid to the FCS playoffs. Fordham is going to offer scholarships regardless of whether the rest of the PL does. In 2012, Fordham will be removed from the PL schedules and needs to find a home.

New Hampshire, travelling to Stony Brook, Fordham, Philly area schools (Delaware & 'Nova) would be better than travelling to Virginia and points south.

The NEC schools only offer 40 scholarships per year vs the 63 actually allowed in the FCS division. The Patriot League only gives aid on an as need basis. I don't know the exact formula used to determine the amount of the aid for each player. Maybe someone else knows