Albany Football

[Ruler]

What is most disturbing is that this is the kind of thing that would cause a gentleman like Dr. McElroy to leave. He is a class gentlemman and a great AD with a vision towards developing a sports program that includes scholarship football. If the University is not behind it I could see him moving on (and rightfully so although I hope that does not happen) to a school where athletics is a higher priority. Just a side note with all the spending Hitchcock did on academics and all the spending the "new kid on the block" is planning I have yet to see any payoff. We are still a middle of the road state school known more for parties then academics.

 

By the same token I see the timetable as exactly as he layed out. Stadium should be ready by 08 and full scholarship football or some semnblence of it (depending on league, CAA or A-10 realignment )by 07. The article said stadium would be discussed and hopefully implementerd in 16 months. That works out about right timeline wise. But anything can happen.

 

I was physically on the SUNY Buffalo campus this past weekend and went to the stadium. It is a beautiful complex. Why Buffalo and not Albany? Someone please lay this out for me? I koow this probably has been explained before but I can't understand how they got funding for a new facility and scholarships and Albany struggles in this department? Just a quick note would be appreciated.

 

On a final note, be glad we are not playing Hampton. We are not prepatred for them. They would beat Hofstra by 20. I will leave it at that. Bring on Iona or Lasalle.

 

In closing, if this scholarship /stadium thing does not come to be, Albany football as we know it will be done! MM football will be obsolete in 3-5 years. Besides everyone I speak with is not interested in Albany VS Sacred Heart. They want Albany vs Montana on a competitive basis!

[UAalum72]

Why Buffalo and not Albany? Someone please lay this out for me?  I koow this probably has been explained before but I can't understand how they got funding for a new facility and scholarships and Albany struggles in this department? Just a quick note would be appreciated.

I think for scholarships Buffalo used its endowment from when it was a private university playing major football - it also had alumni who remembered that era. The stadium is another matter.

 

They also consider themselves the flagship of the State U. A few years ago Tom Golisano pledged $100M if UB changed its name to The University of New York, but for some reason nothing came of it.

 

Bring on Iona or Lasalle.

 

...Besides everyone I speak with is not interested in Albany VS Sacred Heart.

 

If they're not interested in Albany vs. SHU, they sure won't be interested in Iona and LaSalle.

[Classof72/74]

 

 

 

I was physically on the SUNY Buffalo campus this past weekend and went to the stadium. It is a beautiful complex. Why Buffalo and not Albany? Someone please lay this out for me? I koow this probably has been explained before but I can't understand how they got funding for a new facility and scholarships and Albany struggles in this department? Just a quick note would be appreciated.

 

 

While UB does have a state-of-the-art stadium I wouldn't hold their program up as an example of how 1A football raises the profile of an institution. As I noted in an earlier post (Football 1A vs 1AA) UB is one of those schools that fell short on the 1A requirement of an averager attendance of 15,000. In fact take a look at the football box scores for UB's last 3 home game of '05 and you'll see that attendace didn't top 7000 for any of them. In fact the gate for each of the football games was about the same as the attendance for last Saturday's UB vs Akron basketball game (a sell-out for Alumni Arena at 6345).

 

What saved UB football from worse numbers in '05 was 30k for the Syracuse game, and I venture that most of the were wearing orange :-/

[DaneFan2k3]

In my opinion, a lot of the money at UA has been badly mismanaged. Sematec is great - except it does nothing to help the undergraduate profile.

 

Like you said - still known for parties, not academics.

 

Instead of putting resources into badly outdated classrooms, more professors, funding for the arts (liberal or otherwise) ... it all went into the new library and life sciences initiative. Which, it seems to me, is more geared toward research and money-making than actual learning (or at least evenly divided between the two).

 

There are not many functions on campus, so the kids go out and party (or stay in and party). Instead of funding student activities and athletics, the money has been spent elsewhere.

 

I think that most people, including myself, are waiting to see the big initiative that is going to have to be launched to make the stadium and other renovations a reality. Because until I see some funding, either through a public/private outreach program or through the President simply allocating money ... the stadium isn't real, to me. It will always be plans on paper until we get to that point.

[Ruler]

DaneFan2K3

 

Very well put. What I envision is a privatly funded stadium which will mean it will NOT be ready until 2010. I believe scholarship football will be here in 2007 as Dr. cElroy has stated. Unfortunatly we will fail to bring in top recruits because our facility will be inferior to every one we compete against. This will cause UA to suffer in the W-L area. We will be very similar to Rhode Island...scholarship football, but underfunded and will develope a losing tradition.

 

If we are to avoid the Buffalo or Rhode Island problem the school will have to fund football as they do at Georgia Southern, Montana, Delaware, etc if they are to rise to the top ranks. I often look to schools like Coastal Carolina, Florida Atlantic, Florida International and ask how can they do it (no program 5 years ago ...now full scholarship with winning records...BTW that annoys me to no end that we can't/won't do the same) and not Albany? I believe it comes down to committment. I am beginning to believe we do not have it for football. If that is the case I would suggest dropping the sport. If they are committed then they need to stoip sienafaning around and do it.

 

As I said I believe scholarship football will come to Albany in the fall of 2007. Which program will we become? Montana or Rhde Island????? Only President Hall knows!!!!! Lets see if he does for Albany what he did at Utah. His smug remarks about the Football facility is a slap in every players or ex players face...You don't like it you hack, then do something about it...not 16 months from now...right now!My donation dollars to UA depend on it!