Football @ Cincinatti in 2011?

[Ruler 79]

Is there something else happening with the football program that we aren't seeing just yet? Seems a bit odd...no?

 

I don't think odd would be my word of choice since the public never seems to know the whole story. That's why its sometimes aggravating that some people on and off this board just assume by no news that nothing is happening... so they complain that the school is doing nothing. The school doesn't owe us news until its for real and not just negotiation talk. I don't know anything more than most people on here about inside info on the program, but they might very well be in talks with other conferences just not publicly, hopefully this news might mean we are closer to something we all have been hoping for, a better conference!

 

Sounds like an exciting game!

 

I don't think anyone has ever said that the school OWES us anything.

[uofalbany]

Then who scheduled it? Seems to me something this big would be run by him.

 

I think Dr. McElroy has been in charge of football scheduling for a while.

 

Yes, you are right DF.

 

Great day for UAlbany Football and the entire athletic department.

Very good work Dr.M. Let's hope this is the beginning of alot of great news to come.

[Ruler 79]

Unless we are @ 50+ rides or we are CAA bound by 2011 this is a bad idea. I know the money will be great and the exposure is terriffic but c'mon! Why not schedule Penn State and USC while we are at it?! Start slow with Army or Temple where we have a chance. Cincy is no f*#king joke.

 

Lets just ASSUME we r ready to leave the NEC by then. Unless of course the NEC is ready to jump up.

[MRSGDG]

Is there something else happening with the football program that we aren't seeing just yet? Seems a bit odd...no?

 

I don't think odd would be my word of choice since the public never seems to know the whole story. That's why its sometimes aggravating that some people on and off this board just assume by no news that nothing is happening... so they complain that the school is doing nothing. The school doesn't owe us news until its for real and not just negotiation talk. I don't know anything more than most people on here about inside info on the program, but they might very well be in talks with other conferences just not publicly, hopefully this news might mean we are closer to something we all have been hoping for, a better conference!

 

Sounds like an exciting game!

 

I don't think anyone has ever said that the school OWES us anything.

 

I didn't say that others said that, that statement was just my opinion. What I said was that some complain that nothing is happening based on not hear anything.

[Clickclack]

Is there something else happening with the football program that we aren't seeing just yet? Seems a bit odd...no?

 

I don't think odd would be my word of choice since the public never seems to know the whole story. That's why its sometimes aggravating that some people on and off this board just assume by no news that nothing is happening... so they complain that the school is doing nothing. The school doesn't owe us news until its for real and not just negotiation talk. I don't know anything more than most people on here about inside info on the program, but they might very well be in talks with other conferences just not publicly, hopefully this news might mean we are closer to something we all have been hoping for, a better conference!

 

Sounds like an exciting game!

 

I don't think anyone has ever said that the school OWES us anything.

 

I didn't say that others said that, that statement was just my opinion. What I said was that some complain that nothing is happening based on not hear anything.

 

I'm probably guilty as charged.....

[uofalbany]

Unless we are @ 50+ rides or we are CAA bound by 2011 this is a bad idea. I know the money will be great and the exposure is terriffic but c'mon! Why not schedule Penn State and USC while we are at it?! Start slow with Army or Temple where we have a chance. Cincy is no f*#king joke.

 

Lets just ASSUME we r ready to leave the NEC by then. Unless of course the NEC is ready to jump up.

 

I'm struggling to grasp the concept of it being a bad idea.

 

Big Money, Exposure.... as you said... are good things.

Chance of our student athletes to play on a BIG stage. Good thing.

Big time opponents, Big stage.... on our schedule is another recruiting tool helping land better athletes.

Possibly more alumni gaining interest in our football program, by playing Big East, FBS football programs.

Possibly more regional football fans jumping on the UAlbany bandwagon.

 

Those are some fine reasons for doing so, even without the increase in schollies or conference upgrade.

Although I believe they both are coming.

[danefan]

Unless we are @ 50+ rides or we are CAA bound by 2011 this is a bad idea. I know the money will be great and the exposure is terriffic but c'mon! Why not schedule Penn State and USC while we are at it?! Start slow with Army or Temple where we have a chance. Cincy is no f*#king joke.

 

Lets just ASSUME we r ready to leave the NEC by then. Unless of course the NEC is ready to jump up.

 

I'm struggling to grasp the concept of it being a bad idea.

 

Big Money, Exposure.... as you said... are good things.

Chance of our student athletes to play on a BIG stage. Good thing.

Big time opponents, Big stage.... on our schedule is another recruiting tool helping land better athletes.

Possibly more alumni gaining interest in our football program, by playing Big East, FBS football programs.

Possibly more regional football fans jumping on the UAlbany bandwagon.

 

Those are some fine reasons for doing so, even without the increase in schollies or conference upgrade.

Although I believe they both are coming.

 

I think what Ruler sees is bad is the realistic potential that the game could end up 70-0. That's a pretty big downside, but I'm of the opinion that the upside is greater in the long run.

[Ruler 79]

As usual Danefan you are dead on. 70-0 is a very real scenario. I don't worry about physical difference(although Cincy will be WAY WAY bigger and WAY WAY faster)as much as I worry about the mental beating we will absorb. This is the kind of game that coul push Fordie towards retirement. Do you think he wants to stand on the sidelines in front of 60,000 fans and look at the scoreboard in the 4th with 7 minutes to play and the score reads 56-7? He has to walk across the field and shake hands with the other coach after this debacle. I don't want to see him have to do that for some bull $hit payday. If we are funded to 50+ the score will be 35-14. Still a loss but a reasonable loss.

 

 

Appy over Michigan happens once every 10 years and Appy is a powerhouse and are loaded with 63 rides. CCSU played a bad Westen Michigan team and was beat badly. Western Mich probably could of scored 100 if they wanted to. The score indicates it was close for a while....guess what,It wasn't! I listened to some of that game and the starters were out before halftime.

[UAalum72]

Start slow with Army or Temple where we have a chance. Cincy is no f*#king joke.

 

Check some of the forums of other low/mid eastern football programs - Ivy, Fordham, Patriot. ALL OF THEM say they should play Army, Temple, Navy, Rice, Duke. Those teams could schedule thirty games a year against all the low-level teams who want to play 'some' FBS teams. A beating by Cincy would probably do more for Albany than a closer game against North Texas or ULaLa (U of Louisiana Lafayette, who try to bill themselves Louisiana U).

[danefan]

And therein lies the issue here and the one that fans will never agree on.

 

I will say that I err towards the side of getting killed by a Big East team is better than almost beating a bad FBS teams (Army, etc...).

 

The funny thing is guys (and gal), I seem to remember the exact same argument when we really started playing the top FCS schools (Montana, Delaware, etc.) on a yearly basis.

 

When we played at Montana in 2002 we were completely overmatched. I'm not afraid to say there wasn't a chance in hell we'd win that game. Even though we got killed I really believe that those games helped recruit the kids we have now. This game against a Big East team will definitely help recruit.

 

Plus, we needed this to keep up with SBU on some level. They are at South Florida next year and while they have 3 other things to have over a recruits head (conference, stadium and more schollys), they can no longer hang the BCS games issue over us.

[danefan]

Official announcement.

http://www.ualbanysports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=15800&ATCLID=204782642

[uofalbany]

I think that this news is nothing but fantastic for our football program.

 

The only argument that made me pause for a moment was: would this have a negative impact with Coach Ford.

 

He's a football man, and I believe the growth of UAlbany football is a direct result of his

willingness, eagerness, and determination to find success within any football system he's presented.

I think he's enjoyed like hell the games versus Montana, UMass, Delaware, UNH, Hofstra, etc.. and I know he's realized those games have started having direct results when recruiting.

 

Keep adding pieces to the puzzle, and we will be playing mean games against bigger and better opponents, even though we are supposed to lose them. I also think it may energize Fordie, as would running out on FORD field at UAlbany Stadium, with 15k people in the stadium. He may very well want to go out that way.

 

I think that will cap off a brilliant coaching career, the right way!

[danefan]

Gazette Article

 

http://www.dailygaze...ig-day-ualbany/

 

Meanwhile, the Danes announced that they will play their first-ever Division I Football Bowl Subdivision game against the University of Cincinnati in 2011.

 

The Great Danes have been a Division I Football Championship Subdivision team (partiial scholarship) since 1999 and have won four Northeast Conference titles in 2002, 2003, 2007 and 2008. UAlbany also won last year's Gridiron Classic and the 2002 ECAC Bowl Classic.

 

Cincinnati is the fifth-oldest football program in the nation behind Rutgers, Michigan, Navy and Minnesota. The Bearcats won the Big East championship and were ranked 17th in both the Associated Press and USA Today Top 25 polls last year. The Bearcats play at Nippert Stadium, which has a seating capacity of 35,000.

 

"This is a great challenge and an opportunity to see how far we have come over the last 10 years," said UAlbany head coach Bob Ford, who started the program as a club team in 1970 and has 234 career wins. "It will be a true measuring stick against a very good opponent.

 

UAlbany athletic director Lee McElroy also told me that the Great Danes will receive a six-figure guarantee for playing the Bearcats. "We haven't worked out the details yet, but the money certainly will help to improve the quality of our athletic program," he said.

 

"We've been working on this for several years. We continually ask our coaches and student-athletes to challenge themselves. As universities, Cincinnati and UAlbany have similar missions as public research institutions. While we are a couple of years away from playing, today's announcement signifies another important step in the evolution of a program that continues to distinguish itself throughout its brief FCS history."

 

Great news. Now, if only the Great Danes could build a stadium worthy of such opponents returning the favor and playing UAlbany here in Albany. That would be a true measuring stick of how strong the football program has become.

 

[Michigan_Dane]

Yes!

 

The best news I've heard all year. Fantastic.

 

My neighbor is a Cincinnati grad. I finally can talk to someone about college football... I can go and sit my butt in a big stadium and talk about my team. I can tailgate with thousands of lunatics. I love it!!!

 

I love college football!

[danefan]

Not only do we get to watch the Danes in front of a big crowd against a BCS opponent, we get to do it in one of the coolest stadiums in the US:

 

Nippert Stadium was built in 1902 and is the 5th oldest stadium in all of college football behind Franklin Field (Penn), the Yale Bowl, Harvard Stadium and Bobby Dodd Stadium (G-Tech).