Leave the MAC?

Tricky_Falcon · Post by **Tricky_Falcon** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 6:20 pm

Does anyone else think we should leave the MAC? We're beating teams by an average of 35 pts. but a lot of fans still don't show up. The main reason I hear is the opponents we play. I think it's time to consider leaving the MAC especially when we're on the rise. I don't want to see us in C-USA but it would be nice to play some good teams and have good teams play at our place. I think Krebs could get it done. If we leave the MAC it would also force our Marketing Dept to wake up...

GREEN · Post by **GREEN** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 6:25 pm

I think that leaving the MAC would bring out more fans...of course, I mean, leaving the MAC and stepping UP to a better conference.

I'm a die-hard Marshall fan, but it's really hard to get pumped up to watch the HERD play Buffalo.

I would love to see Miami, BG, Marshall and NIU in another conference together. The top MAC teams are good, the bottom feeders are whats holding everyone down.

BGBoilermaker · Post by **BGBoilermaker** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 6:25 pm

If not C-USA, where do you suggest we go? We're not ready for the Big Ten (if they were to add member 12) and that's the only other conference in this area.

FalconKing · Post by **FalconKing** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 6:38 pm

Big East is about the only other option. I am still not sure we should give up on the MAC yet, but this year has been depressing.

BGSU_via_UDel · Post by **BGSU_via_UDel** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 7:11 pm

we absolutely are ready for the big 10. We would win 6 games or more each year and our recruiting would increase. We would be bowl eligible then and on any given year would compete with any top Big 10 team. Look last year, we took Ohio state to the wire @ OSU. Imagine if that game were at home!

rollalongFF0304 · Post by **rollalongFF0304** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 7:17 pm

I don't think leaving the MAC is a good option for BG, if it can be considered an option at all. I think the attendance problems might be solved if we moved back to the MAC East.

I suspect that we're drawing such low crowds because we're playing teams that nobody in the area really cares about. Growing up in NE Ohio, I didn't know schools like the directional Michigans and NIU even existed, let alone play football in the same conference as the Akron, Ohio, Kent bunch.

I'd be willing to bet however, that if we returned to playing the teams from the MAC East, then we might have a more enthusiastic fan base. It appears that just having a good BG team isn't enough to draw big crowds. They want to see BG play teams that either are good or that they know. And the East would do that for us.

Renewing rivalries with Akron, Kent, Ohio, and Miami can bring fans back to the Doyt and also give the major TV markets in Cleveland, Cinci and Columbus a legitimate reason to cover BGSU along with the rest of 'em.

BGBoilermaker · Post by **BGBoilermaker** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 7:23 pm

I absolutely disagree about us being ready for the Big Ten. Most of the schools in that conference have, at worst, equal talent to ours on their second teams, quaterback and receivers aside. Iowa is on their sixth or seventh running back this season, and are still a top-25 team. Could we go more than two deep at any position, and still keep our current level of production? The Big Ten schedule would wear us down. In terms of recruiting, I doubt we'd stand a chance against Michigan, OSU, Purdue, Wisconsin, Iowa, and even Michigan State, Illinois, Penn State and Minnesota. We might be able to get some kids who are otherwise headed to Indiana or Northwestern. Minnesota's ground attack would kill us. Purdue's pass attack, when healthy, would kill us. Wisconsin wouldn't allow us to score. Michigan would pound us on either side of the ball. Remember, when we've played and even beat some of these Big Ten teams in the past, it's been in the non-conference part of the schedule, not when these teams are clicking. I know Northwestern was a bowl, but that was close, and NW isn't exactly the king of Big Ten football. As much as I love our football team, I think we would consistently finish seventh to eleventh in the Big Ten, behind most of the schools I've named in this post.

On another note, a move of conferences would have to consider other sports, namely hoops, and God knows what state our basketball program is in...

Tricky_Falcon · Post by **Tricky_Falcon** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 7:29 pm

Well you can make the same point for BG...that we weren't exactly clicking either when we went to those schools, yet we had to play at their stadium...

Our recruiting can't be too bad if we have beaten Big 10 teams and played a heck of a game at OU. We always hear how we don't have depth but when we actually play the "big boys" we beat them or come very close to it at their house.

orangeandbrown · Post by **orangeandbrown** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 7:35 pm

BGSU_via_UDel wrote:we absolutely are ready for the big 10.

Wow, its hard to know where to start.

BGBoilermaker · Post by **BGBoilermaker** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 7:35 pm

My point about depth is, would we last 8 games in a row against the Oklahomas, Ohio States and Purdues of the college football world? I watch the Big Ten week in and week out and I've seen how injuries and a lack of depth can kill a season. One example stings me especially deep this year. I'll give you a clue, look at my login name. How do you think we'd do if Omar hurt both hips and bruised his psyche to the point of no repair? Would Jason Washington win us many Big Ten games?

Tricky_Falcon · Post by **Tricky_Falcon** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 7:41 pm

Jason Washington shouldn't even be on the roster here...I'd rather see van johnson and then next year we'll have another good qb coming in with Turner.

The whole point of the thread is that people aren't coming to the games because of the competition we're playing. I'd atleast like to see what we could do week in and week out against BCS teams.

Bleeding Orange · Post by **Bleeding Orange** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 7:42 pm

Our football program aside, if you want to know why we wont be going to a bigger conference any time soon go knock and Dan Dakich's door and ask him. Start with the question: "Why is our recruiting so unbelievably horrible?"

BGBoilermaker · Post by **BGBoilermaker** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 7:43 pm

Yeah, I'm just trying to point out that, at the moment, we are more suited and ready for a conference like the Big East, than the Big Ten. I think that large of a jump would seriously retard our program's growth.

Tricky_Falcon · Post by **Tricky_Falcon** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 7:47 pm

Bleeding Orange wrote:Our football program aside, if you want to know why we wont be going to a bigger conference any time soon go knock and Dan Dakich's door and ask him. Start with the question: "Why is our recruiting so unbelievably horrible?"

Well I wouldnt talk about our basketball recruiting just yet. I'm still waiting to see our freshman big man that is supposed to be pretty good. Also our recruiting class for next season isn't looking that bad either.

bgbrandon · Post by **bgbrandon** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 9:45 pm

BGSU_via_UDel wrote:we absolutely are ready for the big 10. We would win 6 games or more each year and our recruiting would increase. We would be bowl eligible then and on any given year would compete with any top Big 10 team. Look last year, we took Ohio state to the wire @ OSU. Imagine if that game were at home!

I agree with this statement to a certain extent... I think our offense is very similar to Northwestern's offense. The speedy spread offense is a surprising changeup for big ten teams that are used to playing hard nose football each week. Therefore saying this, I think we would be really good at first but then the BIG 10 teams would catch on and maybe stop us. Plus..I really just dont see BG in the Big Ten, the big ten are a collection of schools with excellent academic programs as well..not to bash BG's but youd be fooling yourself if you said BG was better academically than any BIG 10 school, thats just how it is. I think our best fit would be conference USA but I would like to be in the Big East, I would love to go to all those games because the competition is better than a directional michigan, plus we will get a chance to play in a bowl if we have more than 1 loss. So I think it would be wise to get out while we are playing like a bunch of badasses