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I'm personally a bit over griping about the merits of the MAC vs others and whatever topics our threads have degenerated into recently. I'm ready to talk football again. So in that spirit, my initial thoughts on all of our opponents this season, plus the three MAC teams we do not play.

Ohio State

• We all know who they are, we all know who their head coach is, we all know how deep a roster they have.
• According to Phil Steele, Ohio State is the least experienced team in the country this year. Lots of new faces, lots of departures last year.
  • Still, this is a deep roster and overall at least as talented as 2015 Tennessee and 2014 Wisconsin.
• Barrett is the best QB we will see all year. We get him out of the way week one.
• OSU has a bunch of unknown running backs. Considering who we're talking about, one of them will probably have a fantastic season and the name "Ezekiel Elliot" will be as memorable as "Justin Zwick" come season's end.
• OSU is probably using this game and the following week Tulsa as "warm-ups" for Oklahoma a couple weeks later. I would love to catch them looking ahead.

North Dakota

• UND went 5-7 last year but was better than 5-7 may indicate.
  • They started off with a win over Wyoming (who was blown out by EMU) and also beat Portland State, the same squaud who beat Washington State (24-17) and North Texas (66-7)
  • UND finished the season hot offensively, scoring 40+ in their final three.
• I've never seen them play so I'm going off spring game footage and stats from last year. So quick observations ...
  • There is a good running back and as a unit the offense ranked #12 in FCS in rushing last year
  • The QB could use some more zip to his passes
  • Defensively they finished 6 in FCS in rushing defense and bottom of the barrel in passing defense. I have a tendency to think teams passed not because ND could consistently stop the run but because they were hopeless against the pass.

Mid Tennessee State

• The QB is the coach's kid, and he had a good 2015 and could have a better 2016.
• Last year in this slot we played Memphis. MTSU is a definite step back from Memphis offensively but think of MTSU as Memphis-lite. They should be gameplanning for a shootout because I don't see their defense stopping us.
• They are a pass first offense. In the running game, there isn't really a star. Instead they RB by committee.
• They return a 1000 yard receiver. He plays a lot like Ronnie Moore.
• If our defense plays well against MTSU, I'll feel good about the season. If this is a shootout, I'll be having 2014 flashbacks.

Memphis

• Memphis / Bowling Green was an outstanding game that came down to the wire last year as both teams played such similar styles.
• Now both teams are replacing excellent coaches with first year head coaches who assisted on the offensive side for prolific offenses, and both teams are replacing all-timers at QB.
• Honestly I don't know what to make of Memphis. Their new head coach is a Todd Graham guy. He'll put together a great offense even without Lynch and some major WR losses.
• I assume their D will take a step forward. Where last year they had to replace nearly the entire defense, this year nearly the entire defense returns.
• I believe this should be a close game. If it is anything like last year's, it will be well worth the ticket price.

Eastern Michigan

• EMU has the following going for them:
  • All of last year's offensive line returns
  • The QB returns
  • A workable two deep on both sides of the field
• Will it lead to a turnaround? No. However, I cannot help but see that Creighton is building something at EMU. I don't personally expect to see Creighton win the MAC west ever at EMU, but I could see bowl eligibility in the coming seasons at this rate.
• Still, this is EMU we are talking about. The talent level gap between EMU and the upper echelon of the conference is pretty noticeable.
• What I'm getting at is EMU is going to be far better than last year even if the record does not indicate such. They are probably at least a year or two away from bowl eligibility. And I could see them shocking somebody this year.
  • It won't be us.

Ohio

• OU was a great surprise this last year. Just when I was ready to write something nice about Solich for his retirement, he put together a great regular season.
• OU, injuries and all, was dreadful much of last year but health improved and they put together a solid end of season run.
• This year, QB Vick is gone. He was a good passer and a great runner. Now it is Sprague's turn. He too is a dual threat player.
• And despite losing one of their top two backs, the running backs and receivers should be solid, perhaps explosive.
• There is some rebuilding to do in pass defense and offensive line.
• If we beat Ohio, we should win the MAC East again. These guys are easily the top rival.

UT

• Beat these guys. I've had it with them.
• UT lost their head coach to ... Iowa State? And then the coaching search process was handled so poorly it will be used as lessons for ADs going into the future.
• The team is pretty stacked. There are some defensive losses to replace. The offense will again rely on the running game and they return solid experience at QB.
• I personally expect a step back given some key player losses and a new coaching staff. And does anybody besides me see Jason Candle as a poor man's Gregg Brandon?
• And BTW, the last two years, our team has peaked in the first half of October. Guess when we catch UT this year.

MU

• It will be nice playing these guys. We have won 4 of the last 5 and I believe the streak will continue.
• This program was gutted by the previous coach, Treadwell. The coach before, Haywood, was able to win with patching together a barely workable roster, some coaching magic, and a little bit of luck
  • Yes, I still remember the phantom interception in the fog.
• MU is recruiting well. I don't know much about Chuck Martin as he has been working with the previous coach's team and his own freshmen. I can't really say I know what he wants to do with the team.
• Regardless, get your kicks in now. This is a proud program and the right coach will build them back up. Is Chuck Martin the right one?
• And talk about experience. MU returns almost everybody on both sides of the field. This reminds me a lot of our 2011. The talent is there, but the talent is full of sophomores who started much earlier than their counterparts on other teams.

Northern Illinois

• NIU is my favorite west program because they are run so damn well.
• Part of me feels like NIU is looking at a decline. They snuck into the MAC title game last year, they don't have the stars they've had in recent years, their head coach is not rumored for big jobs every year.
  • Still, this is a talented and deep team. They are not my west pick (WMU), so I'll look awfully stupid if NIU wins the west yet again.
• NIU always has an outstanding offensive line. They have some pieces to replace but with their depth they'll be fine.
• There is absolutely no way NIU has the same injury problems they had last year. So when we play these guys, they will be at full strength.
• The results of this game will probably deeply impact both division races. I could see this game being a tiebreaker, perhaps in both divisions.

Akron

• I'm still shocked that after our complete shellacking of Akron last year, they rallied to get to and win a bowl game.
• Akron's top two strengths last year were the offensive line and the linebackers.
  • And none of them return. I'm serious. Anybody in those two units who did anything significant is gone.
• Beyond those two voids, Akron returns what could be a team to make a run at the MAC east. I just don't see them replacing their strengths so quickly.
• I'm expecting Akron to take a step back this year and then in a year or two take another step forward.
• The last time we lost to Akron was 2006, with Ruben Ruiz and the phantom offensive pass interference. Let's keep this winning streak alive.

Kent State

• If Kent State can find an offense, you are looking at a team similar to our 2012 squad. This defense is legit.
  • And the defense was legit last year until our offense ripped them a new one.
• Offensively, they lose RB Durham, who I couldn't believe was still around. Beyond him, everybody is back.
  • For better or for worse. This offense couldn't do anything well last year and was on the wrong side of three shutouts, all to MAC East opponents.
• Defensively, they'll be solid. They return nearly everybody from a defense that last year held most teams in range.
  • Most teams did not include us or anyone else with a pulse. Their lack of offense came back to hurt two-fold against the better teams because not just did the offense have to work with a deficit, they also left Kent's defense on the field too long.
• Basically Kent took care of business defensively against bad teams. Now is the time to step up and do it against good teams too. And having an offense to give their defense a breather on occasion will help.
• All they need to do is find something, anything, on offense they can do well besides punting. If they can, Kent could make a run at a bowl game.

Buffalo

• Lance Leipold is an outstanding coach. Give him time. UB may very well be the next MAC dynasty, but it will take some time to build.
• This year, UB returns a solid offensive line and a solid defense. You may think all the pieces are in place for a big step forward.
• However, they do not return their QB and some other offensive playmakers. Barring an incredible reload there, UB is not primed for a step forward this year.
• The UB rivalry is always fun and so I expect we'll have another good one. How many of our games in the last decade have come down to the wire?
  • Really, almost all of them.

And the rest of the MAC ...

Western Michigan

• Easily my MAC favorite. Best backfield the conference has seen in years, an experienced defense, and a like-him-or-hate-him head coach who can out-recruit half the Big Ten.
• Their schedule includes both Illinois Big Ten teams and Georgia Southern. I kid you not, WMU can sweep their schedule. Not that I'm expecting it to happen but it is doable.

Central Michigan

• Under Enos, CMU was a talented team with a dufus of a head coach who made every team he inherited worse. Why he still has a job is beyond me.
• One year under John Bonamego and you can see the direction they are headed in. CMU has reasons for excitement, including perhaps the MAC's best QB in Cooper Rush.
• And I just have to say, one of the MAC's best stories in recent years is Bonamego has been declared cancer free. Check out this story about his day-to-day in 2015. How can I not like the guy after that read?

Ball State

• I don't have the foggiest idea what to expect out of Ball State's new head coach.
• All I can say is he has a serious building job in front of him. The floor fell out from under Lembo the last couple years and though the cupboard is not bare, it will take some time to compete in the MAC west.
• This looks like a "year 0" scenario if I've ever seen one.

All that work and you flub the title?

Flipper wrote:All that work and you flub the title?

Thanks! Fixed. Fat fingered the easy part.

Good Stuff Mark...I am heading to a few stores just to see if Phil Steele's preview is out yet. Supposed to be Tuesday but sometime they put it out early not knowing. Good look at the opposition. IMO, we could be as good as 9-3 or 10-2 or fall to around 6-6 or 7-5. Let's face it. road games at osu, Memphis, Ohio, terdledo, NIU and Akron? Not an easy road game in any of them. I think we can at least split and go 3-3. We do very well in Athens and Akron and I suspect NIU and Memphis will take a step back this year.

Almost time...#BeatOhioState

Just a casual North Dakota Fighting Sioux football fan here (and no, i will not accept reference of "Fighting Hawks", the Politically correct uninformed fans logo from hell that was mandated on us from the ncaa).

Quick correction on your summary on North Dakota... the 5-7 record you show is from the 2014 season. They were 7-4 last year, and should have been in the fcs playoffs. The fcs playoff selection committee chose a team with a 6-4 record (i think it was western illinois) who had fewer "Quality Losses", whatever that means, whereas we beat Wyoming(fbs) and Portland State like you mentioned. No extra credit for quality wins i guess. Politics left UND out, since they have not had a pedigree in FCS for long.

Background of und football... Strong d2 presence prior to fcs... Won d2 natty in 2001 ... Beat up on NDSU bison in '90 s prior to their jump to fcs... New coach bubba schweigert has this program humming, now to get the fans back into watching his project... Took over an atrocious program in 2014 , and got 3 or 4 more wins than anyone expected 1st year....

Anyhew.... Quick rundown of players to watch for:

Offense

Qb... Keaton Studsrud is the man... Has a bullet of an arm, can run extemely well... Your comment regarding zip on his arm must have been from the previous year, when one qb had a torn rotator cuff muscle, and the other thows butterflies. But checking off receivers had been a problem, so hopefully as a jr he will improve. Not sure on backups at this point... We need him to stay healthy. Captain... Earned teams respect.

RB... John Santiago is our go to guy... shifty, fast, smart.... huge stiffarm on opponents, finds holes, uses blockers as shield running downfield.... Big sky rookie running back of year, most yards ever by bigsky rookie. cons... Only 190 lb guy, but he makes you miss, so wear and tear is less than usual. Interesting fact; he came into fall camp last year as a slot receiver, but due to injury and the like, they had to try him out at rb. Thank u lord!
Also, bruisers at rb include Olivera, Norberg, Neverman, and Gordon, not including battleship sized fullbacks.... Should be a good year for this group, a major strength. Give them an A

Offensive lineman: Lost 3 key dudes from last year, 2 all conference, and 1 all american... Next group up needs to make strides to fill their spots. Tonnage will be less this year, but quickness should be up. Had quality backups, but will see how they do... Coach on this group is outstanding, makes it easier. A. J. Stockwell as a returning starting left tackle is good, and major reps for Demon Taylor, Brandon Miller, Mat Cox and Dan Bell helps out a lot. Question is will outstanding freshman starter Elijah Grady be back? Took hiatus due to family issues i believe... Will see at game time. I expect a minimum grade of B from this group, but A is possible.

WR ... Major burn runner in Clive Georges at wr... Had wrist issues last year, but came back strong at end of year... Lose a starter due to injury in Josh Seibel, a workman type possesion receiver.. Walk on Luke Stanley is a good bet to return as a starter... Tim Dulin has the tools i have heard, along with jc transfer Alex Reed... overall grade from last year I would give a C... They need to catch the ball better as a group especially with the run first attitude of this team, but young last year so experience helps. 2 outstanding tall fast true freshman wrs coming in, Toivonen especially... Had most yards receiving in state of Minnesota ( all classes ) ... He could be a factor. Expect a grade of B-, but hoping for better this year.

TE... Luke Mathewson, big te, solid blocker, has respect of teammates as well being voted in as team captain... Possesion receiver at best, used more for power game, but can surprise at times... Luke Fiedler is more of the receiving te, fast, but needs improvement in blocking. Both are tall, so nice targets in red zone or short yardage... Jacob francis is a huge te at 280 lbs, may see some time. Another phenom freshman te should be a stud, Alex Cloyd... Smooth is what i saw of his hs highlights, but trivia fact... He was undefeated in his hs wrestling senior year in omaha nebraska at heavyweight, so must have strength! Lost a good te last year, so this may be a wash ... Expect a B

Overall offensively.... Should be a B... Offensive line is key... If we struggle there, than lower grade.

Defense

Defensive lineman... Noah Johnson, Austin Cieslak, Tank Harris are our typical noseguard, interior defensive lineman. Tough, hardnosed and very athletic.... Big players as well, absorb the shock in the 3-4 defensive alignment. Defensive ends are Brandon Dranka, Mason Bennet(rs frosh) , Carl Engwall and Alec Carothers... Probably undersized for their position at 240 lbs or so, but way more athletic than opposing teams anticipate. Should play even with most fbs, and dominate fcs teams... Will be teams strongest strength by far. Players are platooned in during games, and even interchanged if they see matchups they like such as de to nose or 2 noseguards and one de, etc. Laugh if you like at this, but they are the real deal. GradeA prime beef... A+ isnt good enough. Just Noah and Alec are srs, so good times ahead as well.

Linebackers... What goes up, must come down... Huge drop in losing ILB Will Ratelle from last years team... A 5'9" 250lb 4.6 40 yd fast bowling ball tackling machine that is now trying out for the Atlanta Falcons as a fullback... He was the heart and leader of the defense... However, have Taj Rich coming back after injury at ILB, along with captain Connor O'Brien. Both capable tackling ILBs, but lived in shadow of Will... Time to step up. Also Dylan Bakker (a Netherlander) and jc transfer DaQuan Baker should see plenty of playing time. All these guys except Baker are more fast than big, but they had excellent run contain last year, so pass coverage technique would be the question. Outside linebackers include Brian Labatt and Jake Disterhaupt who have definite star potential for being heady and fast players. Have some redshirts here that can fill spots as well.. Jawon Johnson in here also... Again, platoon system for this defense has been the defensive coordinators goal, keeping guys fresh (except maybe for Will last year). Give this group a B.

Defensive backs... Well, no place to go but up this year..

Safeties...Will start with our one standout star back here and that man is jr safety Cole Reyes.. He is big, he is fast, he hits hard in pass protection, but hits harder in run support... I believe he was injured ( not playing) at least 3 of the 4 games we lost... He was voted captain, and deservedly so... Will be our leader in defense, overall. Outside of Santiago on offense, most electifying player to watch on team. Zach Arnell is other safety similar in height to Cole, but not as big. Broken leg vs cheap shot from NDSU in 3rd game of season. His loss started down spiral for secondary for 4 or 5 games with cole out as well. Should be back, good player. Hearing good things on new recruit Torrey Hunter, sounds solid. Tanner Palmborg also got good experience with injuries.. B grade for safeties

Cornerbacks... I am a little lost on whats going on here, but due to youth last year should be a better group. We were torched at these positions last year, per your comments, which is absolutely true! Coaches tho have made this a priority as we recruited 4 safeties and 2 corners, with some serious 4.4 or 4.5 speed. In fact, no defensive lineman were recruited this year to help these positions out, at least depth wise for this season. Jahmere Irvin-Sills, Tyus Carter, Deion Harris are names you may see, along with Flowers and Carter.... But this is so fluid... Could be all true freshman for cornerbacks for all i know. Best player will play says coach Bubba... Huge question mark on corners! C grade for corners, but better than D- last year.

Overall Defensive grade... B+.... Cornerbacks, dont let me down!

Will pass on special teams names... Starters are typically used in a lot of these roles, so u may see reyes or santiago tackling or running more than most teams would use their stars in ko return lets say. We always have a good kicker/punter, kind of a tradition if you will. Coaches emphasize smart special teams play...

Just so you know, I missed names in there for guys that will play... So und fans, forgive me for that... Bowling Green fans, I think I covered the highlight film guys for sure... After all, just a casual fan.

thanks for letting me opine. And good luck this coming year for the Bowling Green Falcons, except for when you play UND.

Siouxperman wrote:Just a casual North Dakota Fighting Sioux football fan here (and no, i will not accept reference of "Fighting Hawks", the Politically correct uninformed fans logo from hell that was mandated on us from the ncaa).

My bank called. It wants its logo back.



Here in the MAC, Miami and Eastern Michigan switched from Redskins and Hurons to RedHawks and Eagles, respectively. Pretty bland names. I still think Eastern Michigan should be home of the Fighting Emus.

Maybe North Dakota could have been the Fighting Frackers?

I know it is standard practice, but how much of a guarantee do we give FCS opponents to come to BG?

apollo wrote:I know it is standard practice, but how much of a guarantee do we give FCS opponents to come to BG?

I recall reading something about that recently and I want to say it was in the $200,000 to $250,000 range, but I could be wrong.

Thanks....I figured it was in that range.

Siouxperman,

First off, a very cool name. Kudos. I love how it seems the vast majority of the ND fan base continues to use Fighting Sioux. How is that different from, oh, Fighting Illini? Keep it always.

Thanks for the preview of ND. the Big Sky conference...13 teams in football? It is a very solid conference and BSC teams regularly seem to beat FBS teams. What conf were you in before 2012? Santiago rushed for almost 1500...BiG #. Looks like you definitely run the ball more than passing. Phil Steele had ND at #20 in his Week 16 power poll last year, out of 125 FCS teams. BG needs to be ready and bring our A game. Hope you can make the trip and stop in lot 13 for a cold one. We have a cool tailgate group.

Best of luck this year.

#BeatOhioState

BGSU33 wrote:

apollo wrote:I know it is standard practice, but how much of a guarantee do we give FCS opponents to come to BG?

I recall reading something about that recently and I want to say it was in the $200,000 to $250,000 range, but I could be wrong.

I understand WHY we play them, but I really hate doing so. Personally, have always felt D1A teams have no business ever scheduling 1AA or FCS or whatever they call 'em now.

But for us to PAY them? Seems CRAZY to me. How is that not a financial loss for a program that already costs a ton to operate? Even if we sell 15k tickets to that game (unlikely to draw that well for a 1AA team, but it IS the home opener), what's our average ticket price? Like $15? That puts the entirety of our ticket revenue at $225,000....which we're GIVING AWAY to play a lower division opponent?

Add this to the countless reasons to avoid scheduling those teams...ugh, that doesn't sit well with me at all.

hammb wrote:I understand WHY we play them, but I really hate doing so. Personally, have always felt D1A teams have no business ever scheduling 1AA or FCS or whatever they call 'em now.

If we want Big Ten schools to play at our place, it means we will need to schedule some FCS schools, because the past two agreements to bring Big Ten schools to Perry Stadium committed us to two games at their place.

The alternative would be only five home games, and I don't think any of us want that.

But for us to PAY them? Seems CRAZY to me.

All FBS schools offer opponents a guarantee for a one-and-done. If we want a school to come to our place with no return game, we will need to pay them for their trouble.

I don't know the going market for this sort of thing, but Apollo's number ($200,000 to $250,000) sounded high to me. I would have guessed more like $100,000 to $150,000.

Schadenfreude wrote:

hammb wrote:I understand WHY we play them, but I really hate doing so. Personally, have always felt D1A teams have no business ever scheduling 1AA or FCS or whatever they call 'em now.

If we want Big Ten schools to play at our place, it means we will need to schedule some FCS schools, because the past two agreements to bring Big Ten schools to Perry Stadium committed us to two games at their place.

The alternative would be only five home games, and I don't think any of us want that.

But for us to PAY them? Seems CRAZY to me.

All FBS schools offer opponents a guarantee for a one-and-done. If we want a school to come to our place with no return game, we will need to pay them for their trouble.

I don't know the going market for this sort of thing, but Apollo's number ($200,000 to $250,000) sounded high to me. I would have guessed more like $100,000 to $150,000.

Like I said I understand why we play them. It's the only way we can consistently get a 6 game home slate. I also understand that you have to pay those teams to get them to play.

It really just doesn't sit well to me. I have no idea if the payout is $200k or $100k but to me it really isn't a big deal on the difference except for the fact that the higher figure would most likely mean a net loss for the program.

I know I'm probably in the minority but I'd just as soon play the 5 game home schedule in years we couldn't play 6 d1a home games. I have zero interest in the 1aa games and don't enjoy watching them at all. I refuse to pay to attend those games.

It really is a no win situation...just adds extra salt in the wound hat we also have to pay them for the privilege of a boring game that many people don't want to watch.

hammb wrote:

BGSU33 wrote:

apollo wrote:I know it is standard practice, but how much of a guarantee do we give FCS opponents to come to BG?

I recall reading something about that recently and I want to say it was in the $200,000 to $250,000 range, but I could be wrong.

I understand WHY we play them, but I really hate doing so. Personally, have always felt D1A teams have no business ever scheduling 1AA or FCS or whatever they call 'em now.

But for us to PAY them? Seems CRAZY to me. How is that not a financial loss for a program that already costs a ton to operate? Even if we sell 15k tickets to that game (unlikely to draw that well for a 1AA team, but it IS the home opener), what's our average ticket price? Like $15? That puts the entirety of our ticket revenue at $225,000....which we're GIVING AWAY to play a lower division opponent?

Add this to the countless reasons to avoid scheduling those teams...ugh, that doesn't sit well with me at all.

It's the negative side of D1 football and the MAC...everyday is like just taking piles of money and lighting it on fire.

In regards to the schedule, I think we may see a drop off this year...college football is all about quarterback play and I still don't think we can trust Knapke.

We'll probably find a way to still win the East but I don't know that's saying much. Western, UT, NIU will all be better than us this year in my opinion and CMU is do to have a decent year again. In 2013 we proved you can have a good day against a better opponent, that is probably what will need to happen for us in 16.

EVERYONE is paying to get non-conference home games, it's not unique to BG or other MAC schools. It's why you see some of the P5 powers stocking up and buying non-conference games to play 8 home games on the year, or how G5 schools are playing 6 or 7 home games by trying to get at least a pair of non-conference games. For example, BG made over $1.5 million dollars in two non-conference games alone last year to play Tennessee in Nashville ($1.2 million) and Maryland in College Park ($400,000). Not sure what we got from the Purdue game but I'm gonna guess $500,000-plus. Now, that said, there are arrangement that can be made to "offset" payouts by doing home-and-homes or 2-for1's, which is what many teams try to do to work around lofty payout (unless you are a school like OSU that can easily write a check) while putting together non-conference schedules, but it still has its challenges. I have even started to see where more and more schools are throwing in men's basketball games as part of the scheduling agreement by AD's for football games. For comparison sake, a good payout from the power schools in basketball is usually in the neighborhood of $75,000-$90,000.

Look at a school like Ohio State. The Buckeyes can essentially schedule however they the hell they want (although the new playoff format is essentially making sure championship contenders schedule at least one good team in the non-conference). But if they want 8 home games, they'll open their checkbook and can play 4 non-conference games at home if they choose. Or, you'll see them doing what they're doing nowaday by scheduling 3 home non-conference home games (mostly vs G5 teams) and playing a home-and-home game with another team (like the next two years with Oklahoma, or the last two years with Virgina Tech). But those G5 road teams aren't going to OSU just for the hell of it. They're getting paid. A lot. OSU usually pays FBS teams over million a pop. It's because they aren't ever going to do a home-and-home with these teams. You either take their offer of seven figures and go to Columbus or step aside because there's about 50 other schools that will. But this is also where G5 teams from the FBS benefit more than FCS schools do because where P5 FBS teams pay a million dollars to G5 FBS teams, for the same kind of game the week before or after for an FCS team, they're only paying out half of that or sometimes only even a third of that. This is one of the big factors shooting down the argument of people talking about how they think schools could finacially do better at the FCS level over the FBS where the payouts are much, much less. But that's an entirely different topic.

A school like BG ideally wants to break down its 4 non-conference games like this: one money game on the road at a P5 school, one road game at another FBS school, one home game vs an FBS school, one home game vs an FCS school. The money game speaks for itself. If you're not one of the ones raking in the money like OSU, then you're trying to play them for the money. It's the nature of the business and it's nothing new, it's only aplified nowadays. The away FBS and home FBS games essentially balance things out. These are usually done piggybacking home-and-homes like we're currently doing with schools like Memphis and Middle Tennessee. The FCS home game has become a somewhat pivital game when the regular season schedules went from 11 to 12 games. Like it or not, all schools are trying to schedule as many home games as possible, and with teams trying to become bowl eligible, many of those 12-games schedules feature an FCS school. And it costs less money to do so than to get another FBS team (that will require a bigger payout), and, it's just flat out easier to do. Each year look at most of those schools that finished 6-6, one of those wins is almost always vs an FCS team. Now, all that said, a team like BG does try to mix things up in order to schedule a more attractive non-conference slate. If we want to bring in teams like Missouri and Indiana (like we did) or Maryland (like we will), something has got to give. We're almost certain not to get them in a home-and-home, so we schedule them in a 2-for-1. But then we need to offset that once we do. It often forces us now to go out and play more money games, or, like last year, we had an FCS team back out on us (that we filled late with the Tennessee game) in a year where we already had a pair of road games at Big Ten schools, plus, we had Memphis. You also see cases of schools breaking contracts by buying their way out of the smaller guarantee games in turn to flip that game for a larger payout from another school where they actually made more money in the end even after having to pay the buyout, or schools that have no desire to return a game and will buy out the game on the back end.

We do similar kind of things in basketball when we schedule. When we host most of those mid-major teams, many of them are either the front end of back end of a home-and-home where we either played them the previous year on the road or will be playing them next year away. But when we schedule those "better looking" home game like we did vs Michigan (had to do a 3-for-1 with them) or Cincinnati last year (we had to pay them to come), money was a big part in it all. There is no perfect way of scheduling, but most everyone is trying to juggle what they want to do with what they have to do. But make no mistake about it, it all revolves around money. The difference is are you one of the school dealing it out, or one of the schools collecting it?