Northeastern Out Of League For Football

[UCObluejay]

The six regional universities sw se nw ecu, NSU and uco are controlled by one set of regents. Collectively they're able to keep away the control of OU and OSU especially under undergraduate. They are very often do not overlap in grad programs so they don't get of the two big boys . So academically the six institutions do a good job of cooperating. However there is a breakdown in the institutions pecking order. UCO is the clear big boy now with a very elaborate graduate system. The gac four are clearly the lowest tier. Nsu is the one that is in the middle . Right now it's closer to the lower four but that is not always the case. Now UCO would make a make a good fcs university in many ways. Except where it is located. Afcs University has to have corporate support and tickets sales for their non football related sports. They have to have a base urban area. That they do not have because even in Edmond which is a city near 100k. It's less than 60 miles from both OU and OSU on either side. And everything in the state is either OU or OSU. And OSU guards their prerogative religiously. You put UCO size institution in Tulsa or in Enid or Muskogee or Lawton then we're having a separate conversation about UCo and FCS Also the presence of the University of Tulsa which recruits inside Oklahoma pretty well a strain on the amount of talent available. But you also have to look at how much talent leaves Oklahoma to go play college football at the lower tier FbS and FCS levels . No I see UCO staying in MIAA. Being successful and eventually figuring out the football thing.

There are/were colleges in Lawton, Enid, and Muskogee. Cameron doesn't have football, Phillips closed in 98, and Bacone is bankrupt and likely going to close.

[the Northeasterner]

Exactly UCO is sitting in Edmond next to Oklahoma City and that's why they've been able to get as big as they have and be right on the cusp but who owns Oklahoma City it's OU and OSU is right there next to them. Iif UCO goes too far guarantee they will put it into it. It's happened before in Oklahoma. Rogers and Cameron are under OU's board of regents so they're never going to be a threat. I would love to see uco go FCS I think they could do it if they weren't sharing the same urban area with 2d1fcs schools

[the Northeasterner]

Also UCO has position themselves into a pretty decent Master level University but if they push too much further in Grand programs outside of forensics or education they will get heat

[Brandon]

UCO has budget issues. FCS is a fantasy at this point.

[OICfootball]

There are/were colleges in Lawton, Enid, and Muskogee. Cameron doesn't have football, Phillips closed in 98, and Bacone is bankrupt and likely going to close.

Phillips last fielded a football team in the 1930s.

[UCObluejay]

Phillips last fielded a football team in the 1930s.

Bacone last fielded a team in 2017, they had a team from 1895-1957 too. Cameron dropped football in 1992. My point still stands.

[UCObluejay]

UCO has budget issues. FCS is a fantasy at this point.

Don't start thinking logically. Enrollment is down from it's peak of around 17,000. Neuhold had a reputation of being a bean counter, nobody was canned after all. OU had a president, James Gallogly who had the job for a year. He made headlines by claiming the university was 1 billion in debt. Most of that debt was bonded construction debt. Some companies are better ran than others. Some have tolerance for a few cash liabilities, others would make Dave Ramsey blush. Neuhold was cut from the same cast in that regard.

For the record, my position (which doesn't matter) is that I find the idea of FCS move intriguing, but financially stupid. I hate the idea of being the only Oklahoma team in a d2 conference, unless we can play a couple in the non-con.

[OICfootball]

Bacone last fielded a team in 2017, they had a team from 1895-1957 too. Cameron dropped football in 1992. My point still stands.

Gross financial mismanagement did Bacone in. Cameron played NCAA football with an NAIA budget and along with university leadership who wanted to kill the football program.

[the Northeasterner]

Don't forget Cameron got into serious trouble with NCAA . On the other side I don't see UCO going now until they actually win football. They win a football playoff game or two and then you can start seeing them sniff around for FCS. So it won't happen until you get some kind of success like that and that's just some what unlikely right now. Most schools enrollments are down. The reasons vary but Between a negative population anomaly and then covid enrollment numbers are low . Plus this generations kid is terrified of student loan debt many are going to trade schools taking advantage of that free year at career tech in Oklahoma