GST talking Sun Belch

[BDKJMU]

Updated: Georgia State well-positioned to move to FBS
1:19 pm February 21, 2012, by Doug Roberson

Georgia State could join Georgia Tech and Georgia as FBS playing members by 2014-15.

Georgia State’s athletics department commissioned a report that explores the expenses and revenues from moving from the FCS, where Georgia State currently plays, to the FBS, which features bowls games and the BCS. The report concludes that “GSU is well-positioned to make a transition to FBS” and “that the Sun Belt would be the best fit.” A copy of a draft of the report, along with the contract between Georgia State and the authors, Atlanta-based Collegiate Consulting, was obtained by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution through the Freedom of Information Act. The report cost $20,000.

Athletic director Cheryl Levick said that no decisions have been made and that Georgia State hasn’t received any invitation from any conferences. She declined to comment on the details of the report, which focuses on the financial aspects if GSU were to be invited to join the Big East, Conference USA, Sun Belt, Mid-American or Western Athletic conferences. The Panthers are members of the Colonial Athletic Association. Georgia State will play its inaugural CAA schedule later this year.

“We are performing our due diligence to fully understand potential opportunities in the rapidly changing landscape of college athletics and particularly college football,” Levick said in a statement. “We will evaluate the information in the feasibility study to determine the best course of action for Georgia State.”

Schools that have been invited to join a conference that plays football on the FBS level must submit to the NCAA a strategic plan and pay a $5,000 fee by late May. A two-year probation period follows. If Georgia State were to accept an invitation from a FBS school, and the NCAA allows the transition, the Panthers could play in a bowl game by the 2014-15 season.

More than a dozen schools have conducted FBS feasibility studies within the past three years. Three of those schools — Massachusetts, Texas San Antonio and Texas State — have become new members of conferences that play FBS football.

Sun Belt Commissioner Karl Benson said last week that his conference is looking to expand, but prefers existing FBS schools.

Georgia State is well-positioned to move to the Sun Belt from a budgetary standpoint. Its projected $22 million in revenues in 2011-12 is 44 percent more than the average Sun Belt member, according to the report. However, the difference in those revenues can be traced to student fees: Georgia State receives more than $16.5 million compared to $5.6 million for an average Sun Belt school. The totals for the other schools and conferences are from previous years are being updated to give Georgia State the most accurate information.

The report recommends that if the Big East is Georgia State’s goal, it should follow the model set by two Florida schools.

“GSU would be an ideal candidate once it has moved to FBS and established itself in another conference, identical to the approach taken by UCF, South Florida, Boise State, etc., which have all recently joined the Big East.”

Georgia State’s revenues are almost $24 million less than the average Big East school, and 23 percent less than Conference USA.

“Institutional support would need to increase, but the primary increase would come from externally driven revenue from athletics,” according to the report.

Georgia State’s expenses of $22 million are almost $20 million less than what they would spend as members of the Big East in 2014-15. The biggest expense increase would fall to Sports and Administrative Operations, which includes travel, and other non-salary, non-scholarship related items.

Collegiate Consulting does not consider the WAC or MAC to “be viable membership options.”
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[89Hen]

Have fun GSU. Another I-A failure in the making. How'd that move work out for ArkSt, Troy, WKU.... all hemorrhaging money.

[henfan]

This is a great opportunity for the CAA to pick up a strong all sport conference member. Clearly, GSU was never going to be that type of member.

I wish 'em well wherever they land.

[93henfan]

Sun Belt is the perfect destination for GaSt. It's always seemed that their ultimate goal has never been to actually field a decent team, but rather to be able to call themselves FBS. So there you go GaSt. You win the prize!

[Ivytalk]

Georgia State in an FBS bowl game by 2014-15? BWAHAHAHAHA!

[SuperHornet]

I'm not sure I'd want to make the blanket assumption 89's making, though there's certainly a good possibility of that happening. There ARE some success stories out there. (USF, Marshall, and UCONN immediately come to mind.) I expect that UMASS will have some success as well, if they can get themselves out of the MAC. I think G St would have a better chance if they can find their way in to C-USA/MWC, but that'll have to be on the back burner for a while. The Sun Belt is a HORRIBLE conference, and may well end up like the WAC.

[89Hen]

I'm not sure I'd want to make the blanket assumption 89's making, though there's certainly a good possibility of that happening. There ARE some success stories out there. (USF, Marshall, and UCONN immediately come to mind.) I expect that UMASS will have some success as well, if they can get themselves out of the MAC. I think G St would have a better chance if they can find their way in to C-USA/MWC, but that'll have to be on the back burner for a while. The Sun Belt is a HORRIBLE conference, and may well end up like the WAC.

Blanket? All the teams I mentioned are in the Sun Belt. Isn't that where it said they were headed?

[blueballs]

Of course the Sun Belt wants Ga St, it puts a team in the Atlanta media market and that's good business for the conference.

Georgia State still sucks though...

[henfan]

Having GSU in the CAA hasn't proven to be much of a boon for the conference. Maybe there's a different dynamic with the SBC at will bring a big payoff at some point.

[SuperHornet]

Before that, you made the assertion that the failure was guaranteed. THEN you mentioned many of the more obvious failures (who, yes, just HAPPEN to be in the Sun Belt) and conveniently ignored the successes to make it SEEM like failure was a guarantee.

Selective reasoning.

[89Hen]

Before that, you made the assertion that the failure was guaranteed. THEN you mentioned many of the more obvious failures (who, yes, just HAPPEN to be in the Sun Belt) and conveniently ignored the successes to make it SEEM like failure was a guarantee.

Selective reasoning.

I got news for you, if GSU goes SB their failure is guaranteed. You think it was coincidence that I mentioned SB teams?

Either way, you can count the successful I-AA move ups on one hand.

[SuperHornet]

What date is your point of reference? If I had time, I could prove that last statement wrong by going back far enough. Boise and Nevada also come to mind in addition to the other three I mentioned.

But I would accept the point of your hyperbole, though: it's VERY rare. In that regard, you are quite correct.

[89Hen]

What date is your point of reference? If I had time, I could prove that last statement wrong by going back far enough. Boise and Nevada also come to mind in addition to the other three I mentioned.

But I would accept the point of your hyperbole, though: it's VERY rare. In that regard, you are quite correct.

Are Boise and Nevada in the Sun Belt?

You're at five.

[danefan]

This is a great opportunity for the CAA to pick up a strong all sport conference member. Clearly, GSU was never going to be that type of member.

I wish 'em well wherever they land.

Looking North or South for a new member?