Big East Football discusses Nova Option

[jstclmet]

Marinatto again dismissed the Internet rumors that Central Florida and Memphis were going to receive invitations to join the conference, but he said that there have been some discussions about Villanova making the jump to Division I-A football and that could be one viable option for the conference to grow without upsetting its 16-team basketball alignment.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10216/1077486-233.stm

[Seahawks]

UConn made a similar move and has been quite successful. It's a possibility.

[89Hen]

UConn made a similar move and has been quite successful. It's a possibility.

Apples and oranges IMO. Large state school vs small private school. UConn had the state build them a brand new 40,000 seat stadium. I don't see PA or Philly doing that for VU.

[andy7171]

Where would they play? I don't think expansion is even a possibility with that stadium. Temple and Nova can't both share the Eagles stadium.

[UAalum72]

Rent Franklin Field from Penn?

[State Line Liquors]

Who cares what the Big East is discussing?

What does Nova say?

If it's considered desirable, then do something about. Just please spare the rest of us the 6 month egg timer on Nova's big move to the Big East in football. It's been picked at like a carcass.

[danefan]

Anybody know what Temple's agreement with the Linc is?

Who owns the Linc?

I'd have to imagine the Linc would rather have a Big East team play there than Temple. It would definitely increase attendance and generate more money for the stadium.

[GannonFan]

nova to the Big East for football is a fine idea, until you actually have to look at any details of what a move would entail. No stadium, no campus or near campus option for a new stadium, no money for such a move, no fanbase, no local desire for such a move, and a pretty entrenched rooting interest either for other teams (i.e. Penn St or any of the other 10-12 area FCS schools) or no college football interest at all. nova basketball has done well of late (although interestingly enough it hasn't always been so - just coincided with winning) because Philly is an incredibly huge college basketball town. No such furvor (sp?) exists for college football. The Big East would need to almost completely fund nova's move to FBS and then keep funding them to keep them there. If the Big East has to do that to sustain itself it begs the question of how long such a conference can exist.

[GannonFan]

Anybody know what Temple's agreement with the Linc is?

Who owns the Linc?

I'd have to imagine the Linc would rather have a Big East team play there than Temple. It would definitely increase attendance and generate more money for the stadium.

The Eagles control who plays there and they weren't happy about having to have Temple play there in the first place. But they had at least a 15 year deal with Temple that was actually pretty expensive for Temple. And the Eagles had to let them play there because the stadium had just been built and the city had put a lot of money towards the project to build it. From a PR standpoint, the Eagles couldn't refuse a city school the chance to play there. The difference between Temple and nova, though, is that nova is located outside of the city proper (they're in Radnor) so nova would not have the clout that Temple had. And like I said, the Eagles absolutely hate having another tennant there now - they'd rather the place sit idle during the season except for them and, of course, the Army/Navy game.

[danefan]

Anybody know what Temple's agreement with the Linc is?

Who owns the Linc?

I'd have to imagine the Linc would rather have a Big East team play there than Temple. It would definitely increase attendance and generate more money for the stadium.

The Eagles control who plays there and they weren't happy about having to have Temple play there in the first place. But they had at least a 15 year deal with Temple that was actually pretty expensive for Temple. And the Eagles had to let them play there because the stadium had just been built and the city had put a lot of money towards the project to build it. From a PR standpoint, the Eagles couldn't refuse a city school the chance to play there. The difference between Temple and nova, though, is that nova is located outside of the city proper (they're in Radnor) so nova would not have the clout that Temple had. And like I said, the Eagles absolutely hate having another tennant there now - they'd rather the place sit idle during the season except for them and, of course, the Army/Navy game.

Gotcha. So Nova would have to either (1) renovate Franklin Field - its not Big East ready the way it is now (2) play at the Philadelphia Union stadium - probably too small and too far away or (3) build a stadium - where?

[State Line Liquors]

The Big East would need to almost completely fund nova's move to FBS and then keep funding them to keep them there. If the Big East has to do that to sustain itself it begs the question of how long such a conference can exist.

Gotcha. So Nova would have to either (1) renovate Franklin Field - its not Big East ready the way it is now (2) play at the Philadelphia Union stadium - probably too small and too far away or (3) build a stadium - where?

Check and mate.

Anyone up for coffee?

[93henfan]

We can all sit here and prognosticate about what Nova will do, but it's really up to them.

So, Nova fans, all three of you (I think) on here, what is your plan for a venue?

[jstclmet]

We can all sit here and prognosticate about what Nova will do, but it's really up to them.

So, Nova fans, all three of you (I think) on here, what is your plan for a venue?

Does it really matter where we beat Delaware??? The Main Line, The Tub, The Linc, Franklin Field, Chester. I would think where Delaware loses to VU would be less important to the Blue Hen way of thinking than how can the Blue Hens stay competitive in a game with Nova for more than a half.

Should Nova go FBS, you would have to assume the games would no longer be at the Tub, and the Blue Hen faithful would go anywhere they had to in order to cheer their favorite team on, if only for a half. One silver lining would be the game would no longer be held in the cold of Nov, but be around Labor Day weekend, where the weather plus the score would not be an excuse to leave at halftime.

[JMU DJ]

We can all sit here and prognosticate about what Nova will do, but it's really up to them.

So, Nova fans, all three of you (I think) on here, what is your plan for a venue?

WideRight owns two of those accounts, and he don't post no mo.

[State Line Liquors]

Does it really matter where we beat Delaware??? The Main Line, The Tub, The Linc, Franklin Field, Chester. I would think where Delaware loses to VU would be less important to the Blue Hen way of thinking than how can the Blue Hens stay competitive in a game with Nova for more than a half.

Should Nova go FBS, you would have to assume the games would no longer be at the Tub, and the Blue Hen faithful would go anywhere they had to in order to cheer their favorite team on, if only for a half. One silver lining would be the game would no longer be held in the cold of Nov, but be around Labor Day weekend, where the weather plus the score would not be an excuse to leave at halftime.

Well that went miles in clearing things up for us. It sounds like Nova has it all figured out. Let me be the first to congratulate you folks on your entry to the top flight of Division 1 football!

We'll look for the payday check in the mail. Should we expect it to be written from the bank account of the VU basketball program, the crumbling Big East football conference, or the archdiocese of Philadelphia?

[GannonFan]

We can all sit here and prognosticate about what Nova will do, but it's really up to them.

So, Nova fans, all three of you (I think) on here, what is your plan for a venue?

Does it really matter where we beat Delaware??? The Main Line, The Tub, The Linc, Franklin Field, Chester. I would think where Delaware loses to VU would be less important to the Blue Hen way of thinking than how can the Blue Hens stay competitive in a game with Nova for more than a half.

Should Nova go FBS, you would have to assume the games would no longer be at the Tub, and the Blue Hen faithful would go anywhere they had to in order to cheer their favorite team on, if only for a half. One silver lining would be the game would no longer be held in the cold of Nov, but be around Labor Day weekend, where the weather plus the score would not be an excuse to leave at halftime.

You know, for a school that needed a current 4 game win streak to just edge out a 2 game lead in the all-time series, and in 2 of those recent 4 games UD either had the lead or the game was tied in the 4th quarter, you sure do seem to have a weird sense as to how those games and the overall series have gone. Although, I suppose, you may actually think 2 is a large number, seeing how that is half of the devoted football fanbase at nova, so maybe that's where the problem lies?

As for nova moving to FBS, hey, all of us at UD are fully in favor of it. I mean, in the last 10 games that nova played against UD when nova was still DI-A (or whatever the designation was back then), nova could only win twice, despite having all the scholarship advantages. Heck, you could argue that nova's inability to leverage their advantages as the "big-time" school against such lowly competition as the Hens back then (and in some cases just being taken behind the woodshed by the Hens) was one of the big reasons why nova turned the lights out on the program back then (well, that and a lack of fan support and money and a stadium...hmmm, why does all that sound familiar???).

So yes, UD would love to have nova back in the big leagues so that we can return to taking your money and winning a lot of the time - just like old times. Considering UD's helped to keep nova's program from sinking even deeper into financial ruin for the past decade or so, it's about time you guys start holding up your end of the bargain (or have everyone else in the Big East do it for you).

[93henfan]

We can all sit here and prognosticate about what Nova will do, but it's really up to them.

So, Nova fans, all three of you (I think) on here, what is your plan for a venue?

Does it really matter where we beat Delaware??? The Main Line, The Tub, The Linc, Franklin Field, Chester. I would think where Delaware loses to VU would be less important to the Blue Hen way of thinking than how can the Blue Hens stay competitive in a game with Nova for more than a half.

Should Nova go FBS, you would have to assume the games would no longer be at the Tub, and the Blue Hen faithful would go anywhere they had to in order to cheer their favorite team on, if only for a half. One silver lining would be the game would no longer be held in the cold of Nov, but be around Labor Day weekend, where the weather plus the score would not be an excuse to leave at halftime.

Man, jstclmet, I was hoping for an actual answer to the question of what your plan would be for getting an FBS venue, but since you went off on a tangent, I'll take this opportunity to do the same...

I really didn't want to be the first one to say this, but it's sort of the elephant in the room whenever you post:

Who the fuck designed that ring for you guys?

I think it'd be a public service to all of FCS to know, so whatever team wins the 2010 Championship (even if it happens to be Nova again) will know who not to go to to have their ring designed and built. I honestly think you'd have been better off getting my oldest son to design that thing, and he doesn't even start kindergarten for three more weeks.

I'm guessing it had to have been designed by a family member of the team or someone who would have had their feelings truly hurt, because somewhere along the line, someone had to have looked at that, either said "what the fuck?!" or just fell on the ground laughing, but thought twice about it due to not wanting to hurt feelings so they just bit their tongue.

That thing is horrendous, dude. Seriously.

[danefan]

Interesting note from a guy on AGS

As I mentioned in another thread, this will be decided likely by the end of the month. The BE is leaning towards extending an offer to Nova to join. The unknown right now is how much the financial incentive will be from the BE. BE schools make $2M each year in football, so that would cover Nova's operating loss from football. If the BE offers $4M or more for facility upgrades, this is a real possibility. If it is less than that, who knows. Nova would likely split their games between Franklin Field, the Chester soccer stadium (with some endzone seats to get it over 20K) and Citizen's bank ballpark after the Phillies finish their season. Chester and Citizen's Bank are open to Nova playing there and have had discussions already. Penn would probably be the most difficult, but given the Ivy late start to the season, you could play a Sept game there without conflict and pick another week when Penn is away. There is no chance of an on campus stadium, as has been mentioned before because of local politics. Time will tell.

Not sure if he posts here or not, but I thought the Citizen's Bank Field comment deserved a post over here.

[State Line Liquors]

Interesting note from a guy on AGS

As I mentioned in another thread, this will be decided likely by the end of the month. The BE is leaning towards extending an offer to Nova to join. The unknown right now is how much the financial incentive will be from the BE. BE schools make $2M each year in football, so that would cover Nova's operating loss from football. If the BE offers $4M or more for facility upgrades, this is a real possibility. If it is less than that, who knows. Nova would likely split their games between Franklin Field, the Chester soccer stadium (with some endzone seats to get it over 20K) and Citizen's bank ballpark after the Phillies finish their season. Chester and Citizen's Bank are open to Nova playing there and have had discussions already. Penn would probably be the most difficult, but given the Ivy late start to the season, you could play a Sept game there without conflict and pick another week when Penn is away. There is no chance of an on campus stadium, as has been mentioned before because of local politics. Time will tell.

Not sure if he posts here or not, but I thought the Citizen's Bank Field comment deserved a post over here.

Now we're talking!! Several different stadiums offering up home games.

At least this is a feasible answer, regardless of how unappealing it looks.

[ChickenMan]

Does it really matter where we beat Delaware???

Well Nova had better do a hell of a lot better in their second foray into DI football than they did the first time.. as 'big time' DI Villanova went a sparkling 3-7-1 vs little ole DII Delaware from 1970/1981. Apparently those ass whippings hurt so bad that Nova... HAD to drop football...

[GannonFan]

Interesting note from a guy on AGS

As I mentioned in another thread, this will be decided likely by the end of the month. The BE is leaning towards extending an offer to Nova to join. The unknown right now is how much the financial incentive will be from the BE. BE schools make $2M each year in football, so that would cover Nova's operating loss from football. If the BE offers $4M or more for facility upgrades, this is a real possibility. If it is less than that, who knows. Nova would likely split their games between Franklin Field, the Chester soccer stadium (with some endzone seats to get it over 20K) and Citizen's bank ballpark after the Phillies finish their season. Chester and Citizen's Bank are open to Nova playing there and have had discussions already. Penn would probably be the most difficult, but given the Ivy late start to the season, you could play a Sept game there without conflict and pick another week when Penn is away. There is no chance of an on campus stadium, as has been mentioned before because of local politics. Time will tell.

Not sure if he posts here or not, but I thought the Citizen's Bank Field comment deserved a post over here.

Citizen's Bank????? nova fans are aware that the World Series can stretch into early November, correct? Do we really think the Phillies are going to allow or want a college football tenant that would being playing there on Saturdays in September/October/November?

And even the Chester option has it's issues - the Union's schedule goes until the end of October, and in a playoff year would go into November as well. Sure they could play there, but they would be a secondary scheduling option to the MLS team. The Big East has normally demanded scheduling exclusivity - none of these options give nova that.

[mainejeff]

It's funny to see Delaware fans gnashing their teeth at the thought of Villanova going FBS......

[YoUDeeMan]

It's funny to see Delaware fans gnashing their teeth at the thought of Villanova going FBS......

"...gnashing their teeth..."???????????

Someone in the room isn't capable of understanding what they are reading. Nothing new.

[Dane96]

Interesting note from a guy on AGS


Not sure if he posts here or not, but I thought the Citizen's Bank Field comment deserved a post over here.

Citizen's Bank????? nova fans are aware that the World Series can stretch into early November, correct? Do we really think the Phillies are going to allow or want a college football tenant that would being playing there on Saturdays in September/October/November?

And even the Chester option has it's issues - the Union's schedule goes until the end of October, and in a playoff year would go into November as well. Sure they could play there, but they would be a secondary scheduling option to the MLS team. The Big East has normally demanded scheduling exclusivity - none of these options give nova that.

Not that I disagree with anything you have said in this thread (I agree with 99% of what is being said by people against the probability of the move), however don't you think the guys in the BE office and the BE coaches have talked about some of the issues. I would think the HQ has spoken to 'Nova about all the different possibilities and vice-versa.

These people get paid a lot of money to do due dilligence and quite frankly, I would think this has more legs than people are giving it credit for. My bet is that they have already talked to every stadium official and some members of the teams that would be affected by any share proposition.

[State Line Liquors]

Not that I disagree with anything you have said in this thread (I agree with 99% of what is being said by people against the probability of the move), however don't you think the guys in the BE office and the BE coaches have talked about some of the issues. I would think the HQ has spoken to 'Nova about all the different possibilities and vice-versa.

These people get paid a lot of money to do due dilligence and quite frankly, I would think this has more legs than people are giving it credit for. My bet is that they have already talked to every stadium official and some members of the teams that would be affected by any share proposition.

Your summary is probably correct. I have no doubt Nova's departure has been discussed at great length. In all seriousness, if playing musical chairs with home stadiums is what they want to do to accomplish this, then by all means have at it. To me, that formula is not one that breeds long term success or fan support. But to each his own. I'm sure Nova and the BE have weighed the options and their potential risks thoroughly. I'll admit that selfishly I hope they do come to some decision one way or another, similar to UD's stadium improvements, just so people can STFU about it.

Despite what some say, the departure of Nova from the CAA football conference really wouldn't be much skin off anyone's back, even Delaware IMO. It's been fun playing them in football, but the reality is that things change and I think a good portion of Hens fans would agree that we don't even feel like the Nova game is our rivalry game anymore anyways. It feels just like any other CAA (formerly South) game feels like. In a piece done by the UD staff and put up on the video board last year, they asked UD players which opponent they hated the most, and NOBODY said anything about Villanova.