JMU on 9/26 moves @ Liberty to 2019, picks up @ SMU

[BDKJMU]

http://www.jmusports.com/news/2015/2/27 ... 50533.aspx" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://www.smumustangs.com/sports/m-foo ... sched.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[BDKJMU]

"...SMU will pay Madison $425,000 in addition to lodging, buses and meals for the team.

To make room for the game, JMU's previously scheduled contest in Lynchburg against FCS rival Liberty on Sept. 26 has been moved to 2019, Bourne said. Because the game was shifted to a different date - not cancelled - Bourne said the Dukes avoided paying the Flames a $150,000 buyout.

Bourne noted JMU's and Liberty's ability to work out scheduling conflicts in the past was a major reason the Dukes were able to switch games just seventh months from kickoff.

"They agreed and understood," Bourne said. "It is a good game for us being an in-state rival and our fans travel well to Liberty and they travel well to us. We wanted to keep the game on the calendar."...."
https://jamesmadison.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1741515" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[BDKJMU]

Have to make some $$ back.

"HARRISONBURG - The James Madison football team's lightly attended first-round FCS playoff game against Liberty on Nov. 29 cost the school $126,570, according to the university.

JMU deputy athletic director Geoff Polglase said Tuesday the cost of the game was anticipated and was part of the school's budget.

"It was all very much in line for what we projected," Polglase said.

Madison submitted a guaranteed bid of $200,677.50 to the NCAA to host the first-round game. Under terms of the NCAA bidding process, it kept 15 percent of the net receipts - $11,513.40 - meaning JMU sent $189,164.10 to the NCAA and spent $166,692.20 on expenses for holding the game at Bridgeforth Stadium.

JMU brought in $229,286 in revenue from the game.

That left Madison with a $126,570.30 loss.

"We have all sorts of models and projections that we use, and we were right there with what we felt like we'd have for a crowd for the game, in terms of attendance for that weekend," Polglase said.

The financial information - part of a Virginia Freedom of Information Act request - was released this week after receiving final NCAA approval.

JMU athletic director Jeff Bourne said in December that the school would use "private athletics sources" from the JMU Duke Club to cover the shortfall. No student fees or tax dollars would be used to pay for the playoff bid, he said.

Madison projected a crowd of 23,520 in its bid to the NCAA, just shy of capacity at the 25,000-seat stadium, but that was largely a bookkeeping figure to make the school's sizeable bid add up. Only 11,793 showed up on a cold evening two days after Thanksgiving with students on break - the smallest at Bridgeforth since the stadium's expansion in 2011.

The NCAA form required JMU to show how it would be theoretically capable of reaching the amount of money it bid, even if school officials knew it would be a long shot to do so.

Still, bidding aggressively for the home game was worth it, Polglase said. JMU had to account for a variety of factors in submitting its larger-than-expected bid, officials said, including stiff competition from Liberty, a private school with deep pockets.

"We look at it as an expense to make sure we're providing the best experience," Polglase said. "Not only for our athletes but for our fans, and that's why you budget for it is to make sure that when given the opportunity, you have that home game."

A storm earlier in the week that required workers to clear snow from the stadium was the only unanticipated cost, Polglase said.

Those who did attend the game saw Liberty beat JMU, 26-21.

Madison reluctantly released its bid in December in response to a FOIA request by the Daily News-Record and The Breeze, JMU's student newspaper. This week's financial information was part of the same FOIA request.

JMU officials were unhappy with having to reveal the bid, saying it would hurt Madison in any future efforts to land home playoff games because the university has been forced to show its hand. Now, JMU has to take that into account in any future bids.

"Having that number out there in the future, we'll certainly anticipate that," Polglase said.

How long James Madison will continue to play football in FCS (Division I-AA) is an open question. If JMU eventually moves up to FBS (I-A), it will no longer have to bid for home games, at least under major-college football's current system - the four-team playoff is staged at neutral sites.

Madison officials remain interested in joining Conference USA or the Mid-American Conference - their always-slight interest in the Sun Belt has waned - but a source said there is little movement on the expansion front nationally. C-USA, the MAC and the Sun Belt are all low-level FBS leagues.

For an FCS school to move up to FBS, under NCAA rules, it must have an invitation from an existing league. At last word, JMU had received no such invitation.

The Dukes currently play in the Colonial Athletic Association, a strong FCS football league but one that has been eviscerated in basketball by the defections of its three best programs: Virginia Commonwealth, George Mason and Old Dominion.
https://jamesmadison.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1742850" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[SuperHornet]

That article is inaccurate at the end.

1. The chances of JMU (or ANYONE outside the P5) of sniffing the so-called "playoff" is ZERO. The P5 defined it that way to eliminate the Boise States of the world from the conversation and hoard the $$ for themselves.

2. VA Commonwealth was one of the "best" in the CAA before they moved up?!?

[Brock Landers]

2. VA Commonwealth was one of the "best" in the CAA before they moved up?!?

Umm, yes.

[putter]

It is an absolute travesty that the NCAA keeps 85% of the revenue

[93henfan]

2. VA Commonwealth was one of the "best" in the CAA before they moved up?!?

Umm, yes.

In basketball. They sort of didn't have a football team.

[Brock Landers]

Right... here is what he/she was referring to:

The Dukes currently play in the Colonial Athletic Association, a strong FCS football league but one that has been eviscerated in basketball by the defections of its three best programs: Virginia Commonwealth, George Mason and Old Dominion.

The lesson here; never try to stick up for SH

[JohnStOnge]

How long James Madison will continue to play football in FCS (Division I-AA) is an open question. If JMU eventually moves up to FBS (I-A), it will no longer have to bid for home games, at least under major-college football's current system - the four-team playoff is staged at neutral sites.

What'll happen is that if they make the post season they'll lose money on the bowl game they go to. And it'll cost them more than that 2014 first round playoff game they hosted did. And their athletic program will be more of a net loss to the school than it is now.

Just amazing how people don't get that when the data are out there so prominently now.

[JohnStOnge]

You know, one thing that always gets me about these CAA programs complaining about cost is that when you look at their finances they obviously aren't doing a whole heck of a lot to control cost. Go to the USA today athletic programs database at http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/ ... /finances/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;.

What you will see if you find James Madison and click on it is that James Madison had $36,072,842 in athletic expenses in 2013. North Dakota State won its third straight FCS national title in 2013 and had about half the athletic program expense. $18,702,969. And THAT'S a lot for an athletic program with a FCS football program. My alma mater, McNeese State, spent $10,307,780 on its athletic programs that year. Sam Houston State spent $14,555,722. Eastern Washington spent $11,538,027.

They say they want to go to CUSA. Defending CUSA champion Marshall spent $28,337,108 on its athletic programs in 2013.

So cry me a river with respect to cost. CAA schools just need to learn to control themselves.

[BDKJMU]

You know, one thing that always gets me about these CAA programs complaining about cost is that when you look at their finances they obviously aren't doing a whole heck of a lot to control cost. Go to the USA today athletic programs database at http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/ ... /finances/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;.

What you will see if you find James Madison and click on it is that James Madison had $36,072,842 in athletic expenses in 2013. North Dakota State won its third straight FCS national title in 2013 and had about half the athletic program expense. $18,702,969. And THAT'S a lot for an athletic program with a FCS football program. My alma mater, McNeese State, spent $10,307,780 on its athletic programs that year. Sam Houston State spent $14,555,722. Eastern Washington spent $11,538,027.

They say they want to go to CUSA. Defending CUSA champion Marshall spent $28,337,108 on its athletic programs in 2013.

So cry me a river with respect to cost. CAA schools just need to learn to control themselves.

Actually it is now 43.7 million reported for JMU for 2014. The 36+ million was 2013. But that increase from 36+ million to 43+ million is mostly due to a new accounting item. JMU, same as many other schools, didn't count debt service on athletic facilities debt under the athletic budget through 2013. But in 2014 JMU added it to the athletic budget, adding 6.2 million.

It is true that JMU has very high athletic expenditures for a large I-AA. But part of that high # is JMU's accounting. I know accounting practices can vary among conferences and even schools within conferences. The JMU AD has stated the way JMU does it's accounting for athletic expenditures is unorthodox so the athletic budgets appears much larger in comparison to other schools.

Another thing is that due to JMU being about 60% female, and due to Title IX, there is very large expenditures for the 17 women's varsity teams (JMU has 6 mens' varsity).

I'm sure JMU could get creative with the accounting #s, count stuff like some other schools do, and all of a sudden go from a reported 43+ million athletics budget to one that was 20 some million. Believe me we've had this discussion on the JMU board.

[grizzaholic]

It is an absolute travesty that the NCAA keeps 85% of the revenue

What is worse is that JMU KNEW that they would lose a ton of money on the game...and did it anyways.

[BDKJMU]

It is an absolute travesty that the NCAA keeps 85% of the revenue

What is worse is that JMU KNEW that they would lose a ton of money on the game...and did it anyways.

Wanted a home game. JMU put up what may have been the biggest bid ever in the history of I-AA for a couple of reasons:
-In 2011 The JMU AD and the VP of finance screwed up if time by low balling the bid the previous time in the playoffs and had to play @ EKU 1st round, despite JMU avg 25k regular season in the new stadium and EKU avg regular season about 7300. JMU only put up a 46k bid, which wasn't close to EKU's, which was supplemented by the OVC. That game only had a announced attendance of under 2400, which couldn't have been lowballed by much. Looked embarrassing on ESPNU. JMU AD caught a tremendous amount of flack for not getting a home game with such a low bid and blowing an opportunity to show off JMU's 62 million stadium upgrade on ESPN. Same AD made a lowball 1st round bid in 04' and JMU had to play at Lehigh. Think they were determined not to let that happen again.
-JMU knew that the Baptists at Liberty had deep pockets and knew they had to make a 6 figure bid to get the game.

They knew were going to lose $$, but probably thought it would'n't be as much. I thought with Liberty bringing around 3k that would haven been 16-18k in attendance. After all, the previous 1st round home game for JMU in 08' vs Wofford had over 13k announced, and probably only a couple hundred were Wofford.

[JohnStOnge]

Bottom line: If JMU does go FBS and gets into a bowl game it is going to lose more money on the bowl game than it lost on hosting the first round playoff game with Liberty.

[BDKJMU]

Bottom line: If JMU does go FBS and gets into a bowl game it is going to lose more money on the bowl game than it lost on hosting the first round playoff game with Liberty.

But that would likely be more than offset by the conference revenue sharing from the bowls.