Musberger Says UM Moving Up Would Be Mistake

[Hammer]

Brent Musberger is a broke back bobcat fan and just can't fathom the Griz moving up and beyond the FCS. He is old as dirt and so are his ideas. Time to move up to the deluxe apartment in the Big Sky Griz!

Musberger is a Griz fan. Countless times I have heard him give props to Bobby Hauck and the Griz for a victory while broadcasting games on saturday evening. I remember during a USC broadcast when he gave a good 20 second prop to the Griz after the comeback against SDSU. Listen to a broadcast on a saturday eve after a Griz win and chances are pretty good the Griz will get some love.

 

[rogermp]

loved his quote about that quaint "little stadium" here in Missoula.

 

[HighLineGRIZ]

Though I disagree with him, I believe Musberger is empathetic to UM and wants the school to make the most beneficial decision. He does have good perspective on the national landscape of college football and probably has a lot more insight on the conference changes and shifts than any of us do. Bottom line is that we are in a tough position if we stay in the FCS, but the decision to move up is risky on a lot of fronts. Facts are, right now, nobody really knows the right answer. Our school needs to weigh everything and make a decision based on logic. Thats why we've hired a consultant to analyze the options we'll have before us in the near future.

 

[bigtyme]

We get it. Lots of people want things to stay the same for ever and ever. Some of them are famous. Most of them are old as dirt.

The "State" can't support a FBS team? Last I checked, Wyoming with half the population of Montana has a FBS team. Idaho, with only 500,000 more people than Montana has TWO FBS teams. All three teams were in Bowl games last year. One of them won a BCS bowl game.

Musberger also isn't as close to the financial state of UM athletics as his misinformed opinion makes him out to be. He claims that moving to FBS would be "economic suicide". Perhaps if he read a SINGLE interview with Jim O'Day in the last 5 months he would have known that our athletic director has been shouting from the rooftops that staying FCS is economic suicide. We are on the verge of having to cut scholarships, we also can not afford basic facilities maintenance. We have been threatened by our own AD with a move to Divsion Two! We are as successful in FCS as we are possibly going to be. There is no additional revenue. FBS football offers access to multiple additional revenue streams.

The "things stay this way forever" crowd is constantly asking where the money to move to FBS is going to come from. I want to know where the money to stay FCS is going to come from. Maybe Musberger should get to the bottom of that.

O'Day has never said, or even hinted, that staying in I-AA would be economic suicide. He has never threatened to move to D-II. He has said that due to the budgets cuts requested by Main Hall, the athletic department has taken a brief look at various alternatives.

While moving up offers accesss to additional revenues, the additional costs are greater than the additional revenues. Moving up also creates a significant risk that attendance could drop in the future is UM was not successful enough in I-A. This is why Musberger said moving up would be economic suicide.

The "economic suicide" crowd wants to move up so badly that they won't recognize reality and they are willing to risk ruining Griz football as we know it.

PR, your argument is moot. Both sides are in a stale mate. We get your stance already. Let the powers to be decide this not the ones that pose. I have the utmost confidence that Jim has this handled. Time to play with the big boys. Thanks.

 

[PlayerRep]

[
PR, your argument is moot. Both sides are in a stale mate. We get your stance already. Let the powers to be decide this not the ones that pose. I have the utmost confidence that Jim has this handled. Time to play with the big boys. Thanks.

Bigtyme, once you get the moving uppers/financial suiciders to remain quiet, I may do the same. In the meantime, why don't you remain quiet if you don't wish to join the discussion and let the big boys continue to discuss. You're nothing to the discussion.

Jim has this handled? He just said that the new president, board of regents and perhaps the state would make the decision.

Just out of curiosity, what do you think my stance is?

 

[PlayerRep]

Wyoming's athletic budget receives $12,195,000 of Direct Institutional and State Support. Wyoming's Student Fees are $1,130,000.

Idaho's athletic budget receives $5,494,000 of Direct Institutional and State Support. Idaho's Student Fees are $2,155,000.

Montana's athletic budget receives $4,535,000 of Direct Institutional and State Support. Montana's Student Fees are $1,055,000.

Montana State's athletic budget receives $6,348,000 of Direct Institutional and State Support. MSU's Student Fees are $1,335,000.

Source: USA Today Study for the '08/'09 fiscal year.

 

[Brandonc]

Staying in the FCS would be "economic suicide". Moving up would be beneficial in the long run. I don't think Museberger understands that the griz are much more eligable to be in the bowl division than any other team in the FCS in the west. Cal Poly, UC Davis, and Sac state would all have to get major stadium expansions, while the griz just need to improve locker rooms? Sounds to me like the griz's investment is more reachable than the other likely FCS canidates. Museberger is stuck in his ways thinking small Montana can't ever support a FBS team, no matter how competitive and close they already are.

 

[PlayerRep]

Staying in the FCS would be "economic suicide". Moving up would be beneficial in the long run. I don't think Museberger understands that the griz are much more eligable to be in the bowl division than any other team in the FCS in the west. Cal Poly, UC Davis, and Sac state would all have to get major stadium expansions, while the griz just need to improve locker rooms? Sounds to me like the griz's investment is more reachable than the other likely FCS canidates. Museberger is stuck in his ways thinking small Montana can't ever support a FBS team, no matter how competitive and close they already are.

Nope, the cost of going to FCS would be very costly and likely economic suicide, as he said. UM is doing just fine financially--in fact very well--at the I-AA level.

Musberger has a house south of Missoula. He's around Missoula and UM frequently. He knows Bobby Hauck fairly well. He follows Griz football closely. He knows what's happening with the I-A realignment better than most, if not everyone, on this board.

 

[Brandonc]

Staying in the FCS would be "economic suicide". Moving up would be beneficial in the long run. I don't think Museberger understands that the griz are much more eligable to be in the bowl division than any other team in the FCS in the west. Cal Poly, UC Davis, and Sac state would all have to get major stadium expansions, while the griz just need to improve locker rooms? Sounds to me like the griz's investment is more reachable than the other likely FCS canidates. Museberger is stuck in his ways thinking small Montana can't ever support a FBS team, no matter how competitive and close they already are.

Nope, the cost of going to FCS would be very costly and likely economic suicide, as he said. UM is doing just fine financially--in fact very well--at the I-AA level.

Musberger has a house south of Missoula. He's around Missoula and UM frequently. He knows Bobby Hauck fairly well. He follows Griz football closely. He knows what's happening with the I-A realignment better than most, if not everyone, on this board.

It would not be good for the griz to stay in the FCS in the long run. If most or even all the competitive in the FCS in the west move up then the griz will have no real compition until the postseason, and occasionally the cats. The Griz can't slaughter their opponents forever, eventually they'll have to move up, and this lift will be a great opportunity.

 

[Brandonc]

I believe the Griz will benifit more financially by moving up. Staying in the FCS wont be economic suicide persay, but eventually it may come back to bite them if they don't make a move on this upcoming lift. They will be more financially rewarded if they moved to the BCS.

 

[kemajic]

Nope, the cost of going to FCS would be very costly and likely economic suicide.

Agreed; FBS has much more to offer.

 

[PlayerRep]

I believe the Griz will benifit more financially by moving up. Staying in the FCS wont be economic suicide persay, but eventually it may come back to bite them if they don't make a move on this upcoming lift. They will be more financially rewarded if they moved to the BCS.

You may believe this, but recent feasibility studies for schools like Georgia Southern show that moving up was not financially feasible. A recent ncaa study concluded that financial reasons don't justify moving up.

 

[TxGriz]

Musberger's comments offered no more credibility than that of your garden variety e-grizer. Maybe less. . .

. . . Brent provides precious little support for his argument beyond the fact that UM-Appy State was a great game . . .

. . . Musberger's words may have pleased the home folks, but they were woefully short on any relevant insight and can be called simplistic at best.

I think his comment "economic suicide" was code talk for "attendance will plummet when the Griz face real competition", or in other words - "Griz fans are fair weather fans used to easy victories (most of the time) who will desert the team when they lose".

I think it is all based on fear that seeing Washington Grizzly stadium full and not knowing what that picture will be like without the Griz inevitable participation in the post season playoffs.

To use his example of the Appy State game, the Griz were up against first rate competition and how did that affect attendance? Did the Griz fold when there wasn't an assured easy victory? (I still have people commenting to me about "the hit" by Keith Thampson on Cline). Were the fans into the game? Musberger and the Appy State coach himself said that it was a showcase event for the FCS.

Is the contradiction between Musberger's observations and the fact that the UM-Appy State game was televised on ESPN, not ESPN2 and that it had a respectable national audience lost on everyone?

Facing FBS level of competition says to me that the Griz have the potential of an Appy State game every Saturday. Plus, going by WAC bylaws, the UM - MSU series would always be a home game for the Griz.

I think it is time for Montana to step on the stage and I think UM and MSU are ready to showcase Montana to the rest of the country. I would like to see Montana go to the MWC and MSU to the WAC and let them use their athletic budget to pay for the travel costs it takes to play in that conference.

 

[Grizbacker1]

We get it. Lots of people want things to stay the same for ever and ever. Some of them are famous. Most of them are old as dirt.

The "State" can't support a FBS team? Last I checked, Wyoming with half the population of Montana has a FBS team. Idaho, with only 500,000 more people than Montana has TWO FBS teams. All three teams were in Bowl games last year. One of them won a BCS bowl game.

Musberger also isn't as close to the financial state of UM athletics as his misinformed opinion makes him out to be. He claims that moving to FBS would be "economic suicide". Perhaps if he read a SINGLE interview with Jim O'Day in the last 5 months he would have known that our athletic director has been shouting from the rooftops that staying FCS is economic suicide. We are on the verge of having to cut scholarships, we also can not afford basic facilities maintenance. We have been threatened by our own AD with a move to Divsion Two! We are as successful in FCS as we are possibly going to be. There is no additional revenue. FBS football offers access to multiple additional revenue streams.

Djballs,

Once again you mention the budget issues without any understanding that the budget problems is a main hall / Dennison budget problem vs. a revenue issue at the athletic department. There is plenty of money to stay at FCS if U of M properly funded its athletic department. How do you think moving to FBS is going to improve things if all we do with the extra "income" is siphon it off to Main Hall.

See my analysis in connection with the Kaimin budget story in March.


I looked at the numbers between U of M and MSU for 2004-2005 when the Indy Star newspaper had there NCAA financial data base and the differences where staggering. For that year there was almost a $5,800,000 difference between U of M and MSU in ticket sales and athletic contributions. Yet U of M pays it's coaches less than MSU by $150,000, pays less in recruiting costs by almost $100,000, pays less in student aid by $500,000 which are all direct athletic expenses.

But then U of M pays less in "Direct Institutional Support" to the athletic department by almost $1.1 million and charges the athletic department $1.1 more for facilities maint., $1 million higher for "Game Expenses" (U of M football game expenses are $744,000 vs. MSU football game expenses are $40,000) and $300K more for "support salaries".

The combined total of these differences of; more revenue for U of M tickets and contributions, with less direct expenses for coaches salaries, recruiting, combined with less direct support from U of M and higher expense charges for facilities, game expenses and support salaries adds up to betwenn a $9 to $10 million dollar difference between U of M and MSU.

I guess my point in this whole rant is that what O'Day is talking about is a "budget" problem because of all the bullshit charges from main hall and it's underfunding of athletics. Have you heard any of this budget problem talk from the MSU AD, I have not.

After all that U of M athletics showed net revenues over expenses at a positve $2,653,000 vs. MSU $270,000. Where did the $2.6 million go, certainly not into the 2005-2006 athletic budget.

FYI, here is the Indy Star NCAA Database site if you want to look it up: http://www2.indystar.com/NCAA_financial_reports/

84Griz has nailed it. The numbers don't lie people. Those of you who prefer speculation and conjecture should read the abover post, read it again, then have someone explain what it means to you because obviously some on here just don't get it.

 

[OrgonGriz]

As Player Rep said the Fesability study done for Georigia Southern said a movie to FBS was not financial viable. I can understand how that might be so for GSU and other FCS schools back east and down south as there is plenty more competative competion. Plus they are much more closely located to FCS schools to go play the money games to help them. Sort of like how PSU can just jump a bus and in two hours be at OSU or UofO. The trip does not cost them really much and they do not need to make as much for the game. Our Griz are not in such a position. Sure we could bus to play the Vandals but the vandals are not going to want to pay the money the Griz would want plus the Vandal runs the risk of loosing the game. We are in the most dificult spot for I would say all the FCS schools and for sure on the west coast. We by far have the top producing school wins wise and make the most money, agai nespecialy on the west coast. We are on more of the level of an FBS school playing in the FCS level. Should we loose schools such as Cal Poly etc to FBS it will be even harder to have good competion here for our Griz. Additionaly why would say a good FCS team back east want to travel out west to the Griz when they have a ton of current FCS schools they could play closer to home or play an FBS school again closer to home and get paid the same or more than the Griz would pay. Seems to me that even if the study shows we onlt stand to break even or make a little money we would be better of making the move.

 

[kemajic]

Facing FBS level of competition says to me that the Griz have the potential of an Appy State game every Saturday. Plus, going by WAC bylaws, the UM - MSU series would always be a home game for the Griz.

Well said.

 

[getgrizzy]

Facing FBS level of competition says to me that the Griz have the potential of an Appy State game every Saturday. Plus, going by WAC bylaws, the UM - MSU series would always be a home game for the Griz.

Well said.

what um-msu series? haha. are you out of your mind? how is that going to happen? that game is over.

 

[spsyk]

Just a thought,

All those that see the success of moving up, just wondering where the hell all of you where when the Griz played at Dornblaser with the big crowds of anywhere between 1000 and 2500 hundred fans, and winning three or four games a year.

Let me tell you about fan support, winning is contagious, and creates a great fan base following, although I can assure you moving up and winning three or four games a year, the Griz would not be able to fill Dornblaser.

It took a lot of years and hard work from many in this town, starting with coach Donovan, and the success of coach Read, and the coaches that followed to get the program where it is, and I can assure you there is not enough money in Montana let alone in Missoula, to compete will the likes of the FBS teams, and to think otherwise is living in denial.

Just my opinion, look at the decline in basketball, since the days of Michael Rae, and Krysko, and more recent the Lady Griz, one more year like last year and the fans will be looking for Robin's head.

Fans will engage with winners, and the success achieved at FCS is not achievable at FBS and the reason being, able to get the athletes necessary would not be attracted to Missoula, Montana.

Break dancing in baggy pants and sporting dreadlocks, at Buck's Club, is not an inducement to attract athletes to Missoula, and the Mansfield library is of no interest to most athletes, it requires a semblance of nightlife and entertainment and perhaps some women of their social scheme, which is not available at the UM.

Solve those problems first, which will never happen sadly, in Missoula's diverse population.

 

[Paytonlives]

I believe the Griz will benifit more financially by moving up. Staying in the FCS wont be economic suicide persay, but eventually it may come back to bite them if they don't make a move on this upcoming lift. They will be more financially rewarded if they moved to the BCS.

You may believe this, but recent feasibility studies for schools like Georgia Southern show that moving up was not financially feasible. A recent ncaa study concluded that financial reasons don't justify moving up.

And the travel expenses of Georgia Southern????

 

[Paytonlives]

Just a thought,

All those that see the success of moving up, just wondering where the hell all of you where when the Griz played at Dornblaser with the big crowds of anywhere between 1000 and 2500 hundred fans, and winning three or four games a year.

Let me tell you about fan support, winning is contagious, and creates a great fan base following, although I can assure you moving up and winning three or four games a year, the Griz would not be able to fill Dornblaser.

It took a lot of years and hard work from many in this town, starting with coach Donovan, and the success of coach Read, and the coaches that followed to get the program where it is, and I can assure you there is not enough money in Montana let alone in Missoula, to compete will the likes of the FBS teams, and to think otherwise is living in denial.

Just my opinion, look at the decline in basketball, since the days of Michael Rae, and Krysko, and more recent the Lady Griz, one more year like last year and the fans will be looking for Robin's head.

Fans will engage with winners, and the success achieved at FCS is not achievable at FBS and the reason being, able to get the athletes necessary would not be attracted to Missoula, Montana.



Solve those problems first, which will never happen sadly, in Missoula's diverse population.

I was there freezing my ass off!!! What I remember was the competition of Boise, Reno & Idaho.

If you think Larry Donovan had a possitive effect on Griz football your are truly showing how little you know. A whoping 27 Wins and 37 loses... Including 5-16-1 in his last two years.

The decline of Basketball has more to do with personel and the way UM treated the students at the BBall games.

As far as diversity thats just a lame atempt at hiding a racist remark. I am so tired of this worn out way of thinking... when people like spsyk start to look past color then the world will be a better place. Until then take your racism somewhere else

SPYSK "the tool" wrote:
Break dancing in baggy pants and sporting dreadlocks, at Buck's Club, is not an inducement to attract athletes to Missoula, and the Mansfield library is of no interest to most athletes, it requires a semblance of nightlife and entertainment and perhaps some women of their social scheme, which is not available at the UM.