bisonguy

You obviously can find your way around the NCAA site a lot better than I can.

Jim, isn't there a minimum number of sports a school can have? I believe I heard something on the radio that NDSU would be at the minimum allowed number of sports, so dropping a non-revenue sport may not be an option. Maybe women's bowling could be added. That has to be a low-cost sport. My remarks about the ice are a small jab at the Fargodome. They supposedly put the pipes in the floor, but the cooling units would cost something around $8 mil., but were originally reported to cost a couple hundred thousand.

I don't think hockey will be a topic again at NDSU until at least 2012. I was just saying that if the Fargodome builds their addition, they should put in an ice sheet or whatever so they could have the capability to have a place to play hockey in the future, or field a club team again. I have no idea what they need to do for an ice sheet. My only experience with ice is making ice cubes to make my scotch colder.

BB, unfortunately, will be the sport that gets hurt the most. It will definitely take a LOT of hard work to make the BB program something to be proud of. The Fargodome is contemplating an addition that would house 8,000-10,000. The Fargodome is built on NDSU land, so NDSU just has to say we'll lease it for BB(and hockey), and the Fargodome Authority has to respect their intent. That's a possible solution for the arena. A fanbase will have to be built up, which won't be easy. Without a conference, the BB wait is 13 years, so I think it's essential to be in a conference. Okay, I'm addressing the points out of order. Ineligibility-A conf. championship or other tourneys(NIT, etc.- I know they're not that great, but they are something) will have to do until NDSU will be eligible. Once eligible, ALL D1 teams make some money from the tourney. I don't think Miles will stick around long enough to see the NCAA tourney. Ruley probably will, but it's hard to say. I think the men will have to find an upstart head coach looking to move up a level, once they are postseason eligible. Basketball is definitely not going to be an easy transition(easier for the women, though), but nobody ever said it would be.

I just noticed this- The Al and The Ralph. Do UND fans have to personify all their arenas?

Umm, Michigan? No, they have 9 D1 hockey titles. I know it's UND. Question for Sioux fans, especially residents of Grand Forks- Why is the comparison of a D1AA NDSU to a D1A U of M being made? I know the gophers are in financial trouble, but they also have hockey and a D1A football program with much greater expenses. It sounds like telling someone not to buy a new car because a new Ferrari costs $500,000.

I believe there also was something else going on the weekend of the NDSU/UNO game. Deer opener or something. I remember attendance was expected to be lower because of this other "event". There was over 13,000 for the SDSU game, and NDSU already had 2 losses-virtually eliminated from the playoffs.

The Gophers?

Smart administrator=oxymoron. I've never purchased a giant bubble, but you'd think they could even get a buy one, get one 50% off.

Allright, here's a few avg. attendance facts: UND trailed NDSU by about 1,600 last year.(10,517 vs. 12,115) and that was without the 20,000+ sellout Nickel Game, a cancelled game vs. Maine that already had 17,000+ tickets sold, and a lackluster turnout for the last game. In 1998 the margin was about 4,000 and the difference was even greater in the mid-90's. Maine was ranked 89th in D1AA football avg. attendance last year with 4,068. Fort Hays was ranked 89th in D2 football avg. attendance last year with 2,455. Jackson St. led D1AA with an avg. attendance of 29,067. Tuskegee led D2 with an avg. attendance of 12,957. NCAA Football Attendance Stats Yes, there are absolutely no minimum attendance requirements for D1AA football. There are for D1A(20,000?), but many of the big boys have 100,000+ seat stadiums that are full. A new BB floor for UND could be to keep the momentum going in UND's newfound men's BB success. I think JBB was just saying that at maximum capacity(i.e. best case scenario), UND's attendance numbers would barely be in the top 20, but NDSU would be in the top 5 for D1AA.

Okay, I'll play nice again. This morning on HotTalk on WDAY AM, there was a roundtable discussion of area athletics with a few sports guys from WDAY and The Forum. Anyhow, there's been talk of the Fargodome building an addition that would seat approx. 8,000-10,000 people. NDSU knows that the BSA is a hindrance in moving the BB up. Seeing as how the Fargodome is sitting on NDSU property, this would make a nice little BB or possibly, if enough foresight is put into it an ice sheet, hockey. Maybe JBB will expound about this, but there was talk of putting a bubble over Dacotah Field to house track and be a multi-sport facility. Is it possible that UND and NDSU are getting a two-for-one bubble deal?

ScottM, BTW, please don't try to correct my spelling when you have problems with the word "POLITICIZE". Maybe you inhaled a little too much picnic table smoke at springfest. I do find humor in your incessant blather.

Well, I guess the fact that UND counted some students two or three times in the enrollment numbers, says a little about the school. Counting to three is usually achieved by the age of two or three, but at UND it's a Ph.D. program. Hey, maybe UND can easily raise the money to go D1. Just have felon Bochenski print some counterfeit money for UND! UND- the school that imports their championships from Canada! UND, Sieg Heil der Fuhrer Ralph!

Anderson Accounting has already been used in the census fiascos of Grand Forks and the enrollment scandals of UND, or didn't anyone in Grand Forks hear about those, because your media is scared of UND and Der Fuhrer Ralph? ScottM, supercomputers? That sure was cool in 1978. NDSU has the largest network in the state, followed closely by a health care system based in Fargo. I've worked on both networks and even UND's, which isn't even in the same ballpark.Funny how times change, and progress is made. Wow, I want to go to a second rate medical school. Hey, I want to go to school for four years to learn to fly a little plane that I could take an eight week course. How about a dinky little law school? How's your engineering dept. ? Is your dean of electrical engineering a past president of the IEEE?

Jim, Hockey is not as popular in Fargo as it is in the Grand Forks region. If it was, I'm sure NDSU would have a D1 hockey team. When NDSU had a club team, they dominated and won a couple championships, but had absolutely no fan support. All one has to do is look at the high school level- the Grand Forks region is dominant in hockey, the Fargo teams dominate in football.

Jim, Here's your kinder, friendlier reply. You heard what I'm saying. I think UND should wait and see what kind of fan support is able to be sustained in football and hockey. UND is definitely on an upswing in attendance, and needs to see if it might level off or drop somewhat. Gene Taylor has stated that Bison football tickets would increase from $2-4 per game. That was the figure used in all the reports and surveys. NDSU knows that attendance would drop off if prices go up too much. I wasn't assuming the Fargodome would sell out. I guess I didn't clarify that I was talking maximum capacity, sort of a best case scenario. The NDSU/Maine game was headed for a sellout, with over 17,000 seats sold a week before last's year scheduled game. As far as no name schools, I've heard of Oral Roberts a lot more than a D2 school like Millersville. How about the Ivy League? They're D1AA. A D1 school that has a brief moment of glory, such as winning a round or two in the BB tourney, can receive a lot more exposure than a dominating D2 program with umpteen national championships. I believe that SDSU will be making the move up, as many close to the SDSU athletic program have been stating. That would make for a travel partner, and hopefully a ticket to the Big Sky, bringing the number of schools up to ten. Then, down the road, maybe UND,USD, and a couple others(preferrably former NCC's) could come along, and create two different divisions in the Big Sky. That's my ideal scenario. Best of luck to UND this season!

Wow, a disgruntled UND fan. A D1 PROGRAM is not comprised of a single D1 sport. Especially not one that only has D1 or D3, and is defined as a secondary sport by NCAA bylaws. Could NDSU have a D1 program with a water polo team, seeing as there isn't a D2 or D3? That's the equivalent of your "program". As far as hockey goes, I get my info from my father-in-law, who unfortunately is a Fighting Sioux Club member, UND men's hockey, soon-to-be women's hockey, football, men's and women's basketball season ticket holding, hasn't missed more than three home hockey games since 1978, going to hook me up with a luxury suite for a couple hockey games kinda guy. Maybe I misstated the seasons, but he has repeatedly told me how fickle UND fans are. He has told me of championship seasons that saw the Old Ralph half-full, after a couple lackluster seasons. Football attendance numbers are easier to come by, and the numbers have increased with success. How many people attended your season opener? 9,277. Are the people of the Grand Cities already losing interest in UND football? That's over 1,000 less than was averaged last year, including hosting NDSU, UND's only sellout. Sorry to say it Scott, but hockey is a sport that has reached a glass ceiling. It's a paradox to increase the fan support of hockey. To reach a broader fanbase, the elements that attract the hardcore fans have to be sacrificed. If you happen to watch ESPN or any other sport shows, you've probably heard about the NHL's financial stuggles. Have fun attending those BB games in Crookston.

Here's a few comments from another viewpoint: -There is not a domino effect going on in the NCC. SDSU's president is very big on moving up to D1 and his decision is independent of NDSU or UNC. I think the NCC would be able to reload for any lost members. The schools may not be as strong initially as the schools going D1, but imagine what a school like Winona could do with upping their football scholarships from 14 or 15 to 36. The "watering down" of the division may be countered with some D1 schools moving down to D2. A couple misc. things. -All D1BBall teams receive money from the NCAA tournament, whether they win it or placed last in their conference. If a D1 BBall team is not eligible for postseason play in the NCAA touney, they can be eligible for other tourneys, such as the NIT. If NDSU was good enough, they could get into the NIT their fifth season as a D1 team. -I don't think NDSU wants the NCC to move up as a whole. There would be way too many hoops to jump through for postseason play. Even after meeting eligibilty requirements, who wants to give up a playoff spot to a new conference?(NSIC, anyone?) There are also serious talks of lowering the BBall postseason penalty to eight years, as opposed to remaining at 13 for independents or new conferences. NDSU wants a travel partner or two to join an established conference. Here's a few possible concerns about a possible D1 move by UND: -Fan support. Yes, I said fan support. I know this may stir up quite a few of you, but UND has a lot of fair weather fans. How full was the arena the years before UND won their last title in hockey? Half? How full was it last year with a non-winning record? How full will REA be if UND has 3 or 4 consecutive losing seasons? How many people attended UND football games a few years back? How many now? How many would attend if UND is getting beat up at the 1AA level? NDSU has averaged at least 11,000 per game for ten years with some fairly average seasons, and a low turnout for the UNO game last year. A packed Alerus center would barely bring UND into the top 20 in attendance. A packed Fargodome would bring NDSU into the top 5. Basketball facilities are a wash. NDSU is revamping the BSA, and can use the Fargodome if need be, just as UND would have REA or the Alerus at their disposal. Speaking of the Alerus, what if those in control of the Alerus changed their mind about UND football? What if they figured pulling in the Backstreet Boys and Britney Spears would be better for themselves than UND football? What if they increased UND's lease to a ridiculous amount?A stipulation of NDSU's $0.01 land lease to the Fargodome is that it has to be at NDSU's disposal, first and foremost, for sporting events. UND is not NDSU, and Grand Forks is not Fargo. There are a lot of questions and unknowns in the future for UND in a move to D1. The questions MUST be answered for the best interest of UND, and not just to keep up with the Jones'. Personally, I feel UND should stay at the D2 level and try to help stengthen the division. Maybe ten years down the road, UND can assess the situation and see if UND and Grand Forks can support a D1 program. I just don't think with adding women's hockey and with the population of the Grand Forks area, that a move to a D1 program would truly be in the best interest of UND. See you guys Oct. 12th!