Shawn-O

About 1.4M viewers each, last season. http://www.forbes.com/sites/prishe/2015/01/15/reviewing-the-2014-15-bowl-season-highest-bowl-game-prices-attendances-and-tv-ratings/ http://www.sportsmediawatch.com/2015/01/unc-louisville-ratings-espn-basketball-epl-nbcsn-most-watched-fcs-college-football-championship-espn/

I beg to differ on A.J McCarron.

So I guess they should stay FCS. App St, Texas St, GSU, ODU, South Alabama, UTSA, Charlotte, among others, thought it wise to move up or just skip to 85 scholarships from the beginning. Interesting. Geography is likely as good an explanation as anything.

To add, in order to compete for the Big Sky title, UND will need to be solid in all three phases of the game: offense, defense, and special teams.

If they aren't already, at some point they need to look at FBS, out of sheer boredom.

They will dispatch of Richmond easily and completely annihilate either Sam or Jack. Frisco will be a simple coronation.

What a money pit this FCS tournament is. Who's going to fly Colgate out to play Portland St. for a gate of 5,000 and no television revenue to speak of?

Nielsen and Lane Kiffin should work together.

I only went back 10 years, it's 4% if you go all the way back to '90. http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702303519404579350892629229918 Your are right in that growth in hockey far exceeds growth in baseball, football, basketball, and soccer. However, the absolute numbers remain minuscule relatively speaking. How about lacrosse, wow!

I agree with you here, Ralph made sure of this with his gift. On the conference side, you are delving into the realm of science fiction once again. Will UBC be joining the league?

Evidently about 1.8% a year. http://www.usahockey.com/page/show/839306-membership-statistics

Love the hockey program, very entertaining, great memories, great friends made. But also some wildly delusional people here: CFP Championship Ohio State v Oregon - 33.4M viewersNCAA Basketball Final Duke v Wisconsin - 28.3M viewersNCAA Hockey semi-final North Dakota v Boston U - 0.3M viewersYep, we're a heavyweight. Protect the goose that's laying the golden eggs immediately! Quickly, shutter the football and basketball programs and divert resources! Oh, and sorry to say...NDSU-Montana FCS Kickoff got 981,000 viewers last August on a Saturday afternoon. And one more...NDSU-Gonzaga 2 v 15 NCAA basketball tournament, 2.1M viewers, not including streaming. It's an avalanche of data. But don't forget about "the straw that stirs the drink!!"

59 teams a decade ago to 60 teams currently is not exactly explosive growth where I come from.

That was grounds for canning Jones right there...losing a Bismarck kid to NDSU.

It's settled. We have A. The JV Football wackos and B. the "let's dump football and be the BU of the midwest" crowd. Seek the middle ground at your own risk.

Number of pros produced is a stupid argument. Unless all of them endow scholarships to the program, like Matt Greene. I then stand corrected.

Can we please be realistic about college hockey for a half a second?

Neither is significant on the national landscape, but I love them both. Part of a weird little cult with many others here, and some UNH and Maine fans.

At BV you'd get a good ol' fashioned "F__K OFF" for your trouble in a similar scenario.

Wow, that's great perspective. I've never really looked at it like that before. Thanks for the insight. Signed, Nobody

The BV Analytics Center of Excellence has issued a point of view that first downs and yardage are a better indicator than the final score/point differential. Did you not receive the whitepaper?

Here's the proper ranking of college athletics: 1. FBS football from September through the second Monday in January. 2. College basketball from early March through the first Monday in April. 3. The other 21 sports.

Interesting take here from last summer, the concept being the P5 schools going to market together on the next TV deal. http://www.scout.com/college/texas/story/1561434-the-next-big-move-in-realignment The NCAA basketball TV deal runs out about the same time: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-basketball-ncaa-cbsturner-idUSTRE63L4FP20100422#uXbj3hApTzAer9mO.97 Interesting, huh?

no way Louisville leaves the ACC, the other two...why not? AAC and MW are certainly the places to be looking.

If I had to take a wild guess I'd say BYU and Boise State.