Where would Marquette athletics be had it not dropped football in 1960?

[GGGG]

I saw people commenting about how one of the biggest mistakes Marquette has made was dropping football.  I am curious what people think Marquette athletics would look like now had they decided not to drop football in the 1960s.

[Tugg Speedman]

It only became an issue in the mid-1990s when college football was a real revenue source.  for 30 to 35 years it really did not matter.

But if we want to rehash this again ...

How many private Urban schools are good at D1 football.  I count two "The U" (Miami) and USC ... Both had strong histories and are in the middle of football recruiting hotbeds.  MU has neither.

Again, private Urban schools are not football powers.  Please let this conversation end.

[dgies9156]

No way we could have consistently competed in a Power 5 Conference.

The Big 3 private schools are  Notre Dame, Stanford and Vanderbilt. Vanderbilt would not be in the SEC today if it had not been a charter member in 1933. Notre Dame spends more money than God on its football program and probably is successful because Knute Rockne is their version of "Al".

Stanford has been a good football power but again was a founding member of the Pac 10 and I question whether they would have been in the Pac 10 today if they weren't in forever and a day.

[Tugg Speedman]

No way we could have consistently competed in a Power 5 Conference.

The Big 3 private schools are  Notre Dame, Stanford and Vanderbilt. Vanderbilt would not be in the SEC today if it had not been a charter member in 1933. Notre Dame spends more money than God on its football program and probably is successful because Knute Rockne is their version of "Al".

Stanford has been a good football power but again was a founding member of the Pac 10 and I question whether they would have been in the Pac 10 today if they weren't in forever and a day.

Ditto Northwestern in the B1G for all the reasons above.

[Benny B]

Where's the option for "Turned into a Subway Sandwich University."

[dgies9156]

Ditto Northwestern in the B1G for all the reasons above.

Yes

[Tugg Speedman]

This was MU's last/best chance of being a football power.  Restated MU's chance at being a football power ended 70 years ago ......

A look back at last three Big Ten expansions
By Tom Dienhart, BTN.com Senior Writer
- See more at: http://btn.com/2014/06/30/a-look-back-at-the-last-three-big-ten-expansions/#sthash.BnQKadnN.dpuf

But when the University of Chicago dropped from the Big Ten in 1946, Michigan State was primed to join. Nebraska, Notre Dame, Iowa State, Marquette and Pitt also were considered. But MSU ultimately was tabbed in May 1949 and began competition in 1953.

[GooooMarquette]

It isn't just ND, Northwestern, Stanford, and Vanderbilt.  We would/could have gone the way of...Boston College. 

It has been a while since they have been competitive in football, but chances are we would have been a football-playing member of the BE, and might at some point have had a chance to go along with them.

[MerrittsMustache]

It isn't just ND, Northwestern, Stanford, and Vanderbilt.  We would/could have gone the way of...Boston College. 

It has been a while since they have been competitive in football, but chances are we would have been a football-playing member of the BE, and might at some point have had a chance to go along with them.

MU would likely be in the situation where UConn and Cincy find themselves - a strong basketball school whose football program isn't strong enough (and market not big enough) to get an invite to a Power 5 conference.

[GooooMarquette]

MU would likely be in the situation where UConn and Cincy find themselves - a strong basketball school whose football program isn't strong enough (and market not big enough) to get an invite to a Power 5 conference.

I don't necessarily disagree.  I was just pointing out that the examples people were using (ND, plus some schools that were founding members of their conferences) aren't the only private schools that currently sit in P5 conferences.

It is likely that we'd be more like UConn...but it's at least possible that we could be like BC.

[MUfan12]

I just don't see how it could have survived. Stadium needed replacing. Team was bad for a decade. It would have taken major investment to turn things around and be attractive enough for a big conference.

[Badgerhater]

Why do people assume that with football MU hoops of the late 1960s and the 1970s would have happened?

How much support (financial and otherwise) would MU football have sucked out of the basketball program in the 1960s and 1970s? 

We are pretty fortunate that MU hoops has worked out the way it has.  MU was notoriously cheap with Al and perhaps with football sucking up resources he would have found greener pastures after a few years.

[warriorchick]

Why do people assume that with football MU hoops of the late 1960s and the 1970s would have happened?

How much support (financial and otherwise) would MU football have sucked out of the basketball program in the 1960s and 1970s? 

And sucked out of the rest of the University?  Don't forget that after Title IX happened, Marquette would have had to come up with a crapload of schollies, coaches, and facilities for women's sports.  Most of those other private schools you have mentioned have many more well-heeled donors than Marquette does.  If we would not have been able to get our alums to pony up for the chick sports (and right now, our current scholarships aren't even fully funded), it would have come out of the University General Fund.

[jsglow]

It only became an issue in the mid-1990s when college football was a real revenue source.  for 30 to 35 years it really did not matter.

But if we want to rehash this again ...

How many private Urban schools are good at D1 football.  I count two "The U" (Miami) and USC ... Both had strong histories and are in the middle of football recruiting hotbeds.  MU has neither.

Again, private Urban schools are not football powers.  Please let this conversation end.

+1

[vogue65]

I arrived in 1961 the year after the end of the football program.   The feeling at M.U. was basically, good riddance.
Football was basically viewed as a bunch of thugs who rampaged the nights before games.
I sensed no desire for any return of football.  Some of us went to Evanston or Madison for our football fix.  There was some talk of Division 3 football.
Intermural touch football was played at the old, small, (one half of a stadium) facility.
Let's get real, football was untenable for a host of reasons, good call at the time.

[Pakuni]

No way we could have consistently competed in a Power 5 Conference.

The Big 3 private schools are  Notre Dame, Stanford and Vanderbilt.

USC, Miami and BYU say hi.

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

Where would there even have been any space for a football field? Especially now a days. We pt our investment into basketball, just like Northwestern put theirs into football, the plans for the new lakefront facility are nuts. Its not a good or bad thing, we just decided to invest in something different.

[ZiggysFryBoy]

we woulda been 100x's better keeping the med school than football.

[Tugg Speedman]

we woulda been 100x's better keeping the med school than football.

+ one million

If their was still a Marquette University Medical School and/or a Marquette University Hospital (or Hospital system) that would have done more for the reputation of the entire university than a football team.

[Herman Cain]

I feel the two major mistakes MU made was giving up the medical school and the football program.

At the time we gave up the football program it was in down cycle. However, the team was coming back up.  The timing was extremely unfortunate, because TV was just coming into its own as a force in Sports in the early 60s and MU football would have benefited, financially and from  the visibility.  Marquette had good football visibility as it played at a major level and that benefits everyone.

My sense is with football we would have moved into the Missouri Valley Conference, where we would have still been strong in basketball and probably middle of the road in football with possibly a strong year every once in a while. Then we would have moved to the Metro Conference  and followed the same path as Louisville  into Conference USA and eventually the Big East.

Remember, when the Big Ten was deciding to replace the University of Chicago, Marquette was one of the schools in the running. The Big Ten eventually chose Michigan State which joined in 1953.

 

[4everwarriors]

we woulda been 100x's better keeping the med school than football.

First fookin', intelligent comment from you, kin, in da past decade, hey?

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

I feel the two major mistakes MU made was giving up the medical school and the football program.

At the time we gave up the football program it was in down cycle. However, the team was coming back up.  The timing was extremely unfortunate, because TV was just coming into its own as a force in Sports in the early 60s and MU football would have benefited, financially and from  the visibility.  Marquette had good football visibility as it played at a major level and that benefits everyone.

My sense is with football we would have moved into the Missouri Valley Conference, where we would have still been strong in basketball and probably middle of the road in football with possibly a strong year every once in a while. Then we would have moved to the Metro Conference  and followed the same path as Louisville  into Conference USA and eventually the Big East.

Even if all this came true, which is a BIG if, Marquette's best case scenario is that they would have ended up in the American, making less money than we currently do in the Big East...and we would have had to pay for football. There is no way your prediction happens without the basketball program suffering. I will take our basketball history over a theoretical history of being mediocre in both football and basketball.

[MU82]

Wait? Marquette had a football team?

[Herman Cain]

Even if all this came true, which is a BIG if, Marquette's best case scenario is that they would have ended up in the American, making less money than we currently do in the Big East...and we would have had to pay for football. There is no way your prediction happens without the basketball program suffering. I will take our basketball history over a theoretical history of being mediocre in both football and basketball.

Yet in another thread you have been pounding the table that we need to take U Conn into the Big East. This way we would still have been together with them.Also, under this scenario above, the Big East may not have collapsed and instead may have been smart enough to take the $1.24 billion offer they received from ESPN which they greedily turned down. MU as an all sports member we would have been in fat cat city as a participant in that. Also Miller Park may have become a multi sport stadium with us as the Football tenant.

 

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

Yet in another thread you have been pounding the table that we need to take U Conn into the Big East. This way we would still have been together with them.Also, under this scenario above, the Big East may not have collapsed and instead may have been smart enough to take the $1.24 billion offer they received from ESPN which they greedily turned down. MU as an all sports member we would have been in fat cat city as a participant in that. Also Miller Park may have become a multi sport stadium with us as the Football tenant.

Of course I want UConn in the Big East. They are a great basketball program. What does that have to do with this?

And no, the Big East would have still collapsed. Marquette having a crappy football team wouldn't have changed the fact that the B1G and SEC can take any school they want at any time.

Again, why would you trade our dominance of basketball under Al for a crappy mid major football team?