If MU ever decides to pick up FB again, do you think they'd join these guys?

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

If we wanted to do Football again we would have to do it as a Pioneer Football League team. Even then there are obstacles. Lets look at what is achievable first.  Pioneer Football is non scholarship so no Title IX issues.

Unless I am mistaken I don't think this is correct. Title IX isn't just about scholarships it's about money spent.

[The Equalizer]

Baylor's new stadium has a 110 acre footprint, just FYI.

I'll give you the benefit of the doubt that you weren't trying intentionally to mislead on this.

The entire site at Baylor--which also to include a track and field stadium, intramural fields, substantial park-like areas, RV parking and even a marina--is a total of 93 acres.

The stadium footprint itself is a small portion of that 93 acres.  The stadium is the white rectangle on the left edge of the image. 


For comparision purposes, The First Energy Stadium (Cleveland) site is just 31 acres, Paul Brown stadium in Cincinnati occupies 22 acres, the new 49ers stadium in Santa Clara is on a 17 acre site. And those are sites for large 60 to 70K seat NFL-class stadiums.

MU would NOT have to buy anything close to 100 acres in downtown Milwaukee.  Its as silly as suggesting that the minimum price tag would be $500 million. 

Does that disqualify Equalizer from further comment?

No.  It makes PTM mistaken.   

[MU82]

Girls, you are both pretty.

Is bringing back football impossible? No.

Would it be extremely difficult and make no sense for the university to pursue? Yes.

You forgot the third question:

Is there a prayer it will happen? No.

Move along. Nothing to see here.

[Texas Western]

Unless I am mistaken I don't think this is correct. Title IX isn't just about scholarships it's about money spent.

I dont know the actual detail of Title IX, I thought it was roughly equated to scholarships. Maybe there is some formula. I think the point is non scholarship brings the costs way down and makes it a glorified high school team with a travel budget.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

I dont know the actual detail of Title IX, I thought it was roughly equated to scholarships. Maybe there is some formula. I think the point is non scholarship brings the costs way down and makes it a glorified high school team with a travel budget.

And a coaching staff...and a training staff....and a stadium....and a locker room....and support staff....

Football is expensive, even without the schollies.

[dgies9156]

Each one of these arguments appears to set an unrealistically high minimum bar.  Big Ten or SEC level player requirements?  Packer or Badger level fan support?  Anything wrong with starting with modest goals?

The challenges are not insurmountable. Its been about decade since the last major fundraising progam at MU took place--Magis raised $350 million back then.  MU's next major effort will be larger, and if football becomes a priority, then it's added as small line item on a big overall goal. The $100 million cost to launch a program becomes a small part of, say, an overall $750 million 10-year fundraising campaign.  

Two final point. First, FBS does us no good. We cannot preserve a high division 1 basketball program with an FBS football team. If we establish football, its to preserve our overall position in basketball and hopefully someday to compete at the highest levels. The best we could hope for is to be Vanderbilt, Duke, Northwestern etc., and as I noted, that will take decades at best.

Secondly, as to fundraising, I have been generous to Marquette ever since I was graduated. There is no way, now how, nothing, nada, that would drive me to contribute to establishing a football program. Marquette has so many needs and with a $40,000-plus annual cost and thousands of young people priced out of a Marquette education, it would be the absolute height of irresponsibility to spend massive amounts of money on a third tier football program. Period.

[Brewtown Andy]

Secondly, as to fundraising, I have been generous to Marquette ever since I was graduated. There is no way, now how, nothing, nada, that would drive me to contribute to establishing a football program. Marquette has so many needs and with a $40,000-plus annual cost and thousands of young people priced out of a Marquette education, it would be the absolute height of irresponsibility to spend massive amounts of money on a third tier football program. Period.

Which is probably why Dr. Lovell doesn't support it.

[Texas Western]

And a coaching staff...and a training staff....and a stadium....and a locker room....and support staff....

Football is expensive, even without the schollies.

Agreed, that is why I am saying someone who have to fully fund it, do all the  logistic research , create the plan etc and make it one stop  shopping no brainer deal. Not likely to happen.

[77ncaachamps]

Wow.

They have an MLK Blvd in Waco?

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

This isn't true. At all.

Go back and look at the WCHA. LOTS of good/great teams that aren't from Hockey East, and didn't move to the B10.

EDIT This will save you some time.

Some great hockey programs here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Collegiate_Hockey_Conference

The ECAC has won the last two NCAA championships:

Union in 2014 & Yale in 2013 and Yale beat fellow ECAC member for the title.

[Chicago_inferiority_complexes]

It seems to me that the biggest reason we won't ever have football is that basketball is an absolute cash cow at Marquette for a lot of administrators. Maybe one of the biggest cash cows in all of D1 basketball. And there is absolutely ZERO incentive for anyone involved with athletics at Marquette to upset that apple cart. Even a mildly successful, break-even program could distract attention or draw away donations from the financial benefactors of the basketball program within the administration.

For my many sins I am living in the Quad Cities, and I can tell you that Augustana College has a beautiful new stadium and support facilities that could not have cost them $500MM to put together. Even podunk St. Ambrose is putting together a stadium. I'd love to see a program at Marquette, but it's never going to happen unless the people making plenty of money on our basketball program want it to happen.

[Coleman]

It seems to me that the biggest reason we won't ever have football is that basketball is an absolute cash cow at Marquette for a lot of administrators. Maybe one of the biggest cash cows in all of D1 basketball. And there is absolutely ZERO incentive for anyone involved with athletics at Marquette to upset that apple cart. Even a mildly successful, break-even program could distract attention or draw away donations from the financial benefactors of the basketball program within the administration.

For my many sins I am living in the Quad Cities, and I can tell you that Augustana College has a beautiful new stadium and support facilities that could not have cost them $500MM to put together. Even podunk St. Ambrose is putting together a stadium. I'd love to see a program at Marquette, but it's never going to happen unless the people making plenty of money on our basketball program want it to happen.

The ONLY way I could see it ever happening is if you get an uber-wealthy alum to make an unprecedented donation (like in the hundreds of millions of dollars range) to do it, along with an ongoing endowment to keep it afloat.

Beyond that, there's no way the university would invest its limited funds into such a venture and there's no reason it should.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

It seems to me that the biggest reason we won't ever have football is that basketball is an absolute cash cow at Marquette for a lot of administrators. Maybe one of the biggest cash cows in all of D1 basketball. And there is absolutely ZERO incentive for anyone involved with athletics at Marquette to upset that apple cart. Even a mildly successful, break-even program could distract attention or draw away donations from the financial benefactors of the basketball program within the administration.

For my many sins I am living in the Quad Cities, and I can tell you that Augustana College has a beautiful new stadium and support facilities that could not have cost them $500MM to put together. Even podunk St. Ambrose is putting together a stadium. I'd love to see a program at Marquette, but it's never going to happen unless the people making plenty of money on our basketball program want it to happen.

It's not so much that it would distract from basketball, it's that football would drain all of athletics' budget. Football is a black hole of expenses. It only pays out if you are in a big six conference.

[GGGG]

The ONLY way I could see it ever happening is if you get an uber-wealthy alum to make an unprecedented donation (like in the hundreds of millions of dollars range) to do it, along with an ongoing endowment to keep it afloat.

Similar to the $100M donation that Penn State received to create its hockey program.

[chapman]

Will let you guys know when I'm ready to donate the $100M.  It could be awhile...


Also, not a penny will go to football. 

[dgies9156]

For my many sins I am living in the Quad Cities.

Those must have been some really, really bad mortal sins. Did you ever consider confession? Even there, your penance is finite.

I lived in the Quad Cities from 1978 to 1982. I met some nice people and found some nice bars, but my after-college life really began after I left the Quads for a real city.

[Chicago_inferiority_complexes]

Those must have been some really, really bad mortal sins. Did you ever consider confession? Even there, your penance is finite.

I lived in the Quad Cities from 1978 to 1982. I met some nice people and found some nice bars, but my after-college life really began after I left the Quads for a real city.

Trying to get out as soon as I can. Finished grad school a month or two before the Dow was cut by 1/3 or so in 2008, and my best job offer was here. It's basically a one (two, including the arsenal) employer town. Can't wait to get out.

[MUfan12]

It seems to me that the biggest reason we won't ever have football is that basketball is an absolute cash cow at Marquette for a lot of administrators. Maybe one of the biggest cash cows in all of D1 basketball. And there is absolutely ZERO incentive for anyone involved with athletics at Marquette to upset that apple cart. Even a mildly successful, break-even program could distract attention or draw away donations from the financial benefactors of the basketball program within the administration.

Given the landscape of college sports right now, I think a time is coming where MU will need to discuss protecting that cash cow with a football program, or getting out of major athletics completely.

[Canned Goods n Ammo]

Given the landscape of college sports right now, I think a time is coming where MU will need to discuss protecting that cash cow with a football program, or getting out of major athletics completely.

I know this sounds like sacrilege, but if college athletics really get to some sort of insane tipping point, I'd probably be in favor of getting out of it all together.

I love MU athletics, but if they no longer fit the overall mission of the school, then maybe they are better off without.

Again, this is assuming that college athletics gets to some sort of insane cash grab that we can't even imagine yet.

[GGGG]

Trying to get out as soon as I can. Finished grad school a month or two before the Dow was cut by 1/3 or so in 2008, and my best job offer was here. It's basically a one (two, including the arsenal) employer town. Can't wait to get out.

But the locals love the place and never leave right?

[Chicago_inferiority_complexes]

But the locals love the place and never leave right?

Oddly enough, not that much. It's a lot different from NE Wisconsin, where I'm from, where people don't leave much or even move around.

It's a very transitory place. When people retire from my company, often as not I see lifelong residents announce that they're getting out permanently. I also don't see many, if any, Big 10 graduates around town. (Iowa City is only 60 minutes away.) If you went to a decent college out of town, you aren't coming back.

The depopulation of small towns in the Midwest is a story that doesn't get enough attention.

[Chicago_inferiority_complexes]

But the locals love the place and never leave right?

Great book on Iowa for anyone interested is "Methland," which deals with the economic and drug problems of Iowa. Incredibly enough, I read it when I had a lot of down time job searching.

[GGGG]

Oddly enough, not that much. It's a lot different from NE Wisconsin, where I'm from, where people don't leave much or even move around.

It's a very transitory place. When people retire from my company, often as not I see lifelong residents announce that they're getting out permanently. I also don't see many, if any, Big 10 graduates around town. (Iowa City is only 60 minutes away.) If you went to a decent college out of town, you aren't coming back.

The depopulation of small towns in the Midwest is a story that doesn't get enough attention.

Yeah, agreed.  Unless you are located near a city of some import (and in Wisconsin I would include Madison and Milwaukee among those), there just isn't much in some of these towns any longer. 

[dgies9156]

Oddly enough, not that much. It's a lot different from NE Wisconsin, where I'm from, where people don't leave much or even move around.

It's a very transitory place. When people retire from my company, often as not I see lifelong residents announce that they're getting out permanently. I also don't see many, if any, Big 10 graduates around town. (Iowa City is only 60 minutes away.) If you went to a decent college out of town, you aren't coming back.

The depopulation of small towns in the Midwest is a story that doesn't get enough attention.

I worked in the media in the QCs in the 1970s and early 1980s. At the time I started, the region was the Industrial Miracle, with Deere, IH, Caterpillar, JI Case and Alcoa all employing thousands and thousands of blue collar, unionized workers.

Within five years beginning in 1981, Case shut its entire QC operation (Bettendorf and Rock Island), IH shut down the huge Farmall Plant in Rock Island (from which the city has never recovered), Caterpillar shut down North Davenport (after retooling it five years before) and the Rock Island Lines railroad went bankrupt and abandoned Silvis (see that large empty tract of land as you come in on Interstate 88/Illinois 5 from Sterling and Chicago). I'm betting that 25,000 to 35,000 people lost their jobs, minimum.

Other than Deere and Company and the Arsenal, nothing is there except for a few tractor suppliers (I'm assuming McLaughlin Body still is around). I'm sure I am overstating somewhat, but the economy there is a real world-class disaster and if Deere's headquarters weren't in Moline, one wonders whether there would be 50,000 people left!

[77ncaachamps]

Oddly enough, not that much. It's a lot different from NE Wisconsin, where I'm from, where people don't leave much or even move around.

It's a very transitory place. When people retire from my company, often as not I see lifelong residents announce that they're getting out permanently. I also don't see many, if any, Big 10 graduates around town. (Iowa City is only 60 minutes away.) If you went to a decent college out of town, you aren't coming back.

The depopulation of small towns in the Midwest is a story that doesn't get enough attention.

Agreed. But that where the opportunistic minorities and immigrants will go.