tyndal23 wrote:They wont travel to Lynchburg regardless and Lynchburg wont support LU outside of Students and Faculty until we actually are a P5 then we might get some local support but probably not much. Key is getting recruits and playing in P5 venues around the nation and simultaneously marketing LU Online for the $ that our Online Programs generate until we get an P5 invite ( based on our $, level of competition, national streaming eyeballs and facilities ( not based on our physical attendance )or if we can crash 8 team playoff based on our hybrid P5 / G5 Schedule. What won’t work is trying to be a typical G5 regional success story like Boise St ,Fresno St, etc - all the big names in G5 other than UCF ( possibly USF and Cinci ) have $ and geographical location issues with no national recruiting presence. We must max out what our strengths are. I have pushed for playing all 5 conferences - However - worst case schedule heavy ACC ( Ian already doing that ) and Big 12 - the 2 conferences we would have any kind of shot at and start being a regular name with them at the very least...Win Loss record will not be nearly as big a factor short term - get respected by playing them tough, then winning some big games and seeing LU playing multiple big teams year in and year out - Win your 6 G5 games and 1-3 P5 games and your getting respect way quicker than a Buffalo, Troy, etc.who are stuck in conferences and will always be stuck in G5 no mans land. UCF is a completely different animal and will be P5 by next realignment - but great thing is they are driving the discussion for 8 team playoff -which is GREAT for LU. Ian did a great job scheduling last minute - we now have a top 5 coach - lets revisit schedule and tweak sooner rather than later and invest some money beefing it up ( we had $25 million set aside for Conf USA ) we can buy out some games and ramp up quicker than we thought we could - great problem to have - what are we risking ? Last year attendance numbers are nothing to try and cling to and preserve - 1 less home game - no big deal. Remember - Big 12 - each team got $36 million end of the year - this is what we are investing in the short term to get to as quick as possible. LU hoops and baseball are on same trajectory - P5 invite isn’t nearly a long shot as most think if we go for it. IF Ian is strategically trying to get us in ACC - then buying a VT game over Hampton next year makes tons of sense - paying extra $ for 1 for 1 with the Carolina schools every year also makes a ton of sense - ( no room for 2 for 1 -so pay the extra $ to get Duke, UNC, NC State, WF, WVU teams here - they will travel for a relative easy game that is close ) We are probably the only school in the country that is willing and capable of making 1-1 games happen at our current level.
I’ve notice that some alumni are moving back to the Burg. As for online, although this is not LUO, but there is a growth of families who are moving to or near the Burg since their children are taking online courses for LU online academy. This may not seem possible, but if we actually invest more into the idea of growing our athletic programs(especially the main programs), more families and alumni might want to come back to the area. Sports build a community in which Lynchburg needs. Of course there’s a lot of tech and UVA fans in our area, but imagine if we build our programs that beats these opponents a few times. Some of these tech/uva fans wouldn’t mind having a team in their area. Yes, you have to consider that people here dislike LU, but look who they support(I usually see it more from the UVA fans, go figure). That’s why I think Tyndal’s statements is not as crazy as it seem. This is business and you have to take risks to gain. Let’s not put the money under the couch and actually invest in things that make a university grow(1.education 2. football 3.everything else). If the next realignment is truly aiming to create some mega conferences, I think LU should work towards that and not just any conference. As Tyndal stated, ACC or Big XII is the only good option that we have. Frankly I’ll aim more for the Big XII since I can’t imagine the commissioner and presidents accepting LU as a legitimate institution. Anywho, this is just a thought.