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Big East Rumblins?

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Re: Big East Rumblins?

Big East Rumblins?

And we need to WIN the Sunbelt outright.

Lets be realistic, we have NOT dominated the SunBelt in any way shape or form in Football or any other sport, other then Softball and Swimming.

Squeked by ULL, NT. Lost to ULM

Yes we hung in there with USF and had an inspired quarter of football at UF.

My orginal thought was if Brogan and The Voice had enough POLITICAL clout to make it happen much like USF did. Facilites and performance is NOT where it needs to be. I just though these 2 my have enough favors to get it done.

I have come here to chew bubble gum and kick @$$ and I'm out of bubble gum.

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Putting us in the Big East would be a pretty big favor.  I dont going to the Big East would help our athletic programs at all.  We would be the doormat of the conference in basketball and would be lucky to win 2 or 3 conference games in football.  We need to stay where we are or maybe move to Conference USA over the next 5-7 years and then see what develops with the football stadium.

Teambeer is the most knowledgeable FAU sports fan I know, way smarter than me.
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walty12 said

Putting us in the Big East would be a pretty big favor.  I dont going to the Big East would help our athletic programs at all.  We would be the doormat of the conference in basketball and would be lucky to win 2 or 3 conference games in football.  We need to stay where we are or maybe move to Conference USA over the next 5-7 years and then see what develops with the football stadium.

I agree, love to go to BE but it's a HUGE step to go from the SBC to the Big East. Let's move up to CUSA then dominate there and then speculate about Big East

My two favorite teams are FAU, and who ever is beating FIU!
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It would, indeed, be a big jump to go straight to the BE, but I don't think a realignment will happen anytime soon.  As someone posted earlier, time is your friend.  You need time to get the facilities, fan base, etc.  I could see you going into C-USA first, as we did.  Getting to C-USA and playing UCF every year would be great for your program.  Really, I don't think it will take as long as you think to get where you want to be.  Having Brogan is a great asset.  The political connections mean a whole lot - that and lucky timing.  We didn't get into the BE without it.  We grew our program real fast and FAU reminds me so much of USF that I have to believe you guys are on the fast track also.

Too bad you guys don't play UCF this year.  With Rusty at the helm, and seeing them lose their best player I would put money on the Owls.  I was really very surprised how good Rusty was when we came down for the game last season.
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GratefulDad said

Too bad you guys don't play UCF this year.  With Rusty at the helm, and seeing them lose their best player I would put money on the Owls.  I was really very surprised how good Rusty was when we came down for the game last season.

You never know… we might face them in the New Orleans Bowl this year.
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The Big East, or any other conference that would require cold-weather games, would be a very big jump. South Florida teams (even Tampa Bay), whether pro or college, do not have a sterling record in cold-weather games. For the Owls, with their players mostly from warm climates, the weather could present a considerable challenge -- to say nothing of the opposing players.
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grayowl said

The Big East, or any other conference that would require cold-weather games, would be a very big jump. South Florida teams (even Tampa Bay), whether pro or college, do not have a sterling record in cold-weather games. For the Owls, with their players mostly from warm climates, the weather could present a considerable challenge – to say nothing of the opposing players.
Grayowl, don't short change the power of Florida heat to invoke horrible leg cramps on our less fortunate northern brethren when they come down.  It kind of evens out.

Anyway, there is no getting around it.  If you ever want to play in a conference, you will play in cold weather.
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I agree about the advantage of South Florida weather for a South Florida team. However, I remember with some discomfort all the FAU leg cramps I saw being worked on the sideline of the fairly hot game at the University of Kansas a few years back. Perhaps the training regimen is better now than then, but it was remarkable that the heat seemed to bother the Owls more than the Jayhawks. As for cold weather: I agree that the better conferences have their share (though the SEC rarely sees a truly super-cold game). That doesn't make me feel any better about thinking of the Owls, some of whom might not have even seen snow much less played in it, getting stuck in an important game in the frigid North. Besides, from a selfish point of view, I have sat outdoors (as a fan) at enough snow games or sleet games for a lifetime. Some Broncos games have been so cold that I even opted for coffee rather than beer. And that's damned cold….
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Here is an article with Howard saying hopefuly 2012. He and Brogan went to Vero (zero) Beach to talk to some investors.

http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2008/mar/13/schnellenberger-we-cant-hold-back/



Schnellenberger: 'We can't hold back'
By Bill Whitehead (Contact)
Thursday, March 13, 2008



The head football coach of Florida Atlantic University, Schnellenberger was on a fundraising venture in Vero Beach Wednesday night to discuss FAU’s recent approval to build a $62 million football stadium on campus in Boca Raton.

“We’ve been given the green light to go out and raise the money that’s going to be absolutely essential for us to build a stadium on our campus,” said the gravelly-voiced Schnellenberger before a group of potential donors to the program, all who had gathered at Indian River National Bank.

“It’s imperative because we have to continue our upward climb. We can’t hold back.”

The 73-year-old Schnellenberger has had a difficult week. On Sunday, his son, Stephen, who battled cancer throughout his life and was confined to a wheelchair, died at the age of 48.

After an emotional introduction by FAU president Frank Brogan, himself choked up and hesitant with the words, Schnellenberger addressed the small crowd who will help to bring the plans of FAU Stadium into reality.

“We’ve got to get into a conference that will allow us to play for a national championship,” said Schnellenberger, who spoke in front of a flat-screen TV that replayed the Owls’ 44-27 win over Memphis in last year’s New Orleans Bowl, making FAU the fastest team to reach a bowl, doing it in just three years of Division I play.

Schnellenberger has a track history of building programs.

In 1979, he took over a floundering University of Miami team that was jokingly referred to as Suntan U., then led them to a national championship in 1983 in a 31-30 win over Nebraska in the Orange Bowl.

He also helped rebuild Louisville’s team, which was considered an afterthought at the basketball-oriented school. He led them to 10-1-1 record and a 34-7 Fiesta Bowl rout of Alabama in 1991.

“The University of Kentucky went 70 years without beating Alabama. We did it in one season,” kidded Schnellenberger.

When he arrived, the Cardinals played games in a minor-league baseball stadium. Currently, plans are underway to expand Louisville’s stadium by 25,000 fans, holding almost 70,000.

“In order to (get into a new conference), we have to have a stadium that will help attract the next level of players that will come to carry us to the next level,” said Schnellenberger, whose Owls open at the University of Texas this year. “I love the Sun Belt Conference. Without it, we couldn’t play five Division I home games.

“(But) by the year 2012, we hope we have the opportunity to join a BCS conference like the Big East, ACC, or SEC. One of those three conferences may need a team or two teams. We have to be ready when that happens.”

“He’s not a team builder. Those are pretty common,” said Brogan, the fifth-year school president and Treasure Coast resident. “He’s a program builder. He leaves every program better than when he got there.”

Added athletic director Craig Angelos, who worked in the University of Miami’s athletic department during UM’s last football title: “The bowl win really helped us. We’re always going to contend with the Gators, Hurricanes and Seminoles, but there’s no university in Broward County and none in Palm Beach other than us.

“We hope to capture some of those fans from Orlando down to Broward County.”




FAU - THE REAL SLEEPING GIANT
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