shloop
December 5th, 2011, 12:39 AM
I am not speaking for every SHSU student/student-athlete/alumni/fan of Sam Houston State University, just for myself.
In my opinion we are a small fish…A small fish in two different, very big ponds. The Texas colligate football pond, and the national FCS pond.
We live in a state where football is king; from professional football, to colligate football, to the arguably the nation’s best high school football.
Next year there will be 12 FBS football programs in the State of Texas. Only Ohio (8), California and Florida (both with 7) are anywhere close to that. There are also 7 FCS football programs (Texas State and UT-San Antonio will become FBS in 2012) in the state of Texas. Nationwide, most traditionally successful FCS schools are competing with only a few FBS schools in their state/region for talent and NOTORIETY. We are not the University of Texas, Texas A&M, TCU, Baylor, University of Houston, Texas Tech, or even SMU, Rice, UTEP, or North Texas. We are Sam Houston State University, and when you attend SHSU you become very proud of that, and we want others to know how proud you are of OUR university and OUR successful football program.
Honestly, I knew very little about FCS football before attending SHSU (like most Texans). However, since attending, FCS football has become my favorite division of college football to follow! My first year at SHSU was the year that Josh McCown transferred to SHSU and we hosted Northern Arizona during the 1st round of the DI-AA playoffs. From that point forward I was hooked! I spent the entire next week on the internet, in the computer lab of the library, trying to figure out what this University of Montana was all about that we were playing next in the playoffs. I never knew such a football metropolis existed. Every since then, I have been completely intrigued by, and have a slight crush on the University of Montana. I will attend a game at WASH-GRIZ before we die.
Having said all of this, we (SHSU) want to be a very big part of the FCS scene for a long time to come! I think none of us were surprised that we would compete, and win under Willie Fritz, but it’s hard to believe that anybody expected this kind of success to come this early. With Coach Fritz at the helm of the SHSU program, I believe that the Bearkats will part of the FCS conversation on a regular basis for many years to come. I have a ton of respect for all FCS schools and conferences, and don’t want SHSU to be looded down upon by you long time, traditional FCS supporters!
Sam Houston State is a GREAT institution, and a GREAT place to play FCS football, and I hope that Texas high school football student-athletes will soon look at SHSU as a place that they dream to play, and compete for a FCS National Championship every year! The pieces are in place for that to happen. I am so thankful for our current and past student-athletes that have made SHSU what it is today, and someday hopefully what it will become…a FCS POWERHOUSE!
GO BEARKATS...GO FCS!
In my opinion we are a small fish…A small fish in two different, very big ponds. The Texas colligate football pond, and the national FCS pond.
We live in a state where football is king; from professional football, to colligate football, to the arguably the nation’s best high school football.
Next year there will be 12 FBS football programs in the State of Texas. Only Ohio (8), California and Florida (both with 7) are anywhere close to that. There are also 7 FCS football programs (Texas State and UT-San Antonio will become FBS in 2012) in the state of Texas. Nationwide, most traditionally successful FCS schools are competing with only a few FBS schools in their state/region for talent and NOTORIETY. We are not the University of Texas, Texas A&M, TCU, Baylor, University of Houston, Texas Tech, or even SMU, Rice, UTEP, or North Texas. We are Sam Houston State University, and when you attend SHSU you become very proud of that, and we want others to know how proud you are of OUR university and OUR successful football program.
Honestly, I knew very little about FCS football before attending SHSU (like most Texans). However, since attending, FCS football has become my favorite division of college football to follow! My first year at SHSU was the year that Josh McCown transferred to SHSU and we hosted Northern Arizona during the 1st round of the DI-AA playoffs. From that point forward I was hooked! I spent the entire next week on the internet, in the computer lab of the library, trying to figure out what this University of Montana was all about that we were playing next in the playoffs. I never knew such a football metropolis existed. Every since then, I have been completely intrigued by, and have a slight crush on the University of Montana. I will attend a game at WASH-GRIZ before we die.
Having said all of this, we (SHSU) want to be a very big part of the FCS scene for a long time to come! I think none of us were surprised that we would compete, and win under Willie Fritz, but it’s hard to believe that anybody expected this kind of success to come this early. With Coach Fritz at the helm of the SHSU program, I believe that the Bearkats will part of the FCS conversation on a regular basis for many years to come. I have a ton of respect for all FCS schools and conferences, and don’t want SHSU to be looded down upon by you long time, traditional FCS supporters!
Sam Houston State is a GREAT institution, and a GREAT place to play FCS football, and I hope that Texas high school football student-athletes will soon look at SHSU as a place that they dream to play, and compete for a FCS National Championship every year! The pieces are in place for that to happen. I am so thankful for our current and past student-athletes that have made SHSU what it is today, and someday hopefully what it will become…a FCS POWERHOUSE!
GO BEARKATS...GO FCS!