Alum Group: Tuskegee Urged to Go Div I

[TexasTerror]

Tuskegee... Div I material? Good fit for the SWAC. Some of their teams are already beating the SWAC schools with limited scholarships...


INSIDE has learned a group of Tuskegee alumni met in Atlanta September 22 to discuss the possibility of urging their alma mater to step up the athletic program from Division II to Division I. The group, which made clear in their invite memo to other colleagues that they are not affiliated nor speaking for the school’s alumni association or the school itself, states that their primary focus is “to improve the athletic program, improve the academic status and increase enrollment at Tuskegee University.

” Actually, this isn’t the first time discussion has been raised about moving Tuskegee sports up a notch. When Rick Comegy was head coach at Tuskegee, he trumpeted the movement and even attempted to create a committee to explore moving the SIAC to a two-tier conference of Division I and Division II schools. This latest talk also comes at an interesting time in the history of the history-making university.

http://www.onnidan.com/index.php/blogs/3-hal-lamars-inside-hotlanta-blog/165-alumni-group-to-urge-tuskegee-movement-to-division-i-.html?sms_ss=facebook

[superman7515]

Just a quick view of their program, 70 winning seasons in 113 total, 16 undefeated seasons, first HBCU to 600 wins, and quite a few NFL players. Hope they're able to make the jump.

[JSU02]

xchinscratchx hmmmmm.....

[EmeryZach]

The question is, do they have the money to successfully do it? Have to be ready to lose some money.

[TexasTerror]

The question is, do they have the money to successfully do it? Have to be ready to lose some money.

We need to find out what their budget is now...

They may already have a budget comparable, if not more than some of their SWAC counterparts. I know Mississippi Valley State has a $3.3M budget, which is lower than Div II Delta State. Could Tuskegee have a budget than is more than those schools in Alabama? More chances to make $$$ in Div I to off-set the costs of moving up. Scholarship differences are not great difference between Div I and Div II, outside of football...

[mikebigg]

Tuskegee... Div I material? Good fit for the SWAC. Some of their teams are already beating the SWAC schools with limited scholarships...



http://www.onnidan.com/index.php/blogs/3-hal-lamars-inside-hotlanta-blog/165-alumni-group-to-urge-tuskegee-movement-to-division-i-.html?sms_ss=facebook

Not plural... They have had success against nearby rival Bama State in the Turkey Day Classic, but less so against Alabama A&M. I don't recall any other SWAC schools playing them in recent years. If you have evidence that shows otherwise please provide the links. They would be a good fit in lots of ways... but they are not "already beating SWAC schools"

[danefan]

We need to find out what their budget is now...

They may already have a budget comparable, if not more than some of their SWAC counterparts. I know Mississippi Valley State has a $3.3M budget, which is lower than Div II Delta State. Could Tuskegee have a budget than is more than those schools in Alabama? More chances to make $$$ in Div I to off-set the costs of moving up. Scholarship differences are not great difference between Div I and Div II, outside of football...

EADA says $1,831,602 in expenses in 2008-2009 year.

Delta State reports $1,334,990.

Miss Valley only reports $802,620.

[TexasTerror]

Not plural... They have had success against nearby rival Bama State in the Turkey Day Classic, but less so against Alabama A&M. I don't recall any other SWAC schools playing them in recent years. If you have evidence that shows otherwise please provide the links. They would be a good fit in lots of ways... but they are not "already beating SWAC schools"

For some reason, I thought they had the SWAC's number in a few other sports - i.e. baseball, softball and volleyball - but I was mistaken.

Those were other HBCU NAIA schools... Xavier, Belhaven, Dillard - in addition to PWCs Henderson State (D2) and St Thomas x 2 (NAIA) this year in volleyball.... and in soccer, PWCs... LSU-Shreveport (NAIA), Milsaps (D3), Spring Hill (NAIA). My mistake...

[JSU02]

They do seem to have a lot of proud alumni. There should be room in the swac once they combine jackson state, MVSU and alcorn xpopcornx

[mikebigg]

For some reason, I thought they had the SWAC's number in a few other sports - i.e. baseball, softball and volleyball - but I was mistaken.

Those were other HBCU NAIA schools... Xavier, Belhaven, Dillard - in addition to PWCs Henderson State (D2) and St Thomas x 2 (NAIA) this year in volleyball.... and in soccer, PWCs... LSU-Shreveport (NAIA), Milsaps (D3), Spring Hill (NAIA). My mistake...

No problem...surprised you had time to look all that up. Seems your concerns would be better placed on the sad state of affairs with your OWN school's football team.

[TexasTerror]

No problem...surprised you had time to look all that up. Seems your concerns would be better placed on the sad state of affairs with your OWN school's football team.

A rebuilding year... youngest team in school history... new coach. Injury to our transfer QB (Tyrik Rollison) keeping him out for the season. Nothing is surprising... only to those who do not follow the program (like you and Grizzaholic)...

Back to subject... Tuskegee!

If the SWAC adds Tuskegee, they'll be at 11 (pending anyone leaving due to financial reasoning, etc) - so does the SWAC try to add a 12th?

[3rd Coast Tiger]

Good luck today mikebigg against those Panthers in Dallas today. I am in Biloxi about to head over to Mobile in about and hour as my Tigers take on the historic and "hallowed" Golden Tigers of Tuskegee. We played them in '96 and have been waiting for this game for a while now.

LETS GO TIGERS!!!

Many of the Golden Tiger alums I have come to know over the last 15 years or so are not too receptive of the cost factor of the move. They love their natural rivalries in the SIAC now as well as love the domination at their current classification.

I love following my Tigers nationwide and supporting them in cyberspace too. I also appreciate others who support their alma mater here on the internet as well as physically attending games!

[WestCoastAggie]

From my limited understanding of TU Athletics, they seem to be just fine playing in the SIAC and this move is towards the bottom of the Priority List. But if they decide to make this move, they will study this very carefully.

[superman7515]

Not plural... They have had success against nearby rival Bama State in the Turkey Day Classic, but less so against Alabama A&M. I don't recall any other SWAC schools playing them in recent years. If you have evidence that shows otherwise please provide the links. They would be a good fit in lots of ways... but they are not "already beating SWAC schools"

Well you can go ahead and say SWAC schools today since they just beat Texas Southern. You'll have to forgive TT for not telling you that it was a slip of what was going to happen, he didn't want to mess up the betting line for me and I appreciate that. Haha

[TexasTerror]

Well you can go ahead and say SWAC schools today since they just beat Texas Southern. You'll have to forgive TT for not telling you that it was a slip of what was going to happen, he didn't want to mess up the betting line for me and I appreciate that. Haha

What does this say of the SWAC? Southern gets drilled by Ark-Monticello and Tuskegee takes down TSU?

Tuskegee may not need to offer the max scholarships and could still beat some solid teams from the SWAC, I figure. Not just football, but other sports. Not all the SWAC schools are fully-funded in every sport, particularly the non-revenue/Title IX sports - nor do they play the maximum amount of contests - so it wouldn't be much of a stretch...

[AxeEmJacks]

Not plural... They have had success against nearby rival Bama State in the Turkey Day Classic, but less so against Alabama A&M. I don't recall any other SWAC schools playing them in recent years. If you have evidence that shows otherwise please provide the links. They would be a good fit in lots of ways... but they are not "already beating SWAC schools"

Texas Southern 14
Tuskegee 21

[TexasTerror]

No explanations... don't expect them.

Tuskegee did make a good case for Div I and their fans - based on wins against several of the SWAC teams have to feel very confident that they can get into the SWAC and compete. With limited resources, they already are... though their resources may not be too far off of the SWAC's.

[TexasTerror]

From Jafus on TSPN...


In an interview by Charles Porter, the Alcorn State Braves play by play announcer, during the halftime of the Alabama State University Hornets at Alcorn State University Braves game, with SWAC Commissioner Duer Sharp, Duer Sharp stated the SWAC presidents/chancellors have approved him to evaluate possible expansion member candidate(s) for the conference.

[mikebigg]

What does this say of the SWAC? Southern gets drilled by Ark-Monticello and Tuskegee takes down TSU?

Tuskegee may not need to offer the max scholarships and could still beat some solid teams from the SWAC, I figure. Not just football, but other sports. Not all the SWAC schools are fully-funded in every sport, particularly the non-revenue/Title IX sports - nor do they play the maximum amount of contests - so it wouldn't be much of a stretch...

Southern is a bottom tier team this season... transitioning to a new staff and rebuilding after losing most of the veterans from last season. TxSU is improving, but they are not a conference heavyweight. Taking nothing from Tuskegee but they have benefitted from scheduling the weaker teams (with the exception of the years they beat Bama State). What if Grambling would have rescheduled Northwestern this yea? It wouldn't be accurate to say Grambling beats up the SLC teams based on beating the Demons.

It's a team by team thing and not a conference thing in terms of losing to Tuskegee...

[mikebigg]

No explanations... don't expect them.

Tuskegee did make a good case for Div I and their fans - based on wins against several of the SWAC teams have to feel very confident that they can get into the SWAC and compete. With limited resources, they already are... though their resources may not be too far off of the SWAC's.

several(a): (used with count nouns) of an indefinite number more than 2 or 3 but not many; "several letters came in the mail"; "several people were injured in the accident"

1. Alabama State
2. TxSU
3. ????????

[Cocky]

TU does have some alums with funds to pull it off. The tuition alone should fund it. TU is pretty expensive.

[TexasTerror]

What if Grambling would have rescheduled Northwestern this yea? It wouldn't be accurate to say Grambling beats up the SLC teams based on beating the Demons.

You already did that last year - don't you recall? NWST was much worse last year and that was your conference's Super Bowl win? The SLC is 48-0-2 against the SWAC across all sports this year, but it won't be a surprise when the SWAC gets a win against the SLC in baseball (one or two out of the 30+ games) and it'll be yet another Super Bowl! :)


It's a team by team thing and not a conference thing in terms of losing to Tuskegee...

Unfortunately College Football Data Warehouse is down right now - so I can not look at the specifics at this point. That site is a great resource and I can check out who in the SWAC in the last 5-10 years have fallen to Tuskegee...

I really do think that the financial gap between Tuskegee and the SWAC is closing. What is telling is that two of the most financially stable schools both have losses to Div II schools this year.

Texas Southern hasthe biggest budget in the SWAC and they lost to a Div II team this year. Southern's budget is not as impacted by state budget cuts as much as the remaining Louisiana/Mississippi schools - so they are better off than the rest IMO - and they lost to a Div II school by a significant margin.

[mikebigg]

You already did that last year - don't you recall? NWST was much worse last year and that was your conference's Super Bowl win? The SLC is 48-0-2 against the SWAC across all sports this year, but it won't be a surprise when the SWAC gets a win against the SLC in baseball (one or two out of the 30+ games) and it'll be yet another Super Bowl! :)



Unfortunately College Football Data Warehouse is down right now - so I can not look at the specifics at this point. That site is a great resource and I can check out who in the SWAC in the last 5-10 years have fallen to Tuskegee...

I really do think that the financial gap between Tuskegee and the SWAC is closing. What is telling is that two of the most financially stable schools both have losses to Div II schools this year.

Texas Southern hasthe biggest budget in the SWAC and they lost to a Div II team this year. Southern's budget is not as impacted by state budget cuts as much as the remaining Louisiana/Mississippi schools - so they are better off than the rest IMO - and they lost to a Div II school by a significant margin.

Maybe you saw our win against N'western in that light... but to me it was the antithesis of a Joe Biden moment (No Big F'ing Deal). SU's loss to UAM was an abnormally... But back to Skeegee. What are the "several" SWAC schools they lost to? Has Sam ever lost in the past 5 years or so to a lower division school? Nevermind... I really don't wanna know. (See the Joe Biden reference)

[TexasTerror]

SU's loss to UAM was an abnormally...

So was their loss to a Div II team a few years ago, when someone stole championship rings right out of the visiting lockerrom?


But back to Skeegee. What are the "several" SWAC schools they lost to? Has Sam ever lost in the past 5 years or so to a lower division school? Nevermind... I really don't wanna know. (See the Joe Biden reference)

Unfortunately as you know - the SWAC.org web site is not a great source of information (nor are most of the schools in the league - which is obvious by those complaining on GoGrambling.com). Need to wait for this web site - http://cfbdatawarehouse.com/ - to come back to 'life'.

[UAalum72]

So was their loss to a Div II team a few years ago, when someone stole championship rings right out of the visiting lockerrom?



Unfortunately as you know - the SWAC.org web site is not a great source of information (nor are most of the schools in the league - which is obvious by those complaining on GoGrambling.com). Need to wait for this web site - http://cfbdatawarehouse.com/ - to come back to 'life'.
TT, another good source (maybe easier to use than data warehouse) is the michigan-football site - Tuskegee here: http://michigan-football.com/ncaa/f/tuskegee.htm

[TexasTerror]

several(a): (used with count nouns) of an indefinite number more than 2 or 3 but not many; "several letters came in the mail"; "several people were injured in the accident"

Since 2005... probably would have more than four if they could have played Southern (NCCU, UAM), Jackson State (Delta State) and UAPB (UAM, Henderson State) since then...


1. Texas Southern
2. Alabama State
3. Alabama A&M
4. UAPB

2010 - Texas Southern
2009 - Alabama State
2008 - Alabama A&M
2007 - Alabama State
2006 - Alabama State
2005 - UAPB, Alabama State

[mikebigg]

Since 2005... probably would have more than four if they could have played Southern (NCCU, UAM), Jackson State (Delta State) and UAPB (UAM, Henderson State) since then...


1. Texas Southern
2. Alabama State
3. Alabama A&M
4. UAPB

2010 - Texas Southern
2009 - Alabama State
2008 - Alabama A&M
2007 - Alabama State
2006 - Alabama State
2005 - UAPB, Alabama State

I thought you were gonna provide info on Tuskegee... Your initial statement was that Tuskegee had won against several schools. Didn't realize you were looking for the cumulative total of other schools.

[mikebigg]

So was their loss to a Div II team a few years ago, when someone stole championship rings right out of the visiting lockerrom?


Unfortunately as you know - the SWAC.org web site is not a great source of information (nor are most of the schools in the league - which is obvious by those complaining on GoGrambling.com). Need to wait for this web site - http://cfbdatawarehouse.com/ - to come back to 'life'.

Why was the mention of the thefts added to this thread? You are so obvious! Thefts don't occur elsewhere, huh? But regardless of that...what does that ADDED comment do for this topic?

[TexasTerror]

I thought you were gonna provide info on Tuskegee... Your initial statement was that Tuskegee had won against several schools. Didn't realize you were looking for the cumulative total of other schools.

The information above is on Tuskegee.

Tuskegee since 2005 has beat four SWAC teams - Texas Southern, UAPB, Alabama State and Alabama A&M. Since this is more than 2 or 3, it is considered eligible for several. Four wins by a Div II team over the SWAC is significant and shows that the school is ready to compete at the Div I level - atleast in the SWAC.

[TexasTerror]

On TSPN, Jafus provided the following list of possibilities for SWAC expansion...


In terms of HBCUs, logistically one would think the following institutions would be legitimate options to evaluate as possible expansion member candidate(s) for the conference:

1) Albany State University - Currently a NCAA Division II member of the SIAC
2) Bethune-Cookman University - Currently a NCAA Division I (FCS) member of the MEAC
3) Clark-Atanta University - Currently a NCAA Division II member of the SIAC
4) Florida A & M University - Currently a NCAA Division I (FCS) member of the MEAC
5) Fort Valley State University - Currently a NCAA Division II member of the SIAC
6) Langston University - Currently a NAIA Division I member of the CSFL & RRAC
7) Morehouse College - Currently a NCAA Division II member of the SIAC
8) Tennessee State University - Currently a NCAA Division I (FCS) member of the OVC
9) Tuskegee University - Currently a NCAA Division II member of the SIAC

In no particular order of preference, quality of athletic program or desire/interest.


Credit: http://www.tspnsports.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1735685#post1735685