Great West on shaky ground
The Great West Football Conference could be coming to an end if conference officials don't act soon.
With Western Kentucky leaving the Gateway Conference to join the I-A Sun Belt Conference, Great West members North Dakota State and South Dakota State are almost assured an invite into the Gateway.
This leaves the Great West with just three members, Southern Utah, Cal Poly and UC Davis.
While a three-team league is an impossibilty, the University of North Dakota (who's beginning the transition to I-AA next year) and the University of South Dakota (strongly considering making the move to I-AA) have been considered the most likely candidates to fill the void created by NDSU and SDSU.
But if the Great West doesn't act soon, the Gateway could absorb UND and USD as well. An article in the the Argus Leader on Friday stated that the Gateway could look at expanding to 11 teams with all four Dakota schools as members.
Losing established football programs like NDSU and SDSU — both ranked in I-AA's top 25 — is a big enough blow for SUU and its Great West partners, but allowing the league to dissenegrate is a death wish. The Great West must get on the ball and ensure its future by finding two more teams — ideally UND and USD — to compete in the toughest I-AA football conference in the country.
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Comments
I have no doubt that the Dakota schools will leave, why shouldn't they, it is allabout competition and the level of competition. NDSU in particular has a big history of winning national titles in football and I assure you that is what they are looking for right now If the other Dakota schools join this league in the near future, again I assure you it will be only for a few years. They also ahve thier eyes on national titles, not just competitve or even a conference championship, they are used to more and they will get there.
Posted by: utgopher | November 6, 2006 06:40 PM
Shouldn't the latest debacle at So. Ill. make SUU football take a look at their program and decide where it is headed. Their needs to be some changes in philosophy to make SUU competitive at the Div. I AA level. The first change needs to be offering the correct amount of scholarships for the Div. I AA, which I can't believe that is happening. The biggest change needs to be where and who those scholarships go to. It is just not possible to be competitive with Utah players and a few from Vegas, they would like it that way but it just won't happen that way. EXPAND YOUR HORIZONS!
Posted by: utgopher | November 19, 2006 10:22 AM
What does SUU football need? I am not an expert but I am more than a knowledgeable fan of sports and SUU in particular. The SUU football team needs an extreme makeover and /or upgrade to be at least competitive in D1-AA. First and foremost the recruiters have to expand their "boundaries" considerably. You are NOT going to be competitive with Utah kids no matter what you think. It can be done, little schools from all over recruit from all over. California is not far away, that would be a good start, there is loads of talent there, maybe even a 6'3" quarterback. Our quarterback is good but at this level, or hope to level, you need a passer, one that can see over the linemen. How about a pipeline to the islands for a few kids or to Texas, it can be done!
Posted by: utgopher | December 15, 2006 05:30 PM