Feasibility Committee Recommends FBS Move, Appalachian Announces Michigan Re-match

It has been an eventful week in Appalachian State athletics to say the least. On Monday, the feasibility committee hired by the university handed down a recommendation to pursue a move to the football bowl subdivision. Only three days later, a 2014 re-match with Michigan was announced. These two consecutive announcements were no coincidence and it has become a very exciting time to be a Mountaineer fan.


The announcement to pursue membership in a FBS conference came as no real surprise and it is a decision that I fully support, as long as it is handled properly. This cannot be a decision made in haste. Before making a move, ASU must secure an invitation from a conference that makes sense both financially and geographically. I would rather stay in the FCS than move to a conference with no rivalries, limited financial benefit and an enormous travel increase. For that reason, ASU should avoid the MAC and Sun Belt conferences, even if no other offer seems imminent. Making a move to Conference USA's Eastern division to join Marshall and East Carolina would be an excellent move for our program. The rumored possibility of an FBS conference consisting of regional programs such as ASU, ECU, Marshall, James Madison, Old Dominion, etc. could also be intriguing. Both of these options are discussed in the Winston-Salem Journal's article about the decision at hand.


In that article, ASU Athletic Director Charlie Cobb says a few interesting things, but the most encouraging is this: 


The process, which would involve a two-year NCAA transition, isn't about tomorrow or next month, Cobb insisted. "This might be three to five years down the road."


The fact that Cobb is showing patience gives me even more confidence that the will bide his time and make the right move for Appalachian. He has done a great job with this program, and I have no doubt he will continue to do the same. Speaking of which, the announcement of a second trip to Ann Arbor could not have come at a better time.


In the process of evaluating a move up, once thing is certain: Appalachian State athletics needs more exposure and more funding in order to move forward. This game provides both. ASU could have scheduled a game with a handful of large FBS opponents, gotten a decent pay day and been happy with that. However, there is NO other opponent that would have had Appalachian on the front page of ESPN within an hour of the announcement.


This game will be talked about to a very small degree now, but it will be a headline when the 2014 season rolls around. Aside from the exposure, ASU is guaranteed $850,000 if we are still an FCS program at that time and $1 Million if we have transitioned to FBS. You cannot buy the kind of exposure this will give our program, much less turn down a $1 Million offer for it. The article mentioned that the deal was brokered by a 3rd party (most likely ESPN), so the TV revenue should increase the pay further and also place ASU directly in the spotlight on opening day 2014. In a perfect world, this will be our first game as an FBS program and will start that chapter in our history with a bang. Worst-case scenario, it is a great tool to use in recruiting and courting a possible FBS conference.


I have no insight as to exactly where the next few years will take us, but I am sure as hell excited to find out. As we look to move our program to the next level, I will enjoy our time in the Southern Conference and get ready for another great football season. Go App!

Fan Fest 2011

I attended Appalachian State Fan Fest in Boone and came away with a couple of impressions. First, the new field surface looks great. There was a good amount of grumbling in the off-season about the gold trim by the benches and losing the black endzones, but I was very impressed after seeing them in person. The Block A a midfield looks great, as does the alternating shades of grass.


I also came away impressed with what I saw out of the new 3-4 defense. A couple of changes have been made in personnel, with true freshman Ronald Blair taking over at defensive end along side senior Gordy Witte and Lanston Tanyi making the adjustment from down lineman to stand-up outside linebacker. The front seven looked quick off the line and put pressure on the offense for a good portion of the afternoon. As these guys get game experience, this could prove to be one of the better defensive units we've seen in Boone in a number of years.


On offense, I saw the high-quality play I expected from veterans such as DeAndre Presley, Brian Quick and Travaris Cadet. It will be interesting to see how the receiving corps shapes up behind Quick but another true freshman, Bobo Beathard, showed some promise in the scrimmage. However, the most exciting newcomer that I saw was junior college transfer Steven Miller at running back. He is not a big young man (5-9, 180 lbs.) and likely will not be an every down back, but his speed is absolutely explosive. Miller was able to show off his burst and elusiveness in a 74-yard touchdown run in which he cut back across the field and outran the entire secondary. I expect big things in 2011 from Steven Miller, who comes in as a junior and figures to play en even bigger role in 2012.

Lastly, I was impressed with the turnout from the ASU fans. The university announced that the crowd was just over 8,000 on what turned out to be a perfect day for football. Myself and the rest of the Appalachian faithful left with a small taste of what is to come this year and I can only speak for myself, but I am excited about the places this team can go.