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texbender

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I think SMU has slowly been doing the right thing for a decade or more to position themselves up in national prestige. I think they have yet to reach the peak of what is possible there.
Agree. SMU is somewhat of a sleeping giant. They have made the decision to go big and get back in with the big boys, have solid financial resources, and are in one of the richest pools of high school football and basketball recruits. If they play their cards right, they could do quite well in the ACC.
Would like to see ND get rotated into some football games here in Dallas as one of their ACC opponents.
 

Bluto

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So, anecdotally it sounds like some public Southern Schools are leaning heavily into recruiting highly qualified out of state students by offering large subsidies in the form of lots financial aid and or scholarships.

Anyhow, interesting conversation.
 

Katzenboyer

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Sounds insane, but I think i'd rather have the SMU job than Arkansas job in a world where (1) NIL exists, and SMU has tons of cash (2) the SEC is loaded with premier programs and getting even 7 wins is a challenge and (3) SMU is in a good but not great ACC, where getting 9 wins every year is somewhat feasible.

100%. I also think this is why Cignetti stays at IU, at least through next year. Why take the Florida/insert SEC job here when you can build something in Bloomington now that they're out of the BIG10 East and aren't guaranteed to face Michigan, OSU, and PSU every year? Sure, UF or some other school could throw a boatload of $$ his way, but it doesn't seem like he's about that.

Doing away with divisions really helps schools like IU and some of the second tier programs that were stuck in the SEC West. Good for college football overall.
 

IRISHDODGER

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Sounds insane, but I think i'd rather have the SMU job than Arkansas job in a world where (1) NIL exists, and SMU has tons of cash (2) the SEC is loaded with premier programs and getting even 7 wins is a challenge and (3) SMU is in a good but not great ACC, where getting 9 wins every year is somewhat feasible.
I don’t think it sounds insane at all. For those athletes that truly value an education, SMU’s tuition is insane so to go there without having to come out of pocket/take loans is huge. Highland Park is a nice (wealthy) area of Dallas. Good luck trying to keep up w/ the Jones’ there…LOL. I would think the only ? for their football program is the long-term health of the ACC. Other than that, NIL has allowed them to trend upward.
 

Jiggafini19Deux

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100%. I also think this is why Cignetti stays at IU, at least through next year. Why take the Florida/insert SEC job here when you can build something in Bloomington now that they're out of the BIG10 East and aren't guaranteed to face Michigan, OSU, and PSU every year? Sure, UF or some other school could throw a boatload of $$ his way, but it doesn't seem like he's about that.

Doing away with divisions really helps schools like IU and some of the second tier programs that were stuck in the SEC West. Good for college football overall.
Cignetti played QB at WVU. His dad Frank was the HC there from 1976-1979. He's from Pittsburgh. WVU just fired their DC and Neal Brown is on the hot seat.

I don't know if Alma Mater Dear would interest him in a move, and the money would have to make sense, but I think I am inclined to agree he could stay there at IU and keep going with it. There really is no pressure there because of the emphasis on basketball and lack of football tradition. Hell, going to WVU is probably more pressure strictly because he's an alum.
 

Katzenboyer

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Cignetti played QB at WVU. His dad Frank was the HC there from 1976-1979. He's from Pittsburgh. WVU just fired their DC and Neal Brown is on the hot seat.

I don't know if Alma Mater Dear would interest him in a move, and the money would have to make sense, but I think I am inclined to agree he could stay there at IU and keep going with it. There really is no pressure there because of the emphasis on basketball and lack of football tradition. Hell, going to WVU is probably more pressure strictly because he's an alum.

He's probably going to get a significant raise as soon as the season wraps, too.
 

Irish#1

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100%. I also think this is why Cignetti stays at IU, at least through next year. Why take the Florida/insert SEC job here when you can build something in Bloomington now that they're out of the BIG10 East and aren't guaranteed to face Michigan, OSU, and PSU every year? Sure, UF or some other school could throw a boatload of $$ his way, but it doesn't seem like he's about that.

Doing away with divisions really helps schools like IU and some of the second tier programs that were stuck in the SEC West. Good for college football overall.
He's probably going to get a significant raise as soon as the season wraps, too.
It wasn't having to play OSU, PSU and Michigan every year. lol

I've never been a fan of rewarding coaches after one year, but regardless of how I feel, IU's history of supporting FB has never been good. It took them well over a decade to finally make improvements to the stadium. Not sure about today, but the budget was always a hinderance in the past. Cignetti appears to be a great find for IU. Currently makes $500K with $3.5M from marketing and promotional. That's an improvement over years past.
 

Punky

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My good friend in high school got denied to u of I engineering school but got accepted Michigan. It was kind of crazy considering he was an in state kid with great transcript and test scores. It's way tougher to get in than I ever knew

Part of the problem is that U of ILL has a huge percentage of international students. So you are not only competing against the best in this country, but also the best students from China, Korea, etc. The school likes that because they (or their governments) pay full freight. Problem is that squeezes out the local kids whose parents pay the taxes that support the school. A couple of local politicians have made noise complaining about state tax dollars subsidizing the education of foreign nationals. The school's own promotional materials indicate that there are over 11,000 international students at U of ILL: UIUC International News
 

Katzenboyer

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You're probably right, but after the first year, it would be a major mistake by the administration to do that.

Maybe not. But they may have to if they want to keep him from being poached.

I could also see them having another strong season next year. They avoid most of the B10 heavies, with exception of Oregon and Penn State.
 

NDWarrior

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This article is nothing more than speculative and click bait, BUT it did get me thinking... What if Ryan Day loses to MI and IU or even just IU and gets sick of the fan backlash and takes another Big Four conference job and then the OSU head job is open? Maybe ND finishes 11-2 or 12-2, losing it's first or second CFP game? Does MF become highly desired in the coaching marketplace and interviews with OSU? And if so, does he seriously consider taking it and leaving ND? All speculation of course
 
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Jiggafini19Deux

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This article is nothing more than speculative and click bait, BUT it did get me thinking... What is Ryan Day loses to MI and IU or even just IU and gets sick of the fan backlash and takes another Big Four conference job and then the OSU head job is open? Maybe ND finished 11-2 or 12-2, losing it's first or second CFP game? Does MF become highly desired in the coaching marketplace and interviews with OSU? And if so, does he seriously consider taking it and leaving ND? All speculation of course
hE lOsT tO nIu
 

BoredIrish

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This article is nothing more than speculative and click bait, BUT it did get me thinking... What is Ryan Day loses to MI and IU or even just IU and gets sick of the fan backlash and takes another Big Four conference job and then the OSU head job is open? Maybe ND finishes 11-2 or 12-2, losing it's first or second CFP game? Does MF become highly desired in the coaching marketplace and interviews with OSU? And if so, does he seriously consider taking it and leaving ND? All speculation of course
The list starts with Vrabel.
 

Jiggafini19Deux

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The list starts with Vrabel.
This may very well be true.

The lists of the Cowboys, Giants, Jaguars, Raiders and Browns will probably also start with Vrabel as well. I could be wrong, but Vrabel strikes me as a guy that does not want to deal with coaching college football at Ohio State or anywhere else.

He's consulting for the Browns right now. I think one way or another he gets another crack at an NFL job unless he's got major toxic baggage, which hasn't stopped guys from getting second chances before.
 

Rockin’Irish

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The amazing thing is last year at this time Cignetti was head coach at James Madison and a scant 12 months later he’s bringing down $8MM a year. Talk about upward mobility……I’ll bet his wife is ecstatic!
 

Sea Turtle

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I'd like to see what the buy out is. He had to cash in on this season, but I'd be surprised if he signed something that would lock him in to be there long term if he can repeat this success.

He's 63. His daughters are doctors. I really don't see him leaving after Indiana finally gave him a power 4 job and then stepped up with this new contract. He says he wants to build a power there and is flipping a bunch of guys now

If he were 43 and still had a family to support, it would be different.
 
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