UTSA, largest Div. I school without football? (Dallas, San Antonio: 2011, how much)

[Dopo]

First of all, I know that UTSA is getting a football team.

I moved to San Antonio 1 year ago, and I've been absolutely amazed about how much people in San Antonio are into football.
Missouri has nothing on San Antonio, even though Missouri (about 1/3 the size of Texas) has 2 NFL teams and many college football teams.

I went to a Division III school with 5000 students and it had a football team that was known for being extremely bad.
One time, they went 2 seasons without winning 1 game.

Football being so big in San Antonio,
can anybody explain why UTSA, being a Division I school with almost 30,000 students doesn't have a football team?

I think that is the absolutely most amazing thing about San Antonio.

[bresilhac]

Originally Posted by Dopo

First of all, I know that UTSA is getting a football team.

I moved to San Antonio 1 year ago, and I've been absolutely amazed about how much people in San Antonio are into football.
Missouri has nothing on San Antonio, even though Missouri (about 1/3 the size of Texas) has 2 NFL teams and many college football teams.

I went to a Division III school with 5000 students and it had a football team that was known for being extremely bad.
One time, they went 2 seasons without winning 1 game.

Football being so big in San Antonio,
can anybody explain why UTSA, being a Division I school with almost 30,000 students doesn't have a football team?

I think that is the absolutely most amazing thing about San Antonio.

UTSA initiated a football program in 2008 and the team will begin play in 2011 at the Alamodome. What really kills me is the lack of an NFL team in San Antonio. I'm sick to death of all the Dallas Cowboy coverage here.

[Dopo]

Originally Posted by bresilhac

UTSA initiated a football program in 2008 and the team will begin play in 2011 at the Alamodome. What really kills me is the lack of an NFL team in San Antonio. I'm sick to death of all the Dallas Cowboy coverage here.

I'm aware of that, but this is why I ask...

The school I went to has about 5000 students in a town of less than 20,000 people.
Guess what? I just found out that their football program has been around for more than 100 years.
And they can't win a freaking game to save their lives.

[ashbeeigh]

Because they like selling the shirt "UTSA Football - Still Undefeated."

[tgannaway89]

It's about money. They haven't had the financial support to start-up and fund a team. They have few sponsors/donors and don't sell many tickets to current athletics events. It wasn't until the athletic fee was doubled by a student vote into 2007 that football could be funded.

[RGJ]

Originally Posted by bresilhac

UTSA initiated a football program in 2008 and the team will begin play in 2011 at the Alamodome. What really kills me is the lack of an NFL team in San Antonio. I'm sick to death of all the Dallas Cowboy coverage here.

There is no way the Cowboys and Texans owners are going to allow an NFL team in San Antonio to compete with their revenue, TV, ticket sales, etc.

We should have gotten the Saints when we came close to having the chance.

[Bowie]

Originally Posted by Dopo

Football being so big in San Antonio,
can anybody explain why UTSA, being a Division I school with almost 30,000 students doesn't have a football team?

I think that is the absolutely most amazing thing about San Antonio.

Enrollment at UTSA has gone from less than 20,000 students to almost 30,000 students in this decade. But the institution itself is only 40 years old and it's been primarily a commuter campus for most of that time. Both of those make a big difference in student life.

There are other Division I schools that don't have football, but they're mostly in the Northeast (e.g., Villanova), where college football isn't as big of a deal as it is elsewhere.

San Antonio is also the largest media market in the country without college football.

Originally Posted by RGJ

We should have gotten the Saints when we came close to having the chance.

IMO, San Antonio never really had a chance on that one. The NFL didn't want to look like it was abandoning New Orleans in its hour of need and it appears that Benson was mostly just using his hometown as leverage. If he really wanted to move his team, the precedent is there and he should have been able to get it done by waiting out New Orleans instead of signing a new contract with the city. Signing a new deal there proves that he used the leverage to get the deal with N.O. that he wanted with them.

[Dopo]

Originally Posted by Bowie

San Antonio is also the largest media market in the country without college football.

That's what I'm trying to understand,
if football is so big in San Antonio, it doesn't make sense to me that UTSA didn't have a football team before.

Is it political? corruption? Was it a move to force people to ask for an NFL team?

I don't buy the reason that a college football team is too expensive, when I bet anything that the attendance plus food would easily pay for the team.

[Bowie]

Originally Posted by Dopo

That's what I'm trying to understand,
if football is so big in San Antonio, it doesn't make sense to me that UTSA didn't have a football team before.

Is it political? corruption? Was it a move to force people to ask for an NFL team?

I don't buy the reason that a college football team is too expensive, when I bet anything that the attendance plus food would easily pay for the team.

I just don't think it was a priority before. If you've been on campus over the last few years and seen the number of academic buildings that have appeared, it's clear that the campus's focus has been on growing its academic programs. Believe it or not, there's more money to be made by reeling in grant and research dollars than there is in sports. The building boom, particularly in the science area proves that UTSA has done a fabulous job of bringing those funds to campus.

[Dopo]

Originally Posted by Bowie

I just don't think it was a priority before. If you've been on campus over the last few years and seen the number of academic buildings that have appeared, it's clear that the campus's focus has been on growing its academic programs. Believe it or not, there's more money to be made by reeling in grant and research dollars than there is in sports. The building boom, particularly in the science area proves that UTSA has done a fabulous job of bringing those funds to campus.

Thanks for the explanation