Latest Sagarin Ratings

[usc4valpo]

Ouch pretty much says it all... it is not where Valpo football want to be.

[VULB#62]

You didn't mention the actual rating. Where are Valpo and other PFL teams rated so far?

[JD24]

202  San Diego           
224  Dayton               
237  Drake               
243  Davidson           
244  Marist               
247  Butler               
248  Stetson             
252  Jacksonville         
255  Morehead State       
256  Valparaiso 

256 would be DFL.

Interesting that San Diego lost and move up a few slots. Davidson won and moved down a few slots.

Central Connecticut is at 207 or around San Diego. They are about a 9 point favorite over Merrimack this week.

[valpo64]

If the ratings are relatively accurate, at least the PFL should be very competitive.

[usc4valpo]

yes, competitive in seeing who is the best in the worst conference in Div. 1 football. At least with Valpo you can say that it cannot get any worse.

[valpofb16]

Lol what do people expect , were a non scholarship football school with a new coach.

This is a year 0 if I've ever seen one. I forget where I heard this but great way to evaluate a coach program

Year 0: anything positive is a plus
Year 1: recruits are in see how young kids play
Year 2: show improvement from year 1
Year 3: young kids should be grown up can asess program
Year 4: be honest where program is at and going

I was mad about Chick taking Bucknell job because timing but he really failed to retain kids in '16,'17 which was why program was trending downwards

[usc4valpo]

fb16 - didn't you think Valpo could win 6 games this year?

[valpofb16]

Yeah I'm not gonna say my alma mater is going to come out winless. They can and have the ability to win 6.

[VULB#62]

Valpo is 256 out of 256.    

BTW, Bucknell is 0-1 and 242 out of 256. That is only one slot ahead of Davidson. The Bison opened at the Linc in Philly against FBS Temple and lost 56-12 in front of 26k. They scored on a pick 6 and two FGs. Total Offense: Bucknell 211, Temple 695. Bucknell player  of the game must have been their punter who averaged 51 yards per punt on 8 punts (6 of which were over 50). Without him the field position battle would been a massacre.

But water under the bridge. We have to concentrate on Valpo not old history.

[JD24]

yes, competitive in seeing who is the best in the worst conference in Div. 1 football. At least with Valpo you can say that it cannot get any worse.

It just wouldn't be the college football season without usc4valpo's breaking news that the non-scholarship Pioneer Football League is the lowest rated conference in Div I FCS football. 

[JD24]

Valpo is 256 out of 256.     BTW, Bucknell is 0-1 and 242 out of 256. That is only one slot ahead of Davidson. The Bison opened at the Linc in Philly against FBS Temple and lost 56-12 in front of 26k. They scored on a pick 6 and two FGs. Total Offense: Bucknell 211, Temple 695. Bucknell player  of the game must have been their punter who averaged 51 yards per punt on 8 punts (6 of which were over 50). Without him the field position battle would been a massacre. But water under the bridge. We have to concentrate on Valpo not old history.

Temple's at 82. The only FCS schools ahead of them are North Dakota State, South Dakota State and Northern Iowa. So that score isn't surprising.

Bucknell did have the FCS play of the week:

https://twitter.com/NCAA_FCS/status/1168943698484387840?s=20

[VULB#62]

  (I know )  i also checked the play by play stats. If you follow them, you will notice a strange similarity to past Valpo play by play stats in games where we gave up a lot of points - e.g., Failure to run the ball (total net for the game = 21 yards), <.500 passing, delay of game after the pick-6 TD followed by a missed PAT.

[usc4valpo]

JD24 - 2 items to address:

1. USD went up 2 notches likely because they were somewhat competitive in an 18 point loss to Cal Poly, who has had some playoff success in 1-AA football. Cal Poly, maybe 5 or 10 years ago, almost upset Wisconsin.

2. I think addressing the Sagarin is important as it is an indicator where this football program stands. Yes, it may appear negative, but over the years there have been posters on the board with grossly inflated positives about the program. Valpo is currently the worst rated team in Division 1 football and it is embarrassing - I work with and collaborate with alums who think the program should not exist, which sucks. As an alum, I would like to see the school strive for excellence rather than just maintaining a product that has low commitment. I am hoping there are tangible efforts in making this happen.

[VULB#62]

I have heard from people internal to the Athletic Department, that MLB's two major priorities are, in order, MBB and FB. While FB receives no athletic scholarships, it gets priority funding in most other respects, especially coaching (10 on staff), as well as dibs on facility use. Add in a travel budget for 45 athletes + staff that flies coast to coast.  WBB and VB, I am told, are the next tier as they both receive the full allotment of permitted scholarships. The remaining sports are, as I understand it, not at full NCAA limits and scramble for whatever they can get. I'm sure this is an oversimplification, but if you look at this from, say, 10,000 feet, it's pretty much generally accurate.

[crusader05]

That sounds about right to me as well.

Football is a key piece in male recruitment and retention(I mean what it brings in 20-30 new male students a year?) and brings in tuition dollars so it's probably the sport that does the most to serve the overall needs of the university, Basketball is the marquee sport and your best bet for turning into a money maker.

[VULB#62]

If I were to guess, the only really significant additional investment in the FB program that remains is to complement the new track and turf surface with a D-I level home grandstand and expanded press box. Many FB recruits from good sized high schools play in bigger and better HS stadiums.

We recruit many of the same kids as Butler and Drake, and, all other things being equal, until our facility is comparable to Butler Bowl and Drake Stadium, we will lose a few kids who could be difference makers to these schools

But an upgraded stadium will not happen before the ARC arena is redone and upgraded.  That is, unless a rabid, wealthy FB alum/fan comes up with $2 million and earmarks it exclusively for stadium improvement.

[usc4valpo]

62 - I agree. So Butler, Stetson, Drake, San Diego and other schools can upgrade their facilities but Valpo cannot. I understand the athletic department is focusing on MBB and football, but once again at a higher level the university is not on board.

[valpofb16]

Since 2012 we have installed turf and track. I would like to see the scoreboard updated but I think that can stay the same. What I would really like to see is the home side stands updated. Things to include.

-Meeting rooms
-Bathrooms
-Have a capacity of 5,000 on home side

EKU does not have an outstanding visitor's section however their home side is what you would expect from an FCS school. This is a half stadium renovation and should be feasible through donations, football's athletic money.

[VULB#62]

Here we go off on Facilities again  .  Love it.  If the home side were to include a chairback section and, say 30 rows instead of the 17 presently you'd have a really nice 3,500 capacity on that side. ( then add in the 1,500 already on the visitor side and you'd have a really legit 5,000 stadium capacity. Then, I'd like to see a two story press box with a President's  club level for entertaining alums and the like. Above that a fully functional press box with ample space for really good game day operations. Depending on the available footprint, underneath better concession stands, rest rooms, and possibly one (or maybe two) team room(s) so that at least Valpo doesn't have to trudge all the way back into the ARC.

[usc4valpo]

a press box is desperately needed. That is really pathetic. I cant believe they still use that.
Other teams in the Pioneer or in their status can renovate - why can't Valpo?

[vu84v2]

With all due respect to usc4valpo and others (who are clearly thoughtful and care a great deal about Valpo), I do not understand why the football program continues to exist. It is a major cost center in an environment where there are other priorities (including improvement in the ARC). From my perspective, there are two reasons given that attempt to justify why this program exists: 1. it can generate enthusiasm and identification among the student body, and 2. it attracts male students who might not otherwise attend Valpo.

To point 1: what is the actual interest from the student body? My opinion is that there would only be significant interest if the team, at its competitive level, was among the very best (i.e., winning the conference and going to the FCS playoffs at least every other year). This is extraordinarily unlikely, even if there were more financial investment.

To point 2: (the economist's view) if you took all of the money spent on the football program and used half of it to attract students (via scholarships), do you end up at the same enrollment with less cost? Alternatively, if you replaced football with a sport like lacrosse, do you attract more students (because the sport can have male and female teams) at the same or less cost?

Other relevant points to this discussion:
-Of course, there is a small set of alums who would not donate any further money to Valpo if football were eliminated. Most donors have one or two things that, if they changed or were removed, they would eliminate their donations. Always a big problem for any non-profit institution.
-Costs sunk (another economic view) should never figure into decisions of how to move forward. There is no valid argument for, "we already did ________, therefore we must do _________ or continue _______."
-Given safety concerns, the number of high school football players is likely to continue to decline. Indeed, there are more and more high schools that cannot field enough players for a team.

[JD24]

Then the overwhelming majority of sports programs at every major university, college, small college and junior college should probably be ended.

[JD24]

JD24 - 2 items to address: 1. USD went up 2 notches likely because they were somewhat competitive in an 18 point loss to Cal Poly, who has had some playoff success in 1-AA football. Cal Poly, maybe 5 or 10 years ago, almost upset Wisconsin.

There probably is no logic to it at all as one game into a season in which not all teams have played a game to this point really doesn't affect much in terms of rankings with a couple of placing moves. I only pointed it out as a point of interest and not for analysis purpose.

2. I think addressing the Sagarin is important as it is an indicator where this football program stands. Yes, it may appear negative, but over the years there have been posters on the board with grossly inflated positives about the program. Valpo is currently the worst rated team in Division 1 football and it is embarrassing - I work with and collaborate with alums who think the program should not exist, which sucks. As an alum, I would like to see the school strive for excellence rather than just maintaining a product that has low commitment. I am hoping there are tangible efforts in making this happen.

I don't think anyone who posts on this board has any overinflated view of the football program or the conference they play in. For whatever reason it seems to float your boat to point it out every year.

[JD24]

Here we go off on Facilities again  .  Love it.  If the home side were to include a chairback section and, say 30 rows instead of the 17 presently you'd have a really nice 3,500 capacity on that side. ( then add in the 1,500 already on the visitor side and you'd have a really legit 5,000 stadium capacity. Then, I'd like to see a two story press box with a President's  club level for entertaining alums and the like. Above that a fully functional press box with ample space for really good game day operations. Depending on the available footprint, underneath better concession stands, rest rooms, and possibly one (or maybe two) team room(s) so that at least Valpo doesn't have to trudge all the way back into the ARC.

As much as I'd like to see the football program upgraded, if the university has money, I think it should be used mostly elsewhere. 

[usc4valpo]

It floats (actually sinks) my boat because seeing us dead last in the nation, even as a nonscholarship football program, is embarrassing to the university. Where is the progress? Where is the pride from the university? Why accept this over such a prolonged period and think this is acceptable? How the heck did Valpo drop down after being 6-5?