NCAA Division I FBS independent schools: Difference between revisions
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! colspan="2" style="text-align:center;" bgcolor=#00428C | <font color="FFFFFF">'''Locations'''</font> |
! colspan="2" style="text-align:center;" bgcolor=#00428C | <font color="FFFFFF">'''Locations'''</font> |
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Revision as of 01:57, 9 November 2011
| FBS Independents | |
| 2010 season | |
| NCAA | Division I FBS |
|---|---|
| Schools | 4 |
| Sports fielded | 1 (men's: 1; women's: 0) |
| Region | Eastern United States Midwest United States Mountain States |
| Locations | |
 | |
NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision independent schools are four-year institutions whose football programs are not part of an NCAA-affiliated conference. This means that FBS independents are not required to schedule each other for competition like conference schools do. There are many fewer independent schools than in years past; many independent schools join, or attempt to join, established conferences, usually in order to gain a share of television revenue and access to bowl games that agree to take teams from certain conferences, and in order to help deal with otherwise potentially difficult challenges in scheduling opponents to play throughout the season.
All Division I FBS independents are eligible for a Bowl Championship Series bowl provided they meet eligibility requirements. Notre Dame receives an automatic bid by finishing in the top eight of the final BCS ranking. Notre Dame also has other bowl agreements as part of its affiliation with the Big East Conference, and Navy and Army have agreements with the Military Bowl (formerly the EagleBank Bowl).[1]
The ranks of football independents increased by one starting with the 2011 season with the announcement that BYU would leave the Mountain West Conference to become a football independent starting with that season.[2]
Reasons for independence
 | This section possibly contains original research. (April 2008) |
In recent years, most independent FBS schools have joined a conference for two primary reasons: A guaranteed share of television and bowl revenues, and ease of scheduling. The four remaining independent FBS schools have unique circumstances that circumvent their need for conference affiliation.
Notre Dame
Notre Dame is one of the most prominent programs in the country. Due to its national popularity built over many years, Notre Dame is one of the only individual schools that have its own national television contract,[3][4] and is the only independent program to be part of the Bowl Championship Series coalition and its guaranteed payout. These factors help make Notre Dame one of the most financially valuable football program in the country, thus negating the need for Notre Dame to secure revenue by joining a conference.[5][6]
Notre Dame easily fills its annual schedule without needing conference games to do so. It has longstanding rivalries with many different programs around the country, including annual rivalry games with USC, Michigan, Michigan State, Navy, and Purdue. All Notre Dame home games and most away games are on national television, so other teams have a large financial incentive to schedule the university. If Notre Dame were to join a conference, it would likely have to eliminate or reduce the frequency of several rivalries.
Army and Navy
Two of the remaining independent programs are two of the service academies, Army and Navy. Whereas television and bowl appearances are important sources of revenue and advertising for most other universities and their football games, the United States federal government fully funds the service academies, effectively rendering such income superfluous.
Both service academies have annual games guaranteed with each other and with Air Force. Navy has an annual rivalry game with Notre Dame and Army has a semi-regular rivalry with Notre Dame. Television rights for the longstanding Army–Navy Game, which is the last regular season game in the NCAA, serve as a significant revenue source for the programs. The academies also use their football programs to recruit for their services; without a conference schedule, the service academies are able to more easily schedule games around the country.
BYU
During the conference realignment that saw the university choose football independence in August 2010, some saw it as a potential future "Notre Dame of the West". Both are prominent faith-based schools; Notre Dame is arguably the best-known Catholic university in the U.S., while BYU is the flagship university of the LDS Church. The 1984 team's national championship is the most recent by a university that is not a current member of the BCS coalition. BYU was getting less than $2 million a year through its contract with The MTN, the TV network of the Mountain West Conference. BYU has its own cable channel,[7] but they had a very restrictive contract which did not allow BYU to broadcast its own football games.[8] The new contract with ESPN will pay BYU about the same amount each game that they were getting each season with The MTN[9] and allow for greater freedom with their own channel.
FBS independents
- United States Military Academy, or Army Black Knights (left Conference USA after the 2004 season; member of Patriot League for all other sports sponsored by that league)
- United States Naval Academy, or Navy Midshipmen (member of Patriot League for all other sports sponsored by that league)
- University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish (member of Big East Conference for all other sports sponsored by that league)
- Brigham Young University Cougars (member of West Coast Conference for all other sports sponsored by that league, except men's soccer)
Independents' stadiums
| Institution | Football Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Army | Michie Stadium | 40,000 |
| BYU | LaVell Edwards Stadium | 66,923 |
| Navy | Navy – Marine Corps Memorial Stadium | 34,000 |
| Notre Dame | Notre Dame Stadium | 80,975 |
University Ranking by Annual Research Dollars
- University of Notre Dame $97.1 million
- Brigham Young University - Provo - $25.6 million
- Army - US Military Academy - $10.1 million
- Navy - US Naval Academy - $8.8 million
Teams
The following is a complete list of teams which have been Division I-A (FBS) Independents since the formation of Division I-A in 1978.
| Years | Team | Previous Conference | Conference Joined | Current Conference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978–1979 | Air Force | Division I Independent | Western Athletic Conference (1980-1998) | Mountain West Conference (1999–present) |
| 1987–1991 | Akron | Ohio Valley Conference | Mid-American Conference (1992–present) | |
| 1996–1998 | Alabama-Birmingham | Division I-AA Independent | Conference USA (1999–present) | |
| 1992 | Arkansas State | Division I-AA Independent | Big West Conference (1993–1995) | |
| 1996–1998 | Big West Conference (1993–1995) | Big West Conference (1999–2000) | Sun Belt Conference (2001–present) | |
| 1978–1997 | Army | Division I Independent | Conference USA (1998–2004) | |
| 2005–present | Conference USA (1998–2004) | |||
| 1978–1990 | Boston College | Division I Independent | Big East Conference (1991–2004) | Atlantic Coast Conference (2005–present) |
| 2011–present | BYU | Mountain West Conference (1999–2010) | ||
| 1992 | Cal State Fullerton | Big West Conference | Dropped football | |
| 1996–2001 | Central Florida | Division I-AA Independent | Mid-American Conference (2002–2004) | Conference USA (2005–present) |
| 1978–1995 | Cincinnati | Division I Independent | Conference USA (1996–2004) | Big East Conference (2005–present) |
| 1978–1981 | Colgate | Division I Independent | Division I-AA Independent (1982–1985) | Patriot League (1986–present) |
| 2000–2003 | Connecticut | Atlantic 10 Conference[N 1] | Big East Conference (2004–present)[N 2] | |
| 1978–1996 | East Carolina | Division I Independent | Conference USA (1997–present) | |
| 1978–1991 | Florida State | Division I Independent | Atlantic Coast Conference (1992–present) | |
| 1978 | Georgia Tech | Division I Independent | Atlantic Coast Conference (1979–present) | |
| 1978 | Hawaiʻi | Division I Independent | Western Athletic Conference (1979–present) | |
| 1978–1981 | Holy Cross | Division I Independent | Division I-AA Independent (1982–1985) | Patriot League (1986–present) |
| 1978–1980 | Illinois State | Division I Independent | Missouri Valley Conference (1981–1984) | Missouri Valley Football Conference (1985–present)[N 3] |
| 1978–1981 | Indiana State | Division I Independent | Division I-AA Independent (1982–1985) | Missouri Valley Football Conference (1986–present)[N 3] |
| 1991 | Long Beach State | Big West Conference | Dropped football | |
| 1989–1992 | Louisiana Tech | Division I-AA Independent | Big West Conference (1993–1995) | |
| 1996–2000 | Big West Conference (1993–1995) | Western Athletic Conference (2001–present) | ||
| 1982–1992 | Louisiana-Lafayette | Southland Conference | Big West Conference (1993–1995) | |
| 1996–2000 | Big West Conference (1993–1995) | Sun Belt Conference (2001–present) | ||
| 1996–2000 | Louisiana-Monroe | Southland Conference | Sun Belt Conference (2001–present) | |
| 1978–1995 | Louisville | Division I Independent | Conference USA (1996–2004) | Big East Conference (2005–present) |
| 1978–1995 | Memphis | Division I Independent | Conference USA (1996–present) | |
| 1978–1990 | Miami (FL) | Division I Independent | Big East Conference (1991–2003) | Atlantic Coast Conference (2004–present) |
| 1999–2000 | Middle Tennessee | Ohio Valley Conference | Sun Belt Conference (2001–present) | |
| 1978–present | Navy | Division I Independent | ||
| 1978–1982 | North Texas | Division I Independent | Southland Conference (1983–1994) | |
| 1995 | Southland Conference (1983–1994) | Big West Conference (1996–2000) | Sun Belt Conference (2001–present) | |
| 1987–1992 | Northern Illinois | Mid-American Conference | Big West Conference (1993–1995) | |
| 1996 | Big West Conference (1993–1995) | Mid-American Conference (1997–present) | ||
| 1978–present | Notre Dame | Division I Independent | ||
| 1978–1992 | Penn State | Division I Independent | Big Ten Conference (1993–present) | |
| 1978–1990 | Pittsburgh | Division I Independent | Big East Conference (1991–present) | |
| 1978–1981 | Richmond | Division I Independent | Division I-AA Independent (1982–1983) | Colonial Athletic Association (1984–present)[N 4] |
| 1978–1990 | Rutgers | Division I Independent | Big East Conference (1991–present) | |
| 1978–1991 | South Carolina | Division I Independent | Southeastern Conference (1992–present) | |
| 2001–2002 | South Florida | Division I-AA Independent | Conference USA (2003–2004) | Big East Conference (2005–present) |
| 1978–1995 | Southern Mississippi | Division I Independent | Conference USA (1996–present) | |
| 1978–1990 | Syracuse | Division I Independent | Big East Conference (1991–present) | |
| 1978–1990 | Temple | Division I Independent | Big East Conference (1991–2004) | |
| 2005–2006 | Big East Conference (1991–2004) | Mid-American Conference (2007–present) | ||
| 1978–1980 | Tennessee State | Division I Independent | Division I-AA Independent (1981–1987) | Ohio Valley Conference (1988–present) |
| 2002–2003 | Troy | Division I-AA Independent | Sun Belt Conference (2004–present) | |
| 1978–1995 | Tulane | Division I Independent | Conference USA (1996–present) | |
| 1986–1995 | Tulsa | Missouri Valley Conference | Western Athletic Conference (1996–2004) | Conference USA (2005–present) |
| 1978–1981 | UNLV | Division II Independent | Big West Conference (1982–1995) | Mountain West Conference (1999–present) |
| 2001–2002 | Utah State | Big West Conference | Sun Belt Conference (2003–2004) | Western Athletic Conference (2005–present) |
| 1978–1980 | Villanova | Division I Independent | Dropped Football | Colonial Athletic Association (1985–present)[N 4] |
| 1978–1990 | Virginia Tech | Division I Independent | Big East Conference (1991–2003) | Atlantic Coast Conference (2004–present) |
| 1978–1990 | West Virginia | Division I Independent | Big East Conference (1991–present) | |
| 1986 | Wichita State | Missouri Valley Conference | Dropped football | |
| 1978–1981 | William & Mary | Division I Independent | Division I-AA Independent (1982–1992) | Colonial Athletic Association (1993–present)[N 4] |
- ^ The A10 football conference did not morph into the Colonial Athletic Association football conference until 2007. UConn was an A10 member only in football.
- ^ UConn has been a member of the Big East Conference since its formation in 1979, but did not join for football until 2004.
- ^ a b The history of this conference is extremely convoluted. In 1985, the Gateway Collegiate Athletic Conference, a women's sports conference parallel to the Missouri Valley Conference, added football as its only men's sport by taking in the MVC's I-AA football teams. In 1992, the women's portion of the Gateway merged with the MVC; the football conference kept the Gateway charter, changing the conference name to Gateway Football Conference. The current name was adopted in 2008.
- ^ a b c The CAA football conference did not exist under that name until 2007, but has a continuous history dating back to 1938. It started with the formation of the New England Conference, which folded in 1947, with its member schools joining the newly formed Yankee Conference under a separate charter. In 1997, the Yankee Conference merged with the Atlantic 10 Conference. After the 2006 season, the A10 football conference disbanded, with all of its members joining a new CAA football conference. The automatic berth of the Yankee Conference in the I-AA/FCS playoffs passed in succession to the A10 and the CAA. Cite error: The named reference "CAA" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
See also
- College football national championships in NCAA Division I FBS
- NCAA Division I basketball independent schools
External links
References
- ^ Tenorio, Paul. "Bowl Game Brings Football Back to RFK". The Washington Post. September 11, 2008. Retrieved October 5, 2008.
- ^ Katz, Andy (August 31, 2010). "BYU leaving MWC for 2011–12 season". ESPN.com. Retrieved August 31, 2010.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Sandomir, Richard (1991-08-25). "COLLEGE FOOTBALL; Notre Dame Scored a $38 Million Touchdown on Its TV Deal". New York Times. nytimes.com. Retrieved 2008-04-06.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "NBC and Notre Dame Extend Football Agreement Through 2010". und.cstv.com. 2003-12-18. Retrieved 2008-04-06.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Gage, Jack (2006-12-22). "The most valuable college football teams". Forbes. newsinfo.nd.edu. Retrieved 2008-04-06.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) [dead link] - ^ "Notre Dame Football Program Ranked Most Valuable In College Football". Forbes.com. und.cstv.com. 2006-11-20. Retrieved 2008-04-06.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Katz, Andy (August 18, 2010). "Sources: BYU mulling Notre Dame path". ESPN.com. Retrieved August 31, 2010.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Harmon, Dick (August 24, 2010). "BYU's broadcast issues boiling over". Deseret News. Retrieved November 17, 2010.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "ESPN gets rights to BYU football". digitalsportsdaily.com. September 1, 2010. Retrieved November 17, 2010.
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