MSU Red Cedar Message Board

THAT AUTHOR IS A FREAKING IDIO--- oh, wait. I actually have no problem with this.

I do to. A big chunk of their budget is going to be heading the way of the courts, and a lot of recruiting time is going to be spent telling people that it's all cleaned up. Not a job I'd want.

M/OSU are probably both 1/2 but I don't think they are as shiny of situations as they used to be. OSU got lucky in that Meyer was having his sabbatical when they got caught. Had they got caught a year later, Meyer may have been already hired by someone else an OSU may have had a rougher time attracting a big time coach (Much like Michigan did in both the RR and Hoke searches).

State could possibly jump Wisconsin, as they're not a blue blood and only on field winning over the past ~15 years has them over us. But it would be pretty tough to overcome the rest of the teams listed above. Penn State will obviously have issues in the future, but if they can continue to produce quality teams through the forthcoming legal/financial/public relations mess they will solidify themselves as an elite football program too big to be brought down by anything.

Nebraska may come down some if they fail to get over the hump and don't at least win the Legends in the next 5 years. Michigan and OSU are probably untouchable. Too much money, recruiting, resources, fans, brand......

Being successful for over 15 years is pretty solid. Of course, not every one of the last 15 years has been a Rose Bowl, but few years have been in the bottom half of the Big Ten.

It is. I just don't think Wisconsin has bridged the gap from great place to coach to top tier program. If you use some of the criteria that the linked article used, Wisconsin doesn't have the tradition or recruiting territory to fall back on. Apparently the facilities are getting upgraded though.

MSU has hurdles too, so that's why I said it is possible, not guaranteed or even likely.

Fair enough. I don't see Wisconsin becoming a high school football hotbed any time soon, but it has put out some pretty solid talent. Much of the o-line over the past years are WI guys, and some good RB talent has been produced.

ok, ok.

When I first read this I thought it was a performance list, like how each of those school's coaches is currently doing. Seeing OSU at the top and then Michigan... I almost had a heart attack.

I have a buddy from Minneapolis that used to work as a caddie at a private golf course while he was in high school and summers in college. One day he caddied for Glen Mason, and being from State he asked him about hos thoughts on John L and the State job in general. He said Glen told him that the MSU job was the third best in the league because of its recruiting area and natural rivalry with Michigan, and that John L. was a stupid hire because he was too much of a cowboy. He said it was ridiculous that State wasn't a better program, and that all they needed was a hard nosed defensive coach to get turned around. This took place in 2006.

I thought that was a cool story, and he sure as hell hit the nail on the head.

Another thing to consider in this debate is the revenue base of the schools, which pretty directly corresponds to the resources available to put into the program. Make no mistake, college football has become an arms race and those with the revenue generating capabilities to keep up have a distinct advantage. MSU is no slouch in this area. Last year the AD generated over $84 mln, which was good for 19th in the country. However, OSU, UM, PSU, WI, and Iowa are all significantly ahead of us in terms of revenue. If I was a coach, that is something I would definitely consider. It's going to go a long way in determining the funds available for ongoing facility improvements, coaching staff salary, recruiting budgets, etc.

I think MSU will likely take a pretty large step forward in terms of revenue this year. No way we close the gap on OSU, UM, and PSU without a significant expansion. All of those schools drove at least 57% more ticket revenue than we did. However, the gap between us and Wisconsin and Iowa is really in contributions and rights and licensing fees. Thats why I think it was ultimately critical for the AD to increase the contribution requirements for season tickets. As a result of that change, I'd expect that gap to close pretty significantly. That said, I'd really like to see MSU get into that $95 mln to $100 mln range and I don't think it would take an expansion to do it.

And tOSU & UGA

I hear PSU's athletic showers are some of the best in the world. Italian marble, dual massaging shower heads, silk bath robes, and bowls full of candy everywhere....Delux.