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Given the new media rights deal with ESPN and the exit of UConn, the time may be right for Wichita State to revive it’s football program. A lot of people have been promoting that for a long time. What do you think?

SMUstang wrote:Given the new media rights deal with ESPN and the exit of UConn, the time may be right for Wichita State to revive it’s football program. A lot of people have been promoting that for a long time. What do you think?

They need to so we can get to 12 again without adding some spare team.

DanFreibergerForHeisman wrote:

SMUstang wrote:Given the new media rights deal with ESPN and the exit of UConn, the time may be right for Wichita State to revive it’s football program. A lot of people have been promoting that for a long time. What do you think?

They need to so we can get to 12 again without adding some spare team.

Would the Conference support it? Would they kick in $ to start it? Would that be preferable to adding a football only other team?

SMU actually played Wichita St. in Dicker-James freshman season in a very uneventful 34-0 victory in Wichita. Dickerson was hurt

No way the AAC should allow Wichita St to join the football schedule as a full conference team-they might assist Wichita during a probationary period but they have to build a program first. AAC might not be around before they built a program and there aren't many great recruits in that area to build a program.

Wichita State's president, John Bardo, is in favor of reviving the program. And the Koch brothers live in Wichita, KS, by far the largest city in Kansas, and have a combined net worth of $108 billion, and have funded some of WSU's programs. Wichita State has an enrollment of over 16,000. Wouldn't it be something if the Koch brothers gave the school a tax deductible gift with no strings attached? Restarting the football program might be possible, but the price tag is $40M+ to restart the program. And nobody has stepped up.

Theoretically, the school could restart football, and play outside the conference while they are rebuilding. Which may not take too long with Junior College transfers and the transfer portal. The conference can continue to compete as an 11 team conference until WSU is ready to compete in the AAC.

There might have been 600 people in the stands when we played WSU in football. Coldest game I can remember.

UNC Charlotte decided to bring back football in 2008 but it didn't field a team until 2013. Seven years into the mission, they are a member of CUSA and played in their 1st bowl game this past season. If the AAC wants to expand to 12 members, we need either a full all sports member to replace UConn or a football only member in the west. If we go to 11 members in bball, might have to go to a 20 game conference schedule which isn't necessarily a bad thing (vs playing the Jackson State, Jacksonville State, Northwestern State, Abilene Christian slate we saw this year).

The more I think about it, the more I like Air Force in the west vs Navy in the east. Might be good for Navy as their game with Air Force is not as big a deal as the Army/Navy classic and having another Academy would be consistent with the "American" brand. Air Force football would certainly be an upgrade vs UConn and Air Force might prefer a lesser conference for it's other sports because I don't think they have been overly competitive in the MWC. The MWC could backfill with either UTEP, NMSU or possibly Hawaii as a full member?

Air Force would be good. They are not too far out of our current footprint and they bring a big stadium and lots of fans, not to mention a lot of national interest. They could play Navy in conference thus preserving 4 “out of conference” games. The only problem is where would they park their Olympic sports?

My great-grandfather, E.V. Long, was head football coach for the Fairmount Wheat Shockers for the 1912 and 1913 seasons. They became Wichita University in 1926 and Wichita State in 1964. The program was disbanded in the mid 80's.

WOW! Great history and great picture - was your great- grandfather the one wearing the hat?

It's just the players in that photo, dalpony.

He was an interesting guy. Lettering in football and baseball, he was known as the "strong man of Harvard". He was head coach at Richmond as well before going to Wichita. Here's a (somewhat racist) newspaper clipping from the Richmond paper talking about the possibility of a boxing match with the great Jack Johnson.

I was born in and lived in Tulsa for 14 years. I went to all of the TU football games. Back then the Missouri Valley Conference was a big thing. Wichita State was one of our big opponents, along with Arkansas and Oklahoma A&M, (Later Oklahoma State). We went to some of the major bowls, including the Orange Bowl and the Sugar Bowl.

That's interesting, SMUstang. When my great grandfather coached Wichita State they were in the same conference as Iowa, Iowa State, Kansas, Mizzou, and Nebraska.

I think it would be great if the Shockers had a football team again. They might have to upgrade the old Cessna Stadium, if it even exists any more.

It still exists but definitely needs to be upgraded. That’s a big part of the $40M that nobody is stepping up for. It is currently used for high school football. Air Force Academy didn’t exist back in the day. If we could get AFA for football only, and Wichita State for everything else that would probably be the best for the AAC. AFA’s head coach says he isn’t sure AFA fits in the MWC. Could be an opening.

Unless somebody waves a magic wand and miraculously restarts WSU’s football program.