Of course W&M is that special. That's not some elitist we're better than everyone else special.

Small public school
Football program
National university
Top academics

There aren't many, if any, schools that share those 4 things. Some schools share 3 of 4.



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(11-16-2017 07:57 PM)Florida tribe fan Wrote:  Am at best ambivalent about this assertion. W&M is special, but not that special. The question was posed regarding what W&M has in common with Hampton. Enrollment size is one commonality. The College’s athletic budget is closer in size to Hampton’s than to Madison’s or Delaware’s. Hampton’s SAT scores would not be an outlier in the CAA.

Proximity is undeniable. With a conference rivalry there might be ticket revenue synergies.

Regrettably one thing W&M does not have in common with Hampton is NCAA basketball tournament appearances (and victories), but presumably the College aspires to this level of success.

I credit the administration at Hampton with being proactive. Am ever hopeful that at some point in the future the administration at the College will examine its conference affiliation.

I think that when it comes to the college sports environment W&M is actually a very unique animal. There are few schools that match W&M's size and ambition. We are one of the smallest public schools attempting to play DI sports. And when you take proximity and academics into account there are even fewer schools available.

(11-17-2017 04:07 PM)Tribal Wrote:  Of course W&M is that special. That's not some elitist we're better than everyone else special.

Small public school
Football program
National university
Top academics

There aren't many, if any, schools that share those 4 things. Some schools share 3 of 4.



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My point isn't whether or not WM is special, it was the backhanded insults hurled towards Hampton, as if they are not worthy to be a rival of WM.

(11-17-2017 05:19 PM)Paulbintheburg Wrote:  

(11-17-2017 04:07 PM)Tribal Wrote:  Of course W&M is that special. That's not some elitist we're better than everyone else special.

Small public school
Football program
National university
Top academics

There aren't many, if any, schools that share those 4 things. Some schools share 3 of 4.



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My point isn't whether or not WM is special, it was the backhanded insults hurled towards Hampton, as if they are not worthy to be a rival of WM.

Wasnt directed at you

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(11-17-2017 04:07 PM)Tribal Wrote:  Of course W&M is that special. That's not some elitist we're better than everyone else special.

Small public school
Football program
National university
Top academics

There aren't many, if any, schools that share those 4 things. Some schools share 3 of 4.

An accurate indisputable characterization. The importance of the cited attributes can’t be overstated. The attributes do not, however, preclude W&M having some things in common with other schools. For me these attributes should push the College’s thinking and planning regarding future conference affiliation being data driven. When change occurs, whether engineered by or imposed upon the College (the latter has already occurred multiple times), the data becomes important.

Hampton’s President’s remarks about the move to the Big South are interesting and instructive. The following can be found on the undefeated.com under HBCU news: “What does excite me is that the geographic footprint of the Big South means that the travel is less, it means that the student-athletes can spend more time on campus in the classroom than traveling. It means that the expenses will be reduced.” The president was happy that Hampton had a large alumni footprint in the three Big South states. The coaches are hoping affiliation with a predominately white conference will help with the recruitment of talented athletes HBCUs often lose to white schools.

I found the above impressive. Data driven? By all indications. Controversial and courageous? Hampton is willing to take heat from HBCU brethren. Historic? Borderline as only one other HBCU school has made such a move. Special? I thought so. In any event, Hampton can articulate the rationale for its conference affiliation. Wouldn’t it be nice if...

As for W&M, there will be a subset of schools with similar enrollment size, similar revenues from student activity fees, similar athletic budget size. There will be a subset of schools that sponsor both football and basketball such that they cannot focus resources on just one. There will be a subset of schools that have a passing interest in academics and a similar stance on COA. Factor in proximity and there will be a Venn diagram that makes more sense than the present arrangement. One takeaway from the above might be that owing to academic disparities and sponsorship of 21 sports, it might make sense to design/park in a league where you have the biggest budget, not a small or middling one.

Acknowledging that there is a dead horse somewhere in excruciating pain — past leadership can’t have desired to arrive at a place where some league competitors had sizable and growing budget advantages. They didn’t think they’d be sending the basketball team to play an opponent in Charleston but it wouldn’t be the school that played both football and basketball. They certainly didn’t think they’d get to the place where their biggest historical rival would arrange to play them in football and flip them off on home and home basketball. They didn’t plan on having all their Virginia rivals save one move on.

It’s disconcerting to see a smaller school down I-64 taking control of its own destiny and W&M, special as it is, pretending the status quo works just fine.

Mea culpa — I take aboard that the College is special. I celebrate it. I brag about it. I have Latin I can’t read on my office wall at work. In my mind undertaking the project outlined above could make the College more special. So would being more vocal on the corruption scandal.

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BREAKING: Connell Maynor said he has resigned as Hampton University's football coach. More in a bit.

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