Wednesday, May 16th, 2007
Our Mission
UPDATED 8/20/2007!!!
Last Thursday’s announcement by the NCAA is just another footnote in a long line of complaints around the country about the powerful monopoly which has resulted in numerous lawsuits.
This new moratorium has not changed much for us here at SouthernFACTS, quite the opposite it has actually given us a hard and fast date. The latest article in the Statesboro Herald draws a hard line between where the University’s administration stands and where the majority of supporters want the University to be.
If University officials do not choose to communicate with the Herald, that’s their perspective. But if the support organizations such as Southern Boosters members are asking for a public plan, they at least deserve to know why the University is unwilling to trust them with the knowledge of the detailed plans for the athletics program over the next 5 to 10 years. They want to be involved and as shown by the signatures on this website … they want to do more than their share to help!
Like it or not, we are now burdened with a hard four-year period to which we are unable to move. We choose to see this as a great opportunity to set some actual timelines.
8/1/2011
The Clock Has Started!
Our goal at SouthernFACTS.org is first to continue gathering signatures towards the I-A study. However, we are now asking you to help organize our efforts to press the University to publicize their plans and involve every GSU supporter that is willing to help out. Here are the details of what we are lobbying for:
1. By July 1, 2008 the Southern Boosters organization should have a I-A fund established. The University should create marketing campaigns and start soliciting small and large donors through new and existing channels. Any donor should be able to designated monies to this fund to focus monies towards projects that are deemed essential to a I-A move. Metrics should be established around the new fund to encourage the Boosters staff and donors to reach significant milestones. SouthernFACTS will work with our supporters to donate more to Southern Boosters in order to focus funds directly in to this I-A fund.
2. Each July 1 (at the Southern Boosters board meeting) a report by the Southern Boosters should be prepared on the status of the I-A fund. An update should be provided to all members of the Southern Boosters organization in the newsletter or the Boosters’ website immediately following this meeting.
3. By January 1, 2009 the University administration should commission an independent committee specifically to report on the requirements and feasibility of a I-A/FBS move. The report should advise the required goals and priorities for all areas of the University to successfully seek football reclassification. The members of Southern Boosters should be solicited publicly to fund this study. Membership should involve students, faculty, boosters, and alumni while being advised by but independent of the AD and President of the University. This group should meet bi-weekly, should have access to all aspects of the University, and should expect to provide a final report as soon as it is possible. The Southern Boosters should be kept in the loop by their members of the committee via their newsletters or the Boosters’ website.
4. By January 1, 2010 the independent committee should provide an updated report to determine if anything has changed ‘on the ground’ to prepare for the public release of the report.
5. By May 1, 2010 (around the Blue – White game) the independent committee’s report should be made publicly available. This should be the greenlight to rally alumni and the community for major funding projects outlined in the report.
We are well aware that the NCAA and the competitive landscape will be dictated to us, however we must be prepared for whatever unfounded legislation that they push our way. We already know that Georgia Southern is on the cusp of being ready, however the Boosters are completely untapped towards this effort. That must change.
How can you help?
First, tell the administration how you feel about this idea.
Click this link in order to send a courteous email message
to the powers that be (Dr. Grube, Sam Baker, & John Mulherin).
Show them that you want to do more and tell them that all you want is a public (public amongst the Boosters at the least) effort! If they ask you for donations, ask them to DESIGNATE your funds towards the I-A fund. If they tell you that they don’t have one, ask them to create one. If they say they don’t need / want one, tell them to make it a dual fund and call it the “I-A fund or endowments for scholarship number 64 through 85″ (Eagle6485, for short!) If they don’t want your money, send it to us and we’ll donate it :)
Secondly, tell everyone you know about the SouthernFACTS.org website and continue to donate so that we can focus our advertising efforts towards raising awareness of the growing support for a I-A movement in Statesboro!
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Original Mission StatementAlumni, students, fans, and other followers of Georgia Southern University’s sports programs kicked off an important event on March 1st, 2007. A number of supporters opened up a website meant to gauge interest in advancing football (and other sports) at Georgia Southern to the highest competition levels in the NCAA. Georgia Southern restarted its football program in 1982 and is in the 25th year of storied success and an unmatched six NCAA titles in the Football Championship Subdivision. The architects of the rekindled program had their sites set on competing with the Notre Dames, Southern Cals, and Georgias of the world. The program has had a few shake-ups in recent years, but expectations have never been higher if you listen to the voices of the Statesboro faithful. The goal of the site is to begin the dialog to determine what support the community is willing to undertake presently and in the future. The website content is very simple and interactive. The site gathers information about visitors and provides actionable information for individuals who desire to get involved. So, what is our goal?A Public I-A / FBS Feasibility Study!IT STARTS WITH A DREAM AND A PLAN!
We know this is a big challenge, but by starting small we can make the I-A dream a reality. We can do this now without any monetary injections, but we believe that with a good faith effort by participants of this survey, we can reach the following goals:
THIS PLAN NETS MORE THAN $1,000,000 ANNUALLY!GSU could put it’s athletic budget on equal footing with many of the successful I-A schools. If the university can raise $50M via the campaign for national distinction then surely if they put their minds to it, they could get TWO PERCENT of that – an extra $1M in annual revenue! If we as fans can commit or exceed this goal, then we feel a I-A study is the next logical step. All that we ask of the University is to pursue it. Determine when a I-A move will be feasible and put a plan out there for us. We want a vision to have our athletes in all sports competing at the highest level possible. Make the plan and we will help you achieve it. By signing this, you will help us start the first step of the process – showing those in charge that our fanbase will embrace GSU at the highest level! |
on Thursday, June 14th, 2007 at 6:53 pm:
My father and my sis are both GSU alums. I joined the military out of high school and now attend the University of South Florida. We’re doing a little building job of our own down here and the buzz is unbelievable surrounding this program.
The state of Georgia is a huge football state. I have no doubt that GSU could succeed in Div1A football.
If GSU were to go Div1A, I would attend grad school there and immediately become a booster and season ticket holder.
Good luck and Go Southern!
on Sunday, June 24th, 2007 at 1:23 pm:
i am a long time eagle follower from here in the boro.the topic is money, the university officials do not want to discuss “athletics” over academics. read the news paper from today, wku and troy both made the move, and the money came, the academics came, and i fully support the move. i pledge to become an active booster through my business, as well as my partner doing the same, by pulling money from florida state university in which give by being seminole boosters. myself, and hundreds of other people i’ve talked to would rather see gsu lose a nailbighter to alabama birmingham than to see a blowout over south dakota state??
on Saturday, July 7th, 2007 at 12:47 pm:
I attend GSU currently and my dad is alum. We would both love to see Ga Southern make the jump. With the jump comes the money. 1-A teams travel better, meaning more “out of towners” during home games. This in turn will lead to more local Hotels, restaraunts etc… The more money going through this town, the more money the program will get. The whole thing is a cycle that this school, town, and program would benefit greatly from. I agree with Mr. Milton in the fact that I would much rather get pumped up to see the Eagles play a stiff Div 1-A school and lose a close one than see them play West Ga and South Dakota State and have the game won at halftime.
on Monday, July 23rd, 2007 at 10:27 pm:
I was an original Erks Eagle in 1981. I bent over during one practice and pulled up a few blades of grass. The comment was made that there goes the last grass we have. Georgia Southern Football was destined to be bigger than what it is now!!
on Monday, August 20th, 2007 at 2:35 pm:
[...] What is our goal? [...]
on Friday, November 14th, 2008 at 4:26 pm:
If you are not moving forward you are moving backwards in college football. After SIX national championships it should be painfully obvious to everyone that we have hit the FCS / DIV IAA ceiling. Folks are just not ever going to support FCS football in great numbers. We die hards can scream from the roof tops until we are blue in the face how great the playoffs are and that Wofford and Elon are really good teams but the reality is you are not going to change folks minds. They will always see FCS / DIV I-AA football as inferior no matter if App State or GSU could beat a lot of FBS teams. We are not the only game in town like Montana or Delaware if we ever want to get alumni, students and local folks to turn in the red and black for BLUE and WHITE it is going to take a move to the FBS period. Lets be real this is not simply a move for the football team this will be the biggest move forward for GSU since attaining University status and will be until we attain research status. The benefits will extend well beyond the field of play. Lets no be afraid to fail just like we were not in the early 80’s. It will not be easy and there will be dark days but the risks are far outweighed by the benefits.
on Friday, July 3rd, 2009 at 2:18 am:
we need to move forward because, as a student here, i can see quite clearly that this program is becoming stagnant. I agree that the money issue is quite serious. However, with the move up to FBS comes more revenue with larger crowds and national notariety. Many more people will be drawn to southern not only for sporting events but also for school if we have improved facilities as well as a higher level of competition.