http://bwi.rivals.com/showmsg.asp?fid=36&tid=156874937&mid=156874937&sid=890&style=2
Put the statue back up, rename the Stadium "Joe Paterno Stadium", and join the NAIA. Bring the other PSAC schools with us. Being that you are limited to 24 football scholarships, it would allow them to save money by reducing their scholarship total from 36, and still remain competitive.
1.) In addition to other PSAC schools saving money on reducing their number of scholarships by 12, they would earn substantially more gate money by having more guaranteed sell outs when they play Penn State.
2.) You could EASILY travel to all the away games, and EVERY game would be a Rivalry game.
3.) You could split the scholarship money among multiple players (not allowed in NCAA football).
4.) Other than football, all the other sports appear to have scholarship limits that are adaquate (basketball - 11).
5.) Not only could we still play for a National Championship, we could get some playoff games played at Home.
6.) With Penn State in an NAIA affiliated PSAC, we could strike a TV contract which in no way would match what WE have now, but would increase substantially what the other PSAC schools are receiving.
7.) The savings in football scholarship payouts woud probably be at least 2 million dollars per year.
8.) There would be SUBSTANTIAL savings in traveling expenses. Bus trips instead of plane flights.
9.) Possibly start a groundswell of additional NCAA schools that might want to make the jump, and eventually put together a more extensive TV contract (ie. get the SUNY schools involved. That gives you Pennsylvania AND New York.)
This might all sound silly, but over the course of time, with all the Pennsylvania residents that are alumni of places like West Chester, Slippery Rock, Clarion, IUP, etc., etc, etc., this could be just as exciting as what we have now. And if we could bring the SUNY schools in, you could have your own little Rose Bowl between the PSAC Champion (Pennsylvania) vs. the SUNY Champion (New York) as one of the NAIA National Championship Playoff Games.
I would certainly wait until the Curley/Schultz trials are over and see how things play out. But if Joe is exonerated in the Court of Law, and the Freeh Report is exposed for being the farce that it is, but yet Emmert and the NCAA stick by their guns and screw Joe out of his wins, I say go for it!! NAIA here we come!!!
League Schedule:
Clarion
Slippery Rock
California
West Chester
Lock Haven
East Stroudsburg
Bloomsburg
Edinboro
Gannon
IUP