The answer to your “why don’t we take these” question is: we used to, when we sucked…the schools offering those big paydays want a guaranteed win if they are going to shell out that much money.
If you were Michigan and were going to spend $1.2M on a game would you prefer SMU (no chance of winning) or Houston (11 wins in last 12 P5 games).
Sucks because they (blue bloods) look down their noses at us and the end of the season and say you didn’t play “anyone” but then they won’t schedule us to give us a chance.
I’m pretty sure we get offers for 1 and done road games still. We just pass. It’s not good for our overall record. It’s not good for the season ticket holders. We lose the revenue that we could get from a home game.
Look at SMU’s future schedules. Because they make one and done deals like that, they don’t have nearly as many OOC home games against P5 schools as us.
Exactly. I have to believe that we could play the likes of at least someone like a Maryland (since we all like to go there) instead of a Georgia State, TSU (yes I know about the stupid basketball agreement), Texas State, etc., etc.
Just to keep you up to date, we pushed back the Georgia Southern games and replaced them with a home game against North Texas and a home game against Boise State.
So you think it would be better for us if our 2020 schedule looked like Rice, @Washington State, @Maryland and @BYU instead of Rice, @Washington State, North Texas and @BYU because you and 100 others would rather travel to Maryland than watch North Texas play here?
Maryland and those level of teams won’t offer 1 off deals like that…these games are nicknamed “bodybag” games for a reason…the home team wants a win.
We might be able to go to someone like Clemson or Ohio State and see if they’re willing to pay us for a road game up there, but it’s doubtful we’d get as much as SMU since there’s a chance we might beat them. As @shaggylives said, it’s not really worth it for us since we’d make more and build our program more with what we’re doing now.
For everyone advocating for two for one deals with someone big.
You have to realize that it would have to mean one of two things.
1.) Only five home games one season.
2.) You are playing an FCS team on a one and done. A team like TSU, etc. that everyone complains about as a home game that does not attract fans.
I am not for playing anyone on a one and done or a two for one. If they are not willing to play us then so be it. You do not build a home fanbase by playing games on the road. You do not build a winning program by playing games on the road. Look at our record home and away and other than some of the perennial winning teams, check most schools their home and away. Play more away games is not conducive to building a winning program.