UMass Makes The Move!

Robert Holub, Chancellor at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, sent the following email to UMass Amherst campus community and alumni network this afternoon.

The UMass Amherst Football Team will be moving to the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) in 2013 as a member of the Mid-American Conference (MAC). We talked about what this move means a lot on this site and I for one could not be happier! More on this great news over the next few days.

I am thrilled to inform you of an exciting new development in our athletics program: We are announcing today, at a news conference at Gillette Stadium, that the University of Massachusetts Amherst football program has accepted an invitation to join the Mid-American Conference (MAC) and, as a result, is moving to the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). This move is made possible in part due to the support of the Kraft family, who have offered use of Gillette Stadium for the majority of our home games – and marks our entry into the premier subdivision in college football.

The news conference can be watched live at www.umassfbsfootball.com as well as on Comcast channel 293, Charter Cable channel 230 and channel 79 on the UMass campus cable network.

Our decision to elevate Minuteman football to the FBS is consistent with our status as the flagship campus, and a reflection of our mission to achieve excellence in all that we do.

Beginning with the 2012 football season, UMass will play a full FBS and MAC schedule. By 2013, the year of our sesquicentennial, the Minutemen will be eligible for the MAC conference championship and bowl participation. In 2011 UMass will continue to participate in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA), but will not be eligible for championships or NCAA post season play.

Joining the MAC and the FBS generates enormous opportunities for UMass Amherst:

Participation in FBS football is consistent with our role as the flagship campus of the Commonwealth. We are the largest public research university in New England, with an expansive alumni base. Playing in the FBS is a more accurate reflection of our presence in Massachusetts and New England.

This move advances our aspirations to join the upper echelon of national public research universities: most such institutions participate in FBS football, and all flagship institutions in the prestigious Association of American Universities (AAU) play FBS football.

We seek greatness in all we do at UMass. We promise national excellence and prominence to the citizens of the Commonwealth, and we deliver on that promise. Our professors compete for and earn top national research awards. We are a top producer of Fulbright scholars, and last fall UMass undergraduates were again among the most successful in earning Gilman Scholarships for study abroad. Moving to FBS is consistent with our upward trajectory, as Minuteman football now becomes part of our overall move towards national prominence.

The timing is opportune: two teams in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA), where we currently play football, recently dropped their football programs and other schools are exploring departing the league. Joining FBS allows the university to take control of its own destiny and ensures continuity of a strong, competitive football program.

The move makes financial sense for the campus:

The MAC’s national television package with ESPN is far more expansive than the CAA’s regional television contract, and will ensure vital national television exposure for UMass. The contract runs through 2016-17 with at least 11 nationally televised games for the league each season.

Based on projected estimates of revenues and expenses, we calculate that after a transition period we will reduce the general campus support for the Athletics Department. As an example of one revenue generating opportunity as a Football Bowl Subdivision school, we will attract far more lucrative guarantees for games with non-league opponents and anticipated higher attendance.

Moving to the FBS in football will significantly enhance women’s athletics on the campus: several women’s programs will become fully funded in terms of scholarships, which should increase our competitiveness in the Atlantic 10 Conference.

The universities in the MAC are large state schools with strong academic reputations. Buffalo, for example, is in the AAU. Miami of Ohio is frequently regarded as “a public Ivy.” Temple, already one of our greatest rivals in basketball, is one of the preeminent urban universities in the country. Toledo and Ball State have been cited by the Chronicle of Higher Education, along with USC, NYU, and TCU, as “hot” schools that have significantly improved their reputation in recent years.

Playing at Gillette Stadium benefits the extended UMass Amherst community:

The Minutemen will be playing closer to a concentrated fan base of alumni living in the Boston metropolitan area. . Playing in such a well-known stadium places UMass in the national spotlight, with televised games providing exposure in major markets.

With its many amenities, Gillette Stadium provides greater opportunities for the campus to connect with alumni, donors, potential students, and influential friends in the state and across the country.

Our nationally acclaimed marching band will have a major venue for performance, and school spirit will increase as our students board buses carrying them to Gillette Stadium.

We are excited about moving to the Football Bowl Subdivision and the tremendous opportunities it offers for the university. We are particularly grateful to the Kraft family and their support in using Gillette Stadium for the majority of our home games.

It is certainly fitting that the initial season of Minutemen FBS football coincides with the UMass Amherst sesquicentennial anniversary.

Please join us as we kick off our celebration on campus at the Founder’s Day “Celebrate UMass” cookout on the Goodell Lawn from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Friday, April 29, with special appearances by Coach Kevin Morris, Sam the Minuteman, and the UMass Cheerleaders.

GO UMASS!

Robert C. Holub
Chancellor