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Sort of like UGA-Georgia Tech in Georgia or Michigan-Michigan State in Michigan.
No. Texas (the state) is roughly 2.5 times as big as Michigan or Georgia. Better comparisons would be California or Florida. NY doesn't pay very much attention to CFB for various reasons, so it's an anomaly as far as the four largest states are concerned.
Tech has a very underrated fanbase. It averaged close to 60k in attendance (near capacity) for the season a year removed from the worst record in nearly two decades. Since most alumni live far away from Lubbock, that in my opinion is an accomplishment. It gets very good ratings in the state's largest TV markets as well.
Hey, Texans, with all the heat over these schools (it's always been there):
how would you feel if they could all be together again in a new edition SWC (provided, of course, that such a conference would have BCS membership)?
would it be fun if you could put UT and A&M back together where they belong and bring along all the other old timers (Baylor, SMU, TCU, TT, Hou, Rice....and...what the heck?....., even the old outsider Ark)?
You have it right. TCU fans may have a stronger bond to their school right now because of Patterson's success.
TCU does have a pretty small fan base. I say this as a Frog fan and the guy who started the football team's thread on this forum. Trust me, it's about 80% of Fort Worth (including the campus, of course) and that's about it.
TCU does have a pretty small fan base. I say this as a Frog fan and the guy who started the football team's thread on this forum. Trust me, it's about 80% of Fort Worth (including the campus, of course) and that's about it.
My comment was in context of the post that grouped TCU with Baylor and UH. TCU and Baylor are similar in size. UH is 2X but still does not have the alumni bond the other schools have.
My comment was in context of the post that grouped TCU with Baylor and UH. TCU and Baylor are similar in size. UH is 2X but still does not have the alumni bond the other schools have.
If the real issue here is how valuable is Texas A&M to the SEC - the answer is very.
One article written last year during the heat of the realignment activity ranked A&M's fans just behind Texas'. Texas has more alumni than A&M, but the difference is not as large as some think. Both universities have enrollment about 50K and Texas' early size advantage over A&M shrinks every year.
Not even a question. The University of Texas, has always been and SHOULD always be the most popular team in Texas. Three natty titles under Darrell Royal, One natty title under Mack Brown.
Yes, my point is again that North Texas is the red-head stepchild of the state. case in point, they did not even come in on your list, which would have been LAST
As they often are, they were oerlooked on your list as well. I am not complaining, I am making a point.
North Texas has an enrollment of around 37,000 It is one of the larger systems in the state, operating a university in Denton as well as satellite courses, a medical college and the football program will move into C-USA next season hoping to develop rivalry with SMU, RICE, Tulsa....
HOWEVER look at media covereage. They rarely get mentioned on Saturday Evening local TV round-ups. On the Sunday Paper, they get maybe a column on that later pages, while SMU, TCU, TEXAS, A&M get cover stories and muti-page articles. The games are poorly attended, and many who attend there care very little about going to the games in the tiny 32,000 seat stadium that they recently built.
I could go on. Many of the students are commuters out of hte Dallas Area, and since North Texas football is not a "trendy thing to do", those people would never consider it. North Texas was always run on a shoestring budget, like a teachers college, and as such, there is a definate "high school" feel to the sporting events. While I do send gifts to the college, I am not sure how many of the alumni do, and like many, I continue graduate work elsewhere.
There is one other aspect. I was there for Fine arts, which are actually stronger than at SMU's Meadows school or U-T, (A&M does not even have it) Many art students I knew had no interest in football or sports. Likewise, Music is a very strong area there. People come from all over the nation to North Texas to study music. The program even has grammy nominations to it's name. Past that, when I was there, we had the prople who flunked out elsewhere, who could not afford to go elsewhere, and the 35 year old returning students who were taking one or two classes a week. Most of the student body lived off campus, making weekend football trips difficult or inconvienent. We had a lot of foriegners, who had no interest in football but were studying there due to low cost and a variety of program studies.
The Point is NORTH TEXAS probably has the SMALLEST fan base and the SMALLEST marketing base. Walk into any store and look at all the TEXAS, A&M, TECH, Even TCU SMU AND RICE Shirts for sale....good luck finding one that says NORTH TEXAS outside of the Denton Campus. The visibility is just not there, and they do not have much of a marketing budget or merchandising effort.
Univerrsity of Texas has the largest University system, the largest student body, the best football program, the biggest offering of program variety. They have this enormous stadium that fills up every home game. I think part of it is that if someone gets a degree, in say, Computers from University of Texas, then they get hired quickly, and have no problem getting a promotion and such once they are in the workplace. North Texas for example has a decent enough computer services program, but finding a job with a UNT degree takes longer, more of the "Oh...North Texas huh?" response from employers within the state and "North Texas? Where is that?" from out of state employers.....While Texas has a great name recognition........Football helps market the univerrsity and put it on the map......
Ask any football fan in the Nation who the Texas Longhorns are and they will tell you. They may love them or hate them, but they sure do know them. The University has marketed its football program well. I see people here in Florida wearing Texas Longhorn shirts. They are not from Texas, they are just fans. That alone makes a comment on the success of the team and the program.
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