http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=2229017

This is absolutely hillarious. Jerry Falwell wants to make Liberty University a Top 20 I-A Football power. I got news for hims, Liberty is no Marshall or even a Florida International. I can't even see getting them to the level of Troy or Central Florida.
They will end up embarassing themselves like Temple, Buffalo and Kent State.

If Falwell is looking for I-A opponents next year he should contact Nebraska's subpar AD, they still need two home non-conference opponents to offset the thrashing they will receive at the hands of USC.
It wouldn't be any worse than playing Maine or McNeese State.

why you gotta diss temple like that!
i think they scored this year.

Forget firing the head coach... just start letting black kids into your school. That's gotta be step 1.

I'm sorry to diss Temple, I always cheered hard for them and Rutgers to beat Miami in the Big East. They just were not capable of being a productive I-A Football team and have now decided to drop down to I-AA so they can compete with the rest of the Atlantic 10 Basketball schools.

Cmon now, Navy has gone to two bowls the last few years. If that's possible, anything is.

Have you seen Navy's Schedule, they are 5-4 with wins over Rice, Duke,Kent State, Tulane. All of whom have a combined record of 5-33. Their best victory comes against a 3-7 Air Force team.
Temple played Arizona State, Wisconsin, Toledo, Bowling Green, Maryland, Miami FL and Miami, OH, as well as Clemson and Virginia. If they had played half of those games close I would have thought they could compete at I-A, but they didn't.

Of course I've seen Navy's schedule. That's one of the very smart things that Paul Johnson has brought to the Academy. Navy doesn't get shit for losing to NC State 77-7. They don't need to worry about BCS Bowl Bids or National Title hopes. They fill a particular niche, and beating mid-to-lower tier teams that are on their level of competition is a good thing. Navy needs to play Rice, Duke, Kent, Tulane, Rutgers and Temple (Jesus, we're losing at halftime).

If they win 8-9 games against shitty opponents such as these, then so be it. It's NAVY. They have huge barriers towards recruiting. Could you imagine trying to bring in a kid from Texas when he not only has to become a service academy student and that whole package but also serve active duty after he graduates. So if you're lucky enough to be the next Roger Staubach, David Robinson, Napoleon McCallum or Kyle Eckel and get drafted, you get to go spend a few years on a ship first. And when you get back, chances are pro scouts aren't gonna be so interested anymore.

For Navy, Johnson has set modest, yet attainable and admirable goals so that they can taste success, although their definition is notably different that of a USC or Texas or even Nebraska. Beat Air Force and beat Army to win the Commander-in-Chiefs Trophy and win enough games to get in a bowl game--even if it's the Emerald Bowl or Houston Bowl. It's not foolproof, but it's not delusional either.

I like me some Paul Johnson. He did a great job at GA Southern and always came across as a nice guy in interviews.

I also like Bobby Ross at Army. That dude not only got GA Tech a national championship but also got the Chargers to the Super Bowl. Plus he seems like the kind of guy who might go Woody Hayes at any moment.

I completely agree with your rationale for Navy scheduling mid to lower level D-I competition, but why then do they continue to schedule games with Notre Dame year in and year out. After 42yrs of losing to the Irish, why continue that streak for no obvious reason except for the fact that you are both a D-I independent.
I personally think that officials at the Naval Academy are still hoping they can beat the Irish at some point and produce a team that is consistantly ranked in the Top 25 or at least receiving votes like the AFA had until recently.
I am just wondering if we will ever see the service academies down in I-AA with the Ivy League schools who have similar academic versus talent issues.

No, no, no. It's not that, it's money. When Navy plays Notre Dame here, they go to a bigger stadium, lately M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, and if they don't sell the bastard out, it's damn close. Huge revenues are made off of that game, because even when Navy is winless, people will flock to see even an average Notre Dame team.

To a much lesser extent, it's preserving that whole longest inter-sectional rivalry thing. I have no doubt Navy AD Chet Gladchuk would like to see Navy ranked, but for this type of school, a bowl berth is pretty damn good.

EDIT: After I posted I inadvertently I ran across this Q&A with Gladchuk. The question was why does Navy never play ND in Annapolis.

A: Thanks, Bruce, for your support. Appreciate your encouragement and especially your appreciation for the football program and the great job Coach Johnson has done leading our team.

Regarding your question pertaining to Notre Dame, it really is not possible to play that game in a 34,000-seat stadium. Although your point regarding home-field advantage is well taken, we could clearly not accommodate the demand for a game against Notre Dame in a venue the size of Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.

As you know, depending on where we play, the game is always sold out to whatever the capacity of the stadium. In some cases it's 70,000, and it has gone as high as 90,000 in the Meadowlands. The revenue from that contest is significant and not only allows us to pay a very significant guarantee to Notre Dame, but is also critical in meeting the fiscal requirements of our football program.

I appreciate the thought for all your good reasons and in many respects feel as you do. However, the business of Division I intercollegiate athletics simply dictates our continuing to play the game in a large professional venue.

- answered by: Chet Gladchuk

I agree with Fu that the BIG reason is the money, but perhaps you answered in yr own post. Tradition. There is something to be said about that.