But, why? Well, Ball State is a member of the Mid-American Conference and competes in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, which was formerly called I-A football. The Cardinals will be coming to play at Hancock Stadium in 2013 against Illinois State, which competes at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision level, or formerly known as I-AA.

How many times did, and will, an FBS school play at an FCS school this season? Zero, zilch, zip, nil, nix and nada.

How many times did an FBS school play at an FCS school in 2008? Zero, zilch, zip, nil, nix and nada.

The last time an FBS institution played football at an FCS program was in 2007, and that was even a stretch. Western Kentucky, which used to compete in the Gateway Football Conference with the Redbirds, was a provisional FBS program that season, but played at Chattanooga on Nov. 3 and won, 28-21. The Hilltoppers also played at Missouri Valley Football Conference member Indiana State earlier that season (Oct. 20) and won, 56-7.

Before we can understand how the Illinois State-Ball State home-and-home series happened, we must address how it didn’t. There was no cash exchanged. There was no bartering for future men’s basketball scheduling. There wasn’t even a trade of bushels of corn or wind farms. It was a good, ol’ fashion, straight-up home-and-home contract.

So, how did it happen? Obviously, the financial impact played a role during these challenging times. Why should an FBS school shell out a bunch of money for a guarantee game, when they can schedule a home-and-home within a close proximity to their campus? The economy has made the world smaller, even in our personal lives, in terms of travel, as the word “staycation” entered our vocabulary within the last year. Some athletics departments might need or want to take some “staycations” of their own when it comes to scheduling in the near future.

Secondly, Illinois State University’s guiding leadership was a factor. How many more times do President Al Bowman and Director of Athletics Sheahon Zenger have to prove their ability to do more with less? As an ISU alumnus, I’m amazed at how much the campus, athletics department and community has improved despite economic challenges. Thinking outside the box and finding new ways to do things is how Illinois State has emerged under this leadership regime.

Finally, Illinois State’s national reputation had an influence in the scheduling of this series. Dr. Zenger has spoken many times about seven intangibles Illinois State brings to the table. It has become obvious that these intangibles Illinois State offers are positives at the national level, and it’s time, locally, for everyone to embrace those same positive attributes. As coach Norman Dale said in the movie Hoosiers, “I would hope you would support who we are. Not, who we are not.”

Economic state, excellent leadership and a national reputation were all responsible for the Illinois State-Ball State home-and-home football series. Making something out of nothing and getting something for nothing, now that’s nothing to sneeze at!

Why would I connect the largest local television package in school history with such a pessimistic and cynical comic? Maybe it is my own cynical view of the world today, or maybe I’ve been down this road before. Who knows?

What I do know is that as of the posting of this blog, only two other schools in the state of Illinois have similar television opportunities this season for their respective men’s basketball teams – Illinois and Northwestern. Both Big Ten Conference programs. Both seen on the Big Ten Network – a conference-run channel, not an institutionally-run network.

I also know that the Redbirds are guaranteed to be on regional and national television 19 times this season and that doesn’t even count the potential of BracketBusters, the Valley Wildcard Weekend or the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament.

The games will also be available to 1.5 million Comcast cable subscribers in the Chicagoland area, as well as Bloomington-Normal, Peoria, Rockford and LaSalle-Peru; while the possible addition of Springfield, Decatur and Central Illinois Mediacom subscribers gets closer every day.

So despite all this positive vibe, where does my skepticism come from? We are behind. Not behind the members of the Missouri Valley Conference, but behind the members of the Big Ten, Big 12, Duke, North Carolina and every other team that is playing on ESPN every time you turn it on. Again, though, I think that’s some pretty good company, but then I remember the expectations and where alumni and fans want and think the program should be.

To start, the ISU telecasts aren’t going to look like ESPN. They’re not even going to look like the Big Ten Network. But, it’s in the process. At least we are playing in the same arena. It is going to be easy for fans and alumni to jump into the “complaints” line, as described in the opening comic. The return from a commercial break might be three seconds late and a layup by Osiris Eldridge will be missed, or the scoreboard graphic might be a generation or two old. Unfortunately, these things are going to happen. I know they are because I personally witnessed the same issues when an all-sports network called the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network (ESPN) officially launched in September 1979, and the same with the Big Ten Network in August 2007. This is where the phrase “growing pains” evolves.

In Michael Freeman’s book, “ESPN, the Uncensored History,” he writes:

“Colorado coach Chuck Fairbanks stands on the field before his game against Oregon and waits to do a live interview. In his ear, (Lee) Leonard hears nothing but static, and on the monitors, (Chuck) Fairbanks’s lips are moving, but there is no sound for almost a minute. (Chester) Simmons cradles his head in his hands. Outside, the bulldozers are still barreling around the lot. One of them rolls out of control and collides with a production trailer, flipping it several times. Inside, technicians are tumbling around like socks in a dryer. Fortunately, the trailer lands upright; after checking for broken bones, no one decides to seek medical attention. The show must go on.”

That was how ESPN made its debut. Under the production guidance of Frank Blain, I’m positive that the launch of Illinois State’s television network won’t be that drastic.

The latest expanded television package between Illinois State and Comcast Spotlight is not an end to a means, but rather a means to an end. In an effort to make up for lost time and to close the gap, I would ask each of you to consider which line shown in the comic you would stand in? I hope it’s the “gratitude” line, because it will be worth your wait.

Illinois State will appear on television more this season than any other time in the program’s history. I, for one, am excited, and your support will go a long way to help us get where we want Redbird Athletics to go.

Until then, here is an update on former Redbird football player Jeremy Keeble and his latest endeavor, as provided to me by Andy Butler. Keeble, who lettered at ISU from 1993-95 as an offensive lineman, is recording a pilot for a potential television show “The Trailman.” Keeble hiked over 5,000 miles last year after being inspired by Jon Krakauer’s national best-seller Into the Wild. As a result, Keeble is embarking on his own adventure and hopefully we will all be able to enjoy his travels.

Watch an interview with Jeremy Keeble about “The Trailman”

A sample QR Code.

Thanks to the creative mind of Kevin McCarty, a second-year graduate assistant in the office, the ISU Athletics Media Relations Office is going to unveil some new technology in the football and men’s basketball game programs this year.  The technology centers around a two-dimensional bar code called a “quick response” code, or QR code, for short.

What does this mean for the Redbird fan?  Simple, really.  It means that the award-winning game-day programs sold at Hancock Stadium and Redbird Arena will not be limited to the predetermined amount of pages.  Each program will still be stapled, but with the QR codes they are now boundless, so to speak.

For example, each Redbird game-day program has a feature on a current ISU student-athlete.  In the past, these features are restricted to the surface area of the 8.5” x 11” paper that the page is printed on.  Now, with the placement of QR codes, that student-athlete feature can be enhanced with an exclusive video interview with head football coach Brock Spack talking about the student-athlete and his impact on the team.

How does this QR code thing work?  In order to access the information from the matrix code, fans have to have a camera phone equipped with the correct reader software, which can be downloaded for free.  By reading the code, the phone’s browser then connects to the designated URL, e-mail address or even a phone number.  At Saturday’s game, for example, do you and your friends want to book a tee time at the Weibring Golf Club for Sunday morning?  Simply turn to the golf course’s ad in the game program, click on the imbedded QR code and you will be connected via telephone to the pro shop to schedule your foursome.

So there you have it – a game program without limitations.  I only a mentioned a few examples of what can be seen in Saturday’s edition, so pick one up,  check it out and let us know what you think.

QR codes – the final frontier?  Probably not, but at least now space (on the printed page) has no boundaries.

The war began Oct. 7, 2001, almost eight years ago.  During that time, several of the soldiers in the armed forces have served multiple tours of duty.  I do not have any immediate family members serving in the war, but I do have several acquaintances and friends who are currently or have been in Afghanistan and/or Iraq.  As a father and a husband, who has never served in the military, it is difficult for me to imagine the disconnect our American soldiers must feel with their families and with our daily comings and goings back here in the States.

Fortunately, there are people in this country who are willing to aid in that disconnect, and even more rewarding they are colleagues who work with me in the Illinois State Athletics Department.

Cindy Harris, our associate athletics director for compliance and certification, received an e-mail from one of her former assistant volleyball coaches at Valparaiso.  Apparently, this former assistant had established a “pen pal-type” relationship with master sergeant Tammy M. Dubbels, an 18-year Air Force non-commissioned officer, who oversees a 250-member coalition force tasked with training local medical and health care individuals for the military.  Dubbels platoon is stationed at the Forward Operating Base (FOB) Camp Lindsey, which is just outside of Kandahar, Afghanistan.

Harris’ former assistant has sent several care packages over the last couple of years to Dubbels and her platoon, and through correspondence, it was learned that this coalition force had a volleyball net at the base, but no volleyballs.  Harris’ former assistant contacted her, and then she reached out to ISU head volleyball coach Melissa Myers and her staff for some donated volleyballs.  Myers sent down six Redbird volleyballs and Harris sent them over to Afghanistan.

A few days later, Harris received this email:

“Please let the Illinois State volleyball team know that we had our first volleyball tournament today. 12 teams and it was a huge success. Tell them we said thank you for making this happen for us. If it were not for them sending us the balls we would have still just a net. Thank you so much for everything.”

Tammy

To give to another human being without the expectation of a return, that’s an act of kindness.  In honor of the traditional chant at Redbird volleyball games – Point!  Illinois State.

“Integrity is not a conditional word. It doesn’t blow in the wind or change with the weather. It is your inner image of yourself, and if you look in there and see a man who won’t cheat, then you know he never will.”

– John D. MacDonald

One of the purposes of this blog is clarify falsehoods or dismiss rumors, and that is definitely the case with this entry.  I’m hoping to squelch some banter that’s been going around the Bloomington-Normal community, and it’s an issue that tugs at all of our heart strings – parking.

The first fabrication flying about is that Illinois State Athletics is pulling the plug on tailgating after Redbird football games and that every tailgating patron has to purchase a reserved permit.  ERRRR – wrong answer.

The truth is Redbird Athletics will be charging a $5 general admission entrance fee for each vehicle.  This new nominal fee is only in place to cover the costs of cleaning up the lots during the game and after the game.

Another untruth being discussed is that the Turner Lot, the parking lot on the East side of Redbird Arena, is going to be closed for the 2009-10 season.  ERRRR – wrong again.

Actually, the truth is that due to the remodeling of Turner Hall there will be 50 less parking spaces in the lot this season, but the lot will remain open throughout the year.  The biggest change is that in years past over 300 passes were distributed to TRC members for a parking lot with 185 spaces.  Now this is where integrity comes into play.  With the lot being reduced to 135 spaces for this season, it was a perfect time for the development staff to bring integrity to TRC parking privileges, like the staff did with the “per seat” contribution policy inside Redbird Arena three years ago.

The new policy is simple and fair.  There are 135 parking spots, thus there are 135 passes for the Turner Lot which will be provided to the top-135 donors.  And the same will continue for each of the donor lots with the number of spaces equaling the number of passes, determined by the gift level.

So as the fall winds begin to approach Central Illinois, integrity stands tall as the “sweetheart deals” of yesterday are blown away.

Just, so we are all on the same page here – the season tickets to watch the ISU men’s basketball team are the exact same price today as they were in 1995.  The last time the Redbird Athletics Department made an increase in prices was in 1995, when the Redbirds were coming off of Kevin Stallings’ second year as the head coach.  A lot has happened over that 14-year period around the world, nationally, locally and even within the ISU basketball program.   After all, current head coach Tim Jankovich is the fourth Redbird coach since the last increase in season-ticket prices.

Now don’t take this blog entry the wrong way. I’m not trying to butter anyone up before I roll out the department’s new “jack-up the prices” ticket plan.  Quite the contrary.  In fact, under the directive of ISU Director of Athletics Dr. Sheahon Zenger – the prices will remain the same in 2009-10 for a 15^th-straight season.  Pretty impressive considering the Redbirds have won 49 games over the last two seasons under Jankovich, while advancing to the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Championship Game both years.  On top of that, you throw in the opportunity to see one of the nation’s most-exciting players in Osiris Eldridge.

What is even more impressive is the fact the Redbirds have won the most regular-season games, Valley games and Valley Tournament games than any other league team over the last two years.  Now on the flipside, the ISU Athletics Department has accomplished all this with the cheapest single-game and season-ticket prices of any other league school.

Take a look at the numbers.  The second column is the price range for single-game tickets. The third signifies the dollar-range on season-ticket packages.  The final column is something I call the “Bang-for-the-Buck” ratio, or the school’s highest-priced season ticket divided by the team’s victories (Based on 2008-09 prices and team win totals).

To say that Illinois State men’s basketball is a bargain, is a massive understatement.  I would call it a steal.  It is such a steal, however, that it makes me wonder about a key issue – when is a good deal, too good of a deal?

Consider this, ticket sales are a key revenue source for an athletics department.  That being said, look how quickly Illinois State’s Department of Athletics has gotten behind its conference opponents financially in just this last season, not to mention a full 15-year period!  Those lost financial resources can provide longevity for coaches and staff, increase recruiting budgets or even improve the game-day atmosphere.

There is a lot of talk from fans and alumni about what it’s going to take to raise Illinois State Athletics to the “next level.”  As an alumnus, I take great pride in this enthusiasm.  However, there is a correlation between stature and financial resources, and there is only so much fundraising that can be done.  Season tickets provide a steady stream of revenue to an athletics department and having basketball season tickets at 1995 prices isn’t remotely going to speed up the process of making “the jump.”

The decision on season tickets has been made for 2009-10 – no new prices.  Is it radical to think a group of season-ticket holders would create a groundswell and demand higher prices from the department?  Probably so.  But, I guess it could happen depending on what the ultimate goals of the fan base really are.  Do the ISU basketball season-ticket holders want national respect, perennial NCAA Tournament appearances, Valley championships, All-Americans and NBA Draft picks.  Or just cheap entertainment?

I would think most of our patrons would want the former instead of the latter.  So maybe a groundswell isn’t so far fetched.  A signed petition from the current Redbird season-ticket holders to raise prices in 2010-11?  Now, that would start next year off with a bang!