Maryland Football Act Opposed By Potential Beneficiary
A bill proposed by Maryland state delegate and former Howard University quarterback Jay Walker that would mandate competition between the University of Maryland and nearby Morgan State University and Towson University is unlikely to pass, thanks to opposition from Towson University.
“For me and for Towson, it’s an awkward situation,” (Towson athletic director Mike) Hermann said. “We want to play Maryland on a regular basis and we are on a path to do so. We are not in favor of the legal requirement not because we don’t want to do it, but I don’t think it should be legally required or that the state legislature should be stepping into college football scheduling. We want to play Maryland regularly and we see great value in that for our fans, for the media buzz it would create and for our student athletes…”
“I believe that the committee will vote unfavorably on it because of the Towson aspect of it,” Walker said. “It didn’t help when Towson University opposed the bill. They were one of the two beneficiaries [along with Morgan State]. When you have one of the schools coming out and opposing it, it doesn’t help your cause.”
For those who would say that the state has better things to do than schedule football games, keeping funds for athletics in state seems like a pretty responsible thing to do. It makes little sense for money-making, attention-grabbing rivalries between the three schools to go untapped, because of the hesitation from the state’s flagship institution.
Seems that Towson’s opposition is born more out of political leanings on the involvement of government than the potential benefits for revenue, recruiting and media coverage.
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The common agreement between BCS and FCS competition is a paid guarantee for the lower division school. UMD has been shuttling that money to Middle Tennessee State and James Madison. Why not to local universities that could use the resources and exposure?
If MD won’t do it on their own, maybe the government should look out for the interests of its lower-tier state athletic programs.
I don’t blame Townson. J Walker’s bill is about as dumb and a as meddling a bill as they come. I would have expected more from a Howard man.
Mandating the schools to play, won’t mean $$$’s for Morgan or Townson. Heck if the law says they must play, why would UMD pay them for something the law says the gotta do??
Being a Maryland resident, I’m not surprised. Towson is going to be in the pocket of legislation that helps it get new buildings and funding, and they certainly won’t trip over playing UMD in football.
Still, to oppose a measure that keeps money in state is surprising, whatever the circumstances are for opposing.
That’s very interesting that Towson decided to go the route of opposing government intervention over the potential windfall in new students and $$$.
Well, hopefully this helps Morgan out….they need more exposure to the greater Maryland community.
Well well well…Truth be the light, I am sure Skywalker was really only looking out for the interest of Morgan when he pondered the notion. He probably only included Towson because of the backlash it would get had he excluded them (Towson)as it would soften the shock of such a bill in the house…..If Towson is too high and mighty or just plain ignorant to accept a option that would net them hundreds of thousands of dollars more than a normal CAA game, I say more opportunities for Morgan to make that revenue.