Why Buffalo Should be the Next Team to go to Division-I

Recently there seems to be great growth in college lacrosse, with many teams moving to Division-I or at least considering it. Michigan became the newest Division-I team this season as they made the jump from the MCLA ranks. This winter both Furman University and Boston University have announced that they will be launching D-I Programs in the upcoming years. When asked what other schools should launch programs USC and Boston College always seem to be the teams brought up. Today I will make a case for a school that may not be as big as those two, but one that would probably have success at the higher level of collegiate lacrosse.

The University at Buffalo is a decent sized school, with a student body of 28,601 people. The school fields 11 different men's and women's sports. Its the largest school in a hot bed for lacrosse, however the team is not at the highest level of college lacrosse. The team is one of 213 members of the Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association. They have experienced success in the league recently, winning CCLA South Division in 2010 and the PCLL championship in the 2011 after switching conferences. They currently play in the PCLL with Boston College, Boston University, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Nebraska, and New Hampshire. The Buffalo Bulls are ranked tenth in the MCLA.

Buffalo is a center for lacrosse and if Buffalo jumped up I believe they would have success immediately. Not only would more Buffalo area players stay to play here, but many Canadians would consider coming to Buffalo to play as well. Many Canadian players have experienced success at the NCAA level. Buffalo would have a regional rival in Canisius College, a program that boasted two first round NLL picks this past season. Canisius is a much smaller school, so one would assume UB would have an easier time with recruiting and scholarships than Canisius and have even more success. Its just logic. Put college lacrosse in a place where lots of people play lacrosse and it will have success. Take the jump to read some set backs as well as some bright spots that the program might face on their way to Division-I lacrosse.

In other sports the Bulls participate in the Mid-American Conference (MAC). The only problem is there isn't a single MAC team that has a Division-I program so the team would have to join as an associate member of a difference conference. They could join the MAAC with Canisius, but most of the schools are much smaller. The America East, Big East, and Northeast Conference could also be options. That being said no matter what conference they joined they would have excellent facilities at the UB Stadium. The stadium hosts 29,013 fans and only hosts three UB programs (Football, Soccer, and Track and Field), only one of which being a spring sport.

Division-I programs also cost a good amount of money, and if you add a men's program you need to add a female sport as well. This could be a major hurtle for UB trying to get a Division-I team. How the attendances would be, especially in the beginning, is very questionable. That may scare many at the University away from the idea. In time however I think the program could build itself up from the ground up. At least they wouldn't have to deal with the problem that the UB hockey team has, barely having a place to play.

What do you think about the possibilities of Buffalo as a Division-I school? I know its not the sexiest idea but any new lacrosse programs are a good thing. In some time I believe Buffalo could be a force in lacrosse, but what do you think? As always comments are loved. Buffalo opens their MCLA season March 10th as they head down south to face the Clemson Tigers. Their home opener is March 30th against New Hampshire. More information about the Buffalo Bulls lacrosse can be found at their website.