Should I stay or should I go?
As the accompanying article by our newspaper's University of Tennessee at Chattanooga athletics beat writer Gene Henley reveals, that question isn't limited to The Clash's 1981 hit single.
It's apparently on the minds of folks both within and outside the UTC administration who have the power to decide whether the Mocs long remain in the Southern Conference or move to seemingly greener pastures.
It's not the first time such scenarios have been pondered by the school or its fans. Back in the 1980s several of the city's movers and shakers openly politicked for a move to what was then the Metro Conference (later to become Conference USA), though UTC seemed less interested in that scenario than those well-heeled private citizens.
That might also explain why that scheme died a fairly quick, quiet death and the Mocs have remained proud members of the SoCon.
Not that the idea of leaving the league UTC joined in 1976 (playing its first games during the 1977-78 school year) hasn't been bandied about more than once over the past four decades. There has been much private discussion about a lateral jump from the SoCon to the Ohio Valley Conference, or a possible move to the semi-big leagues by joining a true mid-major such as the Sun Belt Conference.
But what do longtime UTC fans think? What do the people whose emotions are most influenced by the Mocs' wins and losses in all sports want to see in the future, both near and far?
Super fan Pam Henry was a UTC freshman in 1969 who saw her first-ever Mocs football game that season at long-gone Chamberlain Field. She has since become - along with husband Sam - one of the program's most loyal and tireless supporters.
"I used to be totally against moving up, but I'm beginning to waver," Henry noted in an email late last week. "I just think there is a lot to be done beforehand. It will be tough to afford but could pay lots of dividends. Conversely, I used to think a move to the OVC would be a good move, but I no longer do."
Then there's 41-year-old graduate Scott Cooper, equally passionate but from a slightly different reference point.
"I would like to see a shift only if it makes sense," Cooper wrote in response to an email. "I'm not necessarily a bigger-is-better person. I do think we always have to have a vision for advancement, but it needs to be the right fit.
"Geographically, the OVC makes more sense, and I think it would bring a few more people associated and/or familiar with those schools out to see them play. I definitely think you would see more interest in playing against a Belmont and a Murray State in basketball rather than VMI and The Citadel."
This has always been the argument for the OVC. If for proximity's sake alone, trips to Tennessee Tech (100 miles one way, Tennessee State (139 miles) and Austin Peay (181 miles) would appear to make more sense than Samford (156 miles one way), East Tennessee State (215 miles) or Western Carolina (161 miles), which are the closest SoCon campuses to Chattanooga.
Cooper also wonders whether an upward move to the FBS level for football would hugely increase crowds, since the notion of facing former SoCon members Appalachian State and Georgia Southern in Sun Belt games is tempered by the thoughts of road trips to Texas-Arlington, Texas State and Coastal Carolina.
Added Cooper: "I personally don't think that switching to a conference like the Sun Belt would bring that much more interest on fall afternoons in Chattanooga. Hard to change the SEC rituals that folks already have in place."
However, as Henry pointed out, it's also tough to ignore the fact that whatever the Finley Stadium turnstile count, the Mocs essentially would make double on guarantee games against FBS royalty such as Alabama or Tennessee by being an FBS conference member rather than an FCS conference member.
And as Henry wrote of Middle Tennessee State's jump to FBS, which now has the Blue Raiders in Conference USA: "I hate to admit it, but I'm envious of MTSU. I remember hearing UT's Joe Johnson say that MTSU was biting off more than they could chew (moving up to FBS level). I believe they have proved him wrong. Middle has more than 28,000 students. I wonder how much of that growth resulted in athletic improvements and vice versa? Just like mediocrity, positivity is contagious too!"
But Henry also wisely wondered if UTC might want to follow a path traveled by former SoCon kingpins Georgia Southern and Appalachian State before they jumped to the Sun Belt.
"We haven't quite become the truly big fish in the pond like App or Georgia Southern, both of whom were national champions," she wrote. "I would like to at least make it to the FCS title game before we take a leap to FBS. Otherwise, I think we (teams, administrators, institution, alumni, donors) will lack the confidence to land on our feet and keep moving ahead. We cannot afford years of mediocrity following an expensive move like that."
As The Clash sang years ago, "If I go there will be trouble, and if I stay it will be double."
But given UTC athletic director David Blackburn's track record in hiring coaches, perhaps this thought from Cooper should be embraced by both those Moc Maniacs who wish to stay in the SoCon and those who want to leave.
Wrote Cooper: "I have all the confidence in our leadership, especially David Blackburn, to make the best decision for the Mocs."
Contact Mark Wiedmer at mwiedmer@timesfreepress.com.