(11-11-2017 10:29 PM)pesik Wrote:  

(11-11-2017 10:13 PM)goliath74 Wrote:  

(11-11-2017 08:29 PM)pesik Wrote:  

(11-11-2017 09:32 AM)SouthernMiss3613 Wrote:  

(11-11-2017 09:00 AM)Bleacher Eagle Wrote:  From a football perspective, this is absolutely absurd even for the biggest CUSA fan. It’s mid-November and they have 3 ranked teams (UCF, USF & Memphis), all of which will end up with 10 win regular season records and any of would win our conference hands down. After that, then they have 3 other teams (Houston, Navy & SMU) that would likely win CUSA this season.

I disagree completely. UCF's biggest non-conference win was over a Maryland team that is going to finish 4-8. USF's biggest non-conference win was over an Illinois team that is going to finish 2-10 and UM's biggest win is over a UCLA team that could finish 4-8. It is just the way things fell this year. Our conference is top to bottom much better this year. We should take note of what the AAC is doing and schedule lower tier non-conference teams.

i dont care about the the conference realignment argument, i believe you have to make the best of your situation..

but i just want to point out how the highlighted debate would work anywhere but the c-usa forum...literally anywhere else...the reason people are mocking usf and ucf schedule is because the best teams in c-usa doesn't get respect from the national media

--navy blew out fau..the favorite to win all of c-usa (navy is likely to finish 5-7th in the AAC)
--ucf blew out fiu. the #2 favorite to win c-usa
--smu blew out unt, who will win c-usa west (smu will finish 5-7th in the AAC)
--UM's biggest win is navy or houston, not ucla
--Houston already beat 6-3 Arizona that has a Heisman candidate

"Our conference is top to bottom much better this year" ???
--the AAC's worst team, ECU, beat byu (who beat middling mwc teams)....Arguably second to worst team, tulane, has a win over a 8 win army

are you basing your argument on bowl eligibility?..parity to get more bowl teams doesnt mean better ..the pac 12 will have the most bowl teams this year, but is considered the worst p5 this year....their bowl teams doesnt mean they are better than the SEC or that they are top to bottom better

ive seem a few posts in this forum that this year the AAC isnt better, its just perceptions. but we at the aac are the delusional ones?

I don't buy that. FIU and FAU had new coaches playing in their only first games under the new regimes.

Today FAU blows out Navy, and, at the very least, FIU should have a closer game against UCF

why? because fau/fiu started winning c-usa games??

that navy game wasnt even close

if it was just fiu and fau i might buy that....but its not...unt, uab...all looked bad in ooc but all magically figure it out in conference play..all your top teams!!

uab is returning from a self imposed death penalty and is projected to win 8 games ..on its first year!...that shouldnt be happening at any truly competitive league

we had this debate with some fau fans in the AAC forum... i get that as a fau fan you want to believe you just got THAT MUCH BETTER!!!!
but any logical person not biased can see the level of play in the c-usa this year is very low...allowing the better of all those bad teams to look better than they should

you arent blowing out navy, thats a fact..ucf and memphis barely beat navy but fau is winning 20+ ridiculous

UAB has lost one conference game. On the road. In its second game back from the dead.

Sent from my XT1565 using CSNbbs mobile app

Bowl season should be interesting.

Since we can't get out of C-USA, we should expand it. Petition the NCAA to allow conferences with greater than 15 schools to have a 4-team playoff at the end, adding 2 games (if that doesn't work, build the playoff into the schedule). Then, gut the Sunbelt of its best name brands; ULaLa, Ark State, Appy State, and Georgia Southern. Split into 3 tight, 6-team divisions. That would generate some excitement. Limit conference football games to 6 to spread the brand name better.

Long-term, something is going to give in the Big12. C-USA should position itself for it. Safety in numbers is one way to look at it, but it's also about accumulating markets and decreasing supply. Be in a position of strength.

(11-12-2017 10:20 AM)USM@FTL Wrote:  Bowl season should be interesting.

Since we can't get out of C-USA, we should expand it. Petition the NCAA to allow conferences with greater than 15 schools to have a 4-team playoff at the end, adding 2 games (if that doesn't work, build the playoff into the schedule). Then, gut the Sunbelt of its best name brands; ULaLa, Ark State, Appy State, and Georgia Southern. Split into 3 tight, 6-team divisions. That would generate some excitement. Limit conference football games to 6 to spread the brand name better.

Long-term, something is going to give in the Big12. C-USA should position itself for it. Safety in numbers is one way to look at it, but it's also about accumulating markets and decreasing supply. Be in a position of strength.

And Troy

(11-12-2017 10:19 AM)Smaug Wrote:  

(11-11-2017 10:29 PM)pesik Wrote:  

(11-11-2017 10:13 PM)goliath74 Wrote:  

(11-11-2017 08:29 PM)pesik Wrote:  

(11-11-2017 09:32 AM)SouthernMiss3613 Wrote:  I disagree completely. UCF's biggest non-conference win was over a Maryland team that is going to finish 4-8. USF's biggest non-conference win was over an Illinois team that is going to finish 2-10 and UM's biggest win is over a UCLA team that could finish 4-8. It is just the way things fell this year. Our conference is top to bottom much better this year. We should take note of what the AAC is doing and schedule lower tier non-conference teams.

i dont care about the the conference realignment argument, i believe you have to make the best of your situation..

but i just want to point out how the highlighted debate would work anywhere but the c-usa forum...literally anywhere else...the reason people are mocking usf and ucf schedule is because the best teams in c-usa doesn't get respect from the national media

--navy blew out fau..the favorite to win all of c-usa (navy is likely to finish 5-7th in the AAC)
--ucf blew out fiu. the #2 favorite to win c-usa
--smu blew out unt, who will win c-usa west (smu will finish 5-7th in the AAC)
--UM's biggest win is navy or houston, not ucla
--Houston already beat 6-3 Arizona that has a Heisman candidate

"Our conference is top to bottom much better this year" ???
--the AAC's worst team, ECU, beat byu (who beat middling mwc teams)....Arguably second to worst team, tulane, has a win over a 8 win army

are you basing your argument on bowl eligibility?..parity to get more bowl teams doesnt mean better ..the pac 12 will have the most bowl teams this year, but is considered the worst p5 this year....their bowl teams doesnt mean they are better than the SEC or that they are top to bottom better

ive seem a few posts in this forum that this year the AAC isnt better, its just perceptions. but we at the aac are the delusional ones?

I don't buy that. FIU and FAU had new coaches playing in their only first games under the new regimes.

Today FAU blows out Navy, and, at the very least, FIU should have a closer game against UCF

why? because fau/fiu started winning c-usa games??

that navy game wasnt even close

if it was just fiu and fau i might buy that....but its not...unt, uab...all looked bad in ooc but all magically figure it out in conference play..all your top teams!!

uab is returning from a self imposed death penalty and is projected to win 8 games ..on its first year!...that shouldnt be happening at any truly competitive league

we had this debate with some fau fans in the AAC forum... i get that as a fau fan you want to believe you just got THAT MUCH BETTER!!!!
but any logical person not biased can see the level of play in the c-usa this year is very low...allowing the better of all those bad teams to look better than they should

you arent blowing out navy, thats a fact..ucf and memphis barely beat navy but fau is winning 20+ ridiculous

UAB has lost one conference game. On the road. In its second game back from the dead.

Sent from my XT1565 using CSNbbs mobile app

@UNT and @Charlotte

Sent from my SM-G900T using Tapatalk

I wish USM was in the Biloxi-Gulfport TV DMA and had a bigger budget...c'est la vie

(11-11-2017 09:44 PM)EagleX Wrote:  

(11-11-2017 09:33 PM)WKUYG Wrote:  

(11-11-2017 09:22 PM)va-eagle Wrote:  

(11-11-2017 02:00 PM)WKUYG Wrote:  So we don't go to far into fantasy land of thinking of getting all of these winnable 2 million dollar pay check games or even 2 for 1 with "upper level P5" and then filling the rest of the schedule with AAC games...

those AAC schools left you in this conference for a reason


But for S.Miss and not playing those old school teams hurting attendance lets get back to the real world instead of making **** up just because it makes you feel better.

Last two years that S. Miss actually played winning football

2016 -avg attendance 28,587
2015 -avg attendance 28,334

From 2000-2012 season avg attendance 28,218

Living in fantasy land only works for idiots and they usually seek help at some point (not anyone on this board...just the way it is)

You may be missing the point. Your numbers are tickets sold, not people in the stadium. More people would actually come to the game to see Houston than Charlotte. And... who wouldn't?

So what you're saying ...

before 2013 the numbers were actual butts but now tickets sold? Do you really believe that? Come on you know that is bullcrap...

dude, stop it.

the AAC stadiums are empty. we should be invading their forum spiking the football.

Can't speak for all, only Memphis. Other than of our 2 games, one in the remnants of a hurricane where the rain was going sideways the entire game while being played in 25 to 30 mph winds. The other on a cold day with thunderstorms in the area all day, we've averaged around 45,000 per game. Our game this weekend against SMU is expected to draw near the 50,000 mark. Ever since we joined the AAC and admittedly with a much better product, going to a Tiger football game is the thing to do in Memphis, excitement for Tiger football is at an all time high. Love being in the AAC, much respect from all the media outlets. Now if we can just do something about our basketball program we'll be set (UAB this just might be your year to get us). Good luck to all of you.

no, cusa is stuck with them..

When the CFP/G5 system was decided upon the G5 didn't have a lot of time to react to the system as it unfolded.

There was some talk of creating a 7th CFP game for the G5 champion with a full CFP share. That didn't quite work out.

What is going to happen when the CFP contract is up in another 7 or 8 years? Are conferences going to look at all the same at that point?

What if the P5 go to 76 or 80 teams? That is bound to affect the G5 and could lead to a reorganization of the G5.

A reorganization that could effectively put everyone into a contract bowl conference for its champion.

(11-11-2017 11:48 AM)USM@FTL Wrote:  The startups hurt attendance at the older programs. No brand name = no draw. Play and beat some notable non-conference opponents please so people know who you are. USF has beaten Notre Dame. UCF has beaten Georgia. Those wins register with fans and improve your brand name.

AAC football is NOT far superior on-the-field. 85 scholarships levels the field. The G5 has very similar talent levels. There is a lot of parity. Ya'll did just notice Arkansas barely slipping by Coastal Carolina, right? We'll see during bowl season what the P6 hype is worth.

USM has 5 C-USA football championships. Those still mean something to me. Who has the most AAC football championships? I have no clue.

If the AAC expanded to 14, then yeah, we'd probably jump on that. If the Big12 finally imploded/exploded, then the landscape changes. Houston, Memphis, Cincy, and UConn own the best brand names. Lose any combination of those 4 and the desire to jump is greatly lessened, possibly extinguished. That might be a time where a mega-merger of what's left occurs.

Outside of the CFP and NY6 bowls, they don't matter. Besides, half of the AAC teams lose their coaches before the bowl games, kids sit out for the draft, and the game is meaningless.

(11-11-2017 01:44 PM)herdfan129 Wrote:  So Miss, Marshall, UAB, and Rice should all go Independent and then work with each other to help with scheduling early on.

I would love to be Independent with a home-home every year with So Miss and UAB.

I didn't even think about all the money games a team could play. 3 buy games bringing in around $5 million/year would be pretty significant. More flexible dates could also open up opportunities to get more 1-1s with P5s or even 2-1s with some of the upper level P5s.

I could see this working because UMass and Army would be up to play as well, but what would you do for basketball?

(11-12-2017 09:01 PM)shizzle787 Wrote:  

(11-11-2017 11:48 AM)USM@FTL Wrote:  The startups hurt attendance at the older programs. No brand name = no draw. Play and beat some notable non-conference opponents please so people know who you are. USF has beaten Notre Dame. UCF has beaten Georgia. Those wins register with fans and improve your brand name.

AAC football is NOT far superior on-the-field. 85 scholarships levels the field. The G5 has very similar talent levels. There is a lot of parity. Ya'll did just notice Arkansas barely slipping by Coastal Carolina, right? We'll see during bowl season what the P6 hype is worth.

USM has 5 C-USA football championships. Those still mean something to me. Who has the most AAC football championships? I have no clue.

If the AAC expanded to 14, then yeah, we'd probably jump on that. If the Big12 finally imploded/exploded, then the landscape changes. Houston, Memphis, Cincy, and UConn own the best brand names. Lose any combination of those 4 and the desire to jump is greatly lessened, possibly extinguished. That might be a time where a mega-merger of what's left occurs.

Outside of the CFP and NY6 bowls, they don't matter. Besides, half of the AAC teams lose their coaches before the bowl games, kids sit out for the draft, and the game is meaningless.

I'd love to see an 8 team playoff with the Gator and Sun Bowl (expanded to 60k) joining the CFP rotation. That way all the historic bowls are part of the CFP.

MWC/AAC/MAC all with "floater" contracts for their champs like the old BE had with the BCS. They wouldn't get 60-80 million like the P5 (30-40 million) but their champ would get a Top 15 P5 opponent in a bowl game. Require the MWC/AAC/MAC be at 14 to get their contract bowl.

MWC (BYU, Rice)
AAC (USM, ODU)
MAC (Army, Marshall)

There would be 10 CUSA/10 SBC/Liberty/NMSU/UMass left outside of contract access. That is if there isn't more expansion by the B12 ect.

(11-12-2017 09:16 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  

(11-12-2017 09:01 PM)shizzle787 Wrote:  

(11-11-2017 11:48 AM)USM@FTL Wrote:  The startups hurt attendance at the older programs. No brand name = no draw. Play and beat some notable non-conference opponents please so people know who you are. USF has beaten Notre Dame. UCF has beaten Georgia. Those wins register with fans and improve your brand name.

AAC football is NOT far superior on-the-field. 85 scholarships levels the field. The G5 has very similar talent levels. There is a lot of parity. Ya'll did just notice Arkansas barely slipping by Coastal Carolina, right? We'll see during bowl season what the P6 hype is worth.

USM has 5 C-USA football championships. Those still mean something to me. Who has the most AAC football championships? I have no clue.

If the AAC expanded to 14, then yeah, we'd probably jump on that. If the Big12 finally imploded/exploded, then the landscape changes. Houston, Memphis, Cincy, and UConn own the best brand names. Lose any combination of those 4 and the desire to jump is greatly lessened, possibly extinguished. That might be a time where a mega-merger of what's left occurs.

Outside of the CFP and NY6 bowls, they don't matter. Besides, half of the AAC teams lose their coaches before the bowl games, kids sit out for the draft, and the game is meaningless.

I'd love to see an 8 team playoff with the Gator and Sun Bowl (expanded to 60k) joining the CFP rotation. That way all the historic bowls are part of the CFP.

MWC/AAC/MAC all with "floater" contracts for their champs like the old BE had with the BCS. They wouldn't get 60-80 million like the P5 (30-40 million) but their champ would get a Top 15 P5 opponent in a bowl game. Require the MWC/AAC/MAC be at 14 to get their contract bowl.

MWC (BYU, Rice)
AAC (USM, ODU)
MAC (Army, Marshall)

There would be 10 CUSA/10 SBC/Liberty/NMSU/UMass left outside of contract access. That is if there isn't more expansion by the B12 ect.

The MAC wouldn't be included either. I could see the AAC and MW though as they both have plenty of teams that people have heard of.

Either way, when the Big 12 falls apart in 5 or so years, things will change.

(11-12-2017 09:24 PM)shizzle787 Wrote:  

(11-12-2017 09:16 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  

(11-12-2017 09:01 PM)shizzle787 Wrote:  

(11-11-2017 11:48 AM)USM@FTL Wrote:  The startups hurt attendance at the older programs. No brand name = no draw. Play and beat some notable non-conference opponents please so people know who you are. USF has beaten Notre Dame. UCF has beaten Georgia. Those wins register with fans and improve your brand name.

AAC football is NOT far superior on-the-field. 85 scholarships levels the field. The G5 has very similar talent levels. There is a lot of parity. Ya'll did just notice Arkansas barely slipping by Coastal Carolina, right? We'll see during bowl season what the P6 hype is worth.

USM has 5 C-USA football championships. Those still mean something to me. Who has the most AAC football championships? I have no clue.

If the AAC expanded to 14, then yeah, we'd probably jump on that. If the Big12 finally imploded/exploded, then the landscape changes. Houston, Memphis, Cincy, and UConn own the best brand names. Lose any combination of those 4 and the desire to jump is greatly lessened, possibly extinguished. That might be a time where a mega-merger of what's left occurs.

Outside of the CFP and NY6 bowls, they don't matter. Besides, half of the AAC teams lose their coaches before the bowl games, kids sit out for the draft, and the game is meaningless.

I'd love to see an 8 team playoff with the Gator and Sun Bowl (expanded to 60k) joining the CFP rotation. That way all the historic bowls are part of the CFP.

MWC/AAC/MAC all with "floater" contracts for their champs like the old BE had with the BCS. They wouldn't get 60-80 million like the P5 (30-40 million) but their champ would get a Top 15 P5 opponent in a bowl game. Require the MWC/AAC/MAC be at 14 to get their contract bowl.

MWC (BYU, Rice)
AAC (USM, ODU)
MAC (Army, Marshall)

There would be 10 CUSA/10 SBC/Liberty/NMSU/UMass left outside of contract access. That is if there isn't more expansion by the B12 ect.

The MAC wouldn't be included either. I could see the AAC and MW though as they both have plenty of teams that people have heard of.

Either way, when the Big 12 falls apart in 5 or so years, things will change.

MAC doesn't have a lot of fans but it does have a region of the country.

B12 (Houston, Memphis, Cincinnati, UConn)
AAC (Rice, USM, ODU, WKU)
MWC (BYU, UTEP)
MAC (Marshall, Army)

The MAC has the ability to get Army which could add sway to getting in as a contract conference. That is as much as what the AAC and MWC would have at that point.

I think the problem is greater for CUSA and SBC with so many start ups and limited national TV deal. They will be positioning themselves as infill for the AAC so some of them would be in the mix.

ESPN drives the bus for the CFP and they made a big commitment to the MAC, over 100 million on their TV contract.

Probably any school in the MAC, CUSA or Sunbelt would like to go to the AAC. For most, it won't happen.

I'd be fine with the MAC if we weren't knuckling under to the E$PN deal forcing us to play so many games on weeknights. Could be the end of our program if we aren't careful.

(11-12-2017 09:33 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  The MAC has the ability to get Army which could add sway to getting in as a contract conference. That is as much as what the AAC and MWC would have at that point.

emphasis added

Merriam-Webster defines "ability" as, "1. a : the quality or state of being able (the ability of the soil to hold water); especially : physical, mental, or legal power to do something (a writer's ability to engage the reader's interest) (did the work to the best of her ability [=as well as she could])"

This doesn't really fit the position of the MAC regarding "getting Army", as there is no reason to believe that the MAC has the quality or state of being able to convince Army to want to join them ~ even if Army changes its mind and wants to join a conference.

(11-11-2017 09:48 AM)Side Show Joe Wrote:  

(11-11-2017 08:48 AM)EagNBran Wrote:  Let me speak as a USM fan instead of other programs speaking for us.


You give us a way out, an offer to the AAC or anywhere not the Sun Belt, and we’ll leave immediately. Our fans are frustrated. We don’t like CUSA and we’re sick of startups passing us by. After the last round of losses, our fan support has dropped dramatically, both butts in the seats and money being given. The moment we get out of here and show that we’re making moves to improve ourselves, a lot of that money will come back.

We would love to join the AAC. Is it some promised land? By no means, but it is a conference filled with teams we have history with that our fans recognize and enjoyed playing. If we were offered a spot, we’d take it automatically.

That issue was entirely created by Southern Miss. If upstarts are passing you by, then Southern Miss isn't doing what they need to do to improve in the current college football landscape. A change in G5 conferences won't fix that.

C-USA is a great conference for Southern Miss. And I think C-USA West is a perfect G5 division for USM. Southern Miss, like the rest of us, just needs to step up their game.

you have absolutely no idea of what you're talking about. like, zero idea.

(11-12-2017 10:48 PM)NIU007 Wrote:  Probably any school in the MAC, CUSA or Sunbelt would like to go to the AAC. For most, it won't happen.

I'd be fine with the MAC if we weren't knuckling under to the E$PN deal forcing us to play so many games on weeknights. Could be the end of our program if we aren't careful.

The AAC is stingy about adding more FBS teams. They want to stay at 10 or even 8 in the event of a raid.

That is going to hurt them in the long run because they could lose as many as 6 schools in one shot. That is why the MWC and MAC might as well stay put.

Unless the AAC was forced to go to 16 and there was a contract bowl on the table as part of the deal. Then MAC schools would want to go there in that scenario.

(11-11-2017 11:32 AM)herdfan129 Wrote:  

(11-11-2017 08:48 AM)EagNBran Wrote:  Let me speak as a USM fan instead of other programs speaking for us.


You give us a way out, an offer to the AAC or anywhere not the Sun Belt, and we’ll leave immediately. Our fans are frustrated. We don’t like CUSA and we’re sick of startups passing us by. After the last round of losses, our fan support has dropped dramatically, both butts in the seats and money being given. The moment we get out of here and show that we’re making moves to improve ourselves, a lot of that money will come back.

We would love to join the AAC. Is it some promised land? By no means, but it is a conference filled with teams we have history with that our fans recognize and enjoyed playing. If we were offered a spot, we’d take it automatically.

Marshall is in the exact same boat. I am in the minority but I would like for Marshall to go Independent and schedule as many P5 and AAC teams as possible.

ive been screaming for USM to go Indy for years now. i got mocked for saying as much. now, finally, some of these knuckleheads are seeing the light and finally agreeing with me.

BYU went Indy and their football program has flushed down the toilet.

(11-12-2017 11:05 PM)BruceMcF Wrote:  

(11-12-2017 09:33 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  The MAC has the ability to get Army which could add sway to getting in as a contract conference. That is as much as what the AAC and MWC would have at that point.

emphasis added

Merriam-Webster defines "ability" as, "1. a : the quality or state of being able (the ability of the soil to hold water); especially : physical, mental, or legal power to do something (a writer's ability to engage the reader's interest) (did the work to the best of her ability [=as well as she could])"

This doesn't really fit the position of the MAC regarding "getting Army", as there is no reason to believe that the MAC has the quality or state of being able to convince Army to want to join them ~ even if Army changes its mind and wants to join a conference.

Quite to the contrary Bruce, about 20 years ago the MAC was very close to getting both Army and Navy to join. The commish of the MAC said so at the time. There was a real fear on the part of both about being shut out of a TV contract and bowls back then.

Army hasn't been worth looking at by the MAC because of its performance but now they are turning it around.

If there is massive P5 expansion ESPN could get back at the P5 by working out contract bowl arrangements with the G5. MAC with contract bowl status would be appealing to join.

The MAC of course could never be a host because of location/attendance but could get a "floater contract" in an expanded CFP because of its relationship with ESPN.