The door may be closing with App and NMSU being added, but have you all considered JMU? 25k attendance, alums all over the mid-atlantic and further north, competitive football team that is a rival with App out of conference. We'd bring more fans into the conference than Liberty would, just being honest.

(05-06-2012 10:09 PM)Campaign4Liberty Wrote:  I think everyone here is greatly underestimating Liberty University and what we would bring to a conference like the Sun Belt.

(05-06-2012 10:16 PM)Dukes09 Wrote:  The door may be closing with App and NMSU being added, but have you all considered JMU? 25k attendance, alums all over the mid-atlantic and further north, competitive football team that is a rival with App out of conference. We'd bring more fans into the conference than Liberty would, just being honest.

If we were going into Va its a no brainer to take JMU

(05-06-2012 10:16 PM)Dukes09 Wrote:  The door may be closing with App and NMSU being added, but have you all considered JMU? 25k attendance, alums all over the mid-atlantic and further north, competitive football team that is a rival with App out of conference. We'd bring more fans into the conference than Liberty would, just being honest.

The problem is we're not interested in expanding into Virginia. I think you guys might want to try calling the MAC.

I have wanted App and JMU in the same conference for 5+ years, mirror image of App in VA. JMU would be ready for the jump before GSU (I'd like them to move as well but they are a couple years behind JMU).

(05-06-2012 10:09 PM)Campaign4Liberty Wrote:  I think everyone here is greatly underestimating Liberty University and what we would bring to a conference like the Sun Belt.

I don't think so. If you were any other school you'd probably be getting an invitation from somebody.

That's just an additional thing your university will have to overcome to make a move.

I wouldn't get too discouraged though. It is just one of those things to overcome.

(05-06-2012 10:16 PM)Dukes09 Wrote:  The door may be closing with App and NMSU being added, but have you all considered JMU? 25k attendance, alums all over the mid-atlantic and further north, competitive football team that is a rival with App out of conference. We'd bring more fans into the conference than Liberty would, just being honest.

LOL @ the JMU fans trying to bail out of the sinking CAA...better get everyone on board though: http://boards.caazone.com/showthread.php...ost1742041 - some still prefer FCS games against Delaware and Maine versus FBS.

(05-06-2012 10:23 PM)Saint3333 Wrote:  I have wanted App and JMU in the same conference for 5+ years, mirror image of App in VA. JMU would be ready for the jump before GSU (I'd like them to move as well but they are a couple years behind JMU).

Very true. Took down VaTech, playing WVU in DC this year I believe, competative on the field, and that stadium is really gonna look good in a few years.

(05-06-2012 10:20 PM)chiefsfan Wrote:  

(05-06-2012 10:16 PM)Dukes09 Wrote:  The door may be closing with App and NMSU being added, but have you all considered JMU? 25k attendance, alums all over the mid-atlantic and further north, competitive football team that is a rival with App out of conference. We'd bring more fans into the conference than Liberty would, just being honest.

The problem is we're not interested in expanding into Virginia. I think you guys might want to try calling the MAC.

I'm hoping our AD has been talking to the MAC for months now. Definitely our best, most realistic option. I'd love to be in a conference with App though. They're an excellent add, they won't disappoint. They have a lot of fans too, they pack Kidd Brewer stadium.

(05-06-2012 10:25 PM)GaStPanthers Wrote:  

(05-06-2012 10:16 PM)Dukes09 Wrote:  The door may be closing with App and NMSU being added, but have you all considered JMU? 25k attendance, alums all over the mid-atlantic and further north, competitive football team that is a rival with App out of conference. We'd bring more fans into the conference than Liberty would, just being honest.

LOL @ the JMU fans trying to bail out of the sinking CAA...better get everyone on board though: http://boards.caazone.com/showthread.php...ost1742041 - some still prefer FCS games against Delaware and Maine versus FBS.

No fans under the age of 40 want to stay put, it's the older alums that are stuck in their ways. They are a vocal minority.

(05-06-2012 10:31 PM)Dukes09 Wrote:  I'm hoping our AD has been talking to the MAC for months now. Definitely our best, most realistic option. I'd love to be in a conference with App though. They're an excellent add, they won't disappoint. They have a lot of fans too, they pack Kidd Brewer stadium.

Thanks for the compliments, it is only a matter of time for both schools. If it turns out that App is in the Sun Belt and JMU is in the MAC, something tells me we will be finding each other on the schedule soon enough!

Many thoughts here...will add them tomorrow. Liberty brings much more to the table than you might think when you really look at the facts. The long term potential of this place is incredible and if you look at how far we've come in just 40 years it really is astonishing. Just for starters, our overall athletics budget is already bigger than all but two SBC schools. Again understand we're already spending more on athletics as an FCS program. We are more than ready and able to compete in the SBC right away.

(05-06-2012 10:51 PM)Campaign4Liberty Wrote:  Many thoughts here...will add them tomorrow. Liberty brings much more to the table than you might think when you really look at the facts. The long term potential of this place is incredible and if you look at how far we've come in just 40 years it really is astonishing. Just for starters, our overall athletics budget is already bigger than all but two SBC schools. Again understand we're already spending more on athletics as an FCS program. We are more than ready and able to compete in the SBC right away.

I just think if the Sun Belt were to expand into VA, it would have to be JMU. Their stadium is FBS-ready right now and they also have a very large athletics budget.

(05-06-2012 10:33 PM)Dukes09 Wrote:  

(05-06-2012 10:25 PM)GaStPanthers Wrote:  

(05-06-2012 10:16 PM)Dukes09 Wrote:  The door may be closing with App and NMSU being added, but have you all considered JMU? 25k attendance, alums all over the mid-atlantic and further north, competitive football team that is a rival with App out of conference. We'd bring more fans into the conference than Liberty would, just being honest.

LOL @ the JMU fans trying to bail out of the sinking CAA...better get everyone on board though: http://boards.caazone.com/showthread.php...ost1742041 - some still prefer FCS games against Delaware and Maine versus FBS.

No fans under the age of 40 want to stay put, it's the older alums that are stuck in their ways. They are a vocal minority.

Well...y'all have a lot of work to do in order to convince those old timers: http://boards.caazone.com/showthread.php...-Stay-1-AA Heck, they don't even use the proper acronym for FCS, they're so old.

(05-06-2012 09:10 PM)panama Wrote:  Its more shock than hate. I dont think we got to savor a full 72 hours before swamp thing (Southern) reared their heads. At this point I am pretty numb and would not be surprised if NMSU ends up out and GaSo ponzi schemes their way in. I have a feeling we're going to lose our MBB coach.

Yes you make a valid point that our budget needs to come up some. (though not as much as you think due to the feasibility study being a few years old) but why would every other school (including yours) get a regular invite, but Southern would "ponzi scheme" our way in?

We get that you are scared Southern might move up, but please stop with the pointless insults in every post. You look childish.

Nothing to be scared of at all. But if you guys are going to have to squeeze every dollar out of South Georgia just to get to $15M annually and 24k seats then I am troubled as to what that could mean down the road for the conference.

(05-07-2012 08:11 AM)panama Wrote:  Nothing to be scared of at all. But if you guys are going to have to squeeze every dollar out of South Georgia just to get to $15M annually and 24k seats then I am troubled as to what that could mean down the road for the conference.

Well there are currently teams operating with that budget, so it wouldn't be any more of a drain than some already have on the conference.

It can't be any more risky than adding teams with no established fanbase and a rented stadium that could get demolished in a few years. Everyone have their risks. Benson just has to balance them all out.


I'm in the camp that thinks if we had an FBS invite, it would awaken the fanbase and the budget issue would be quickly resolved. It's sounding like we'll have a year to do that hope for a 2014 invite.

(05-07-2012 08:18 AM)Seven Would Be Nice Wrote:  

(05-07-2012 08:11 AM)panama Wrote:  Nothing to be scared of at all. But if you guys are going to have to squeeze every dollar out of South Georgia just to get to $15M annually and 24k seats then I am troubled as to what that could mean down the road for the conference.

Well there are currently teams operating with that budget, so it wouldn't be any more of a drain than some already have on the conference.

It can't be any more risky than adding teams with no established fanbase and a rented stadium that could get demolished in a few years. Everyone have their risks. Benson just has to balance them all out.


I'm in the camp that thinks if we had an FBS invite, it would awaken the fanbase and the budget issue would be quickly resolved. It's sounding like we'll have a year to do that hope for a 2014 invite.

Yes indeed, lets make this about GSU. Time will tell. Best of Fortune

(05-07-2012 08:20 AM)panama Wrote:  

(05-07-2012 08:18 AM)Seven Would Be Nice Wrote:  

(05-07-2012 08:11 AM)panama Wrote:  Nothing to be scared of at all. But if you guys are going to have to squeeze every dollar out of South Georgia just to get to $15M annually and 24k seats then I am troubled as to what that could mean down the road for the conference.

Well there are currently teams operating with that budget, so it wouldn't be any more of a drain than some already have on the conference.

It can't be any more risky than adding teams with no established fanbase and a rented stadium that could get demolished in a few years. Everyone have their risks. Benson just has to balance them all out.


I'm in the camp that thinks if we had an FBS invite, it would awaken the fanbase and the budget issue would be quickly resolved. It's sounding like we'll have a year to do that hope for a 2014 invite.

Yes indeed, lets make this about GSU. Time will tell. Best of Fortune

I'm just saying we aren't as bad off as you're making us out to be. And yes, time will tell.

Some things you may not have considered when looking at Liberty for an FBS invite -


1. Our facilities on on par or better than many current SBC schools....football just completed an expansion with a beautiful second deck/ 5 story tower combination featuring 18 luxury suites and a huge club/lounge area. We can and will go to 30,000 with the swipe of a pen with an FBS invite, and this current expansion has put in footers for a future expansion of 60,000 seats when needed. Note when, not if. We have a beautiful 8,000 seat on campus basketball arena that is loud and exciting when we pack it, and we've just broken ground on a brand new 5 million dollar baseball stadium that will also have a club level and luxury suites. It will seat 2,500 with ample room for expansion in the future. We're working on a new basketball practice facility that will overlook a new on campus lake, and we're planning to add another 3,000 seats in an upper deck to the basketball arena as well.

2. We would add to the SBC in all sports, not just football. Our men's soccer, volleyball, and women's basketball teams all made the NCAA tournament this year, and our men's track team has trained several national champions and has placed as high as 12th at the NCAA National championship meet. We have a swim team, which you need, as you lost Denver, FIU, and North Texas and are now down to 3 women's swimming teams. Keep in mind NCAA rules and the number of sports with at least 6 teams you need to sponsor. Our men's golf team is currently ranked 31st in the country of all Division I schools and is a consistent top 30 program year in and year out. Baseball is a very good program here and has wins over UVA and UNC on their resume this year. The new baseball stadium should push us into the top 30 in baseball as well - we have been a top 50 program and have several guys drafted each year. Our women's basketball team has gone a far as the sweet 16, and when you look at Men's track and the national champions it is proof that we can compete at the highest levels of NCAA competition. We would be a well rounded addition to the SBC and would add to the conference in every sport.

3. I hear a lot about media markets....Lynchburg/Roanoke/Danville is bigger than Harrisonburg where JMU is located and bigger than Boone, NC where App State is located. Forget not we have our own TV network, the Flames Sports Network, that broadcasts all home basketball, football, and Volleyball games on various Christian cable networks nationwide. We also broadcast a few baseball games this year. It would surely help the SBC and your member schools to come into Lynchburg knowing their game will be broadcast nationwide. Sure it is in Christian homes...but any publicity as you know...is good publicity. Keep in mind our 60,000 online students nationwide - our fanbase is national, not regional, and I would think that would be attractive for an FBS conference such as the Sun Belt. You want market share? How about every Bible believing Christian in this country? As THE largest Christian University in the world our goal is to "carry the torch" for Christians in this country and around the globe. That my friends, is a big market.

4. We have an unreal growth potential. We currently have 13,000 students on campus with a goal of hitting 25,000 in the next ten years. We are in the middle of a 225 million dollar campus renovation that includes, but is not limited to, the various athletic projects I described, a new 50 million dollar library, a 40 million dollar medical school, new dorms, new academic buildings, and a completely redesigned campus. As a private school we are not held back by shrinking state budgets and bureaucratic red tape..we can move swiftly and have been doing so to transform our campus over over the past ten years. The goal of Liberty has always been to have a big-time campus with top 25 athletics department and remain true to our mission of Training Champions for Christ. Can we have an Alabama type of athletic department and campus with the close-knit feel of a small bible college? It is the ultimate experiment, and one that so far has been successful at the FCS level. Again we have 13,000 kids here, not small by any means, and we have stayed true to our Christian roots.
Along with that growth comes national appeal. Panama, whether you like it or not, you are in the minority, as 90% of this country professes to believe in God and even our current liberal President knew he had to proclaim a belief in God to get elected. Our goal is to become THE fan favorite of Christians in this country, and worldwide. While JMU and Appy state are regional schools, and good ones at that, we have a goal of becoming an athletic rallying point for some 2 billion Christians worldwide. We are not limited to the Virginia/North Carolina region and our popularity would explode (and in the turn the Sun Belt's) with an FBS invite. Simply put, our national and worldwide growth potential, and appeal, dwarfs that of JMU, App State, and GSU. Just look at how far we've come in just 40 years since our founding in 1971 to see just how amazing the next 40 will be. You don't want to be the conference that says "I wish we would have gotten them when we had the chance." as in 40 years we will be far, far ahead of our regional FCS counterparts at JMU and App State. Right now you can see Liberty University billboards in Houston and Miami, and we're also running a nationwide commercial campaign on Fox. Again think big...in 10 and then 20 years this place will be a top national university...do you want to be a part of that growth? Who has more current national appeal...Liberty or Louisiana-Monroe? Really?

5. We have cash. I do not like to brag about money, but college athletic success is a lot about money and again, we spend more on athletics as an FCS program than all but two current SBC schools. To think that we wouldn't be competitive in all sports in the SBC is an uneducated opinion at best. I can tell you this, IF we were in the ACC right now we would have no problems putting forth the kind of budget needed to be successful in a BCS conference. Again as a private school we are not limited by state budgets, and our current net revenues minus expenses is some 200 million a year. We'll have an endowment/cash reserves that will approach 1 billion by 2015, and we have an A1 credit rating from Moody's....how many other current SBC schools can say that? I can tell you that in some of our sports, our budgets already approach BCS conference levels. We have billionaires backing us and forget not that our first graduating class in 1975 hasn't even retired yet, and won't for another 6 years. There will be some major, major gifts coming our way in the next 10 years and combined with our sound fiscal management, the money hurdle to FBS is absolutely no problem at all. Our FBS feasibility study will be released today and I can assure you that money, or the lack thereof, will not be a hurdle when making the FBS jump.



So in closing....we've got 13,000 students on our way to 25,000...60,000 students online all around the country..we would be competitive in all sports...we have national appeal and we're on our way to becoming a top national university...we have cash and can make the FBS jump (and then some) with no problem at all. Heck we could make a BCS jump from a financial standpoint if we wanted to...

What you'll say against us -

1. We're a Christian school
2. We're close-minded
3. Jerry Falwell Sr. said some stuff people didn't agree with
4. We're out of the SBC footprint
5. We're not a public school and therefore wouldn't fit the "profile" of the SBC

To that I say -

1. 90% of this country professes a belief in God, including the overwhelming majority of the deep south, your area. Those of you who disagree with our beliefs...that is fine, but understand you're in the minority, especially in SBC member states.

2. See #1...

3. I will not disagree with you here...but understand your average 18 year old high school senior has no idea who Jerry Falwell Sr. was, and his comments certainly haven't dampened our growth. There will come a time when the only people who choose to remember those comments are the extreme left, and by that time we'll be firmly entrenched into the FBS world. One small example of how easily people forget - Look at PSU and the Jerry Sandusky mess. They said it would take Penn State 10 years to recover. What did Bill O'Brien do? Went out and got a verbal in the 2013 class from the 13th ranked QB in the country and the number 1 tight end in the country. You may remember Falwell's comments, your kids will not.

4. See App State and JMU...JMU 2 hours further north than we are.

5. Money talks, and we would add value to your conference. Yes we're a private school...but The Big Ten would accept Notre Dame in a heartbeat and in every conference you have a mix of public and private schools. Do you think the SEC loves the academic reputation Vandy brings? How about USC and Stanford in the Pac-12? I think they fit in nicely with the UC system and the Arizona state schools no? How about Northwestern in the Big-Ten? Villanova in the Big East? Wake Forest and Miami in the ACC? You get the point, I could go on and on.



I would love to hear some fact filled arguments and counterpoints - those of you who take Panama's route and bash our religion I will simply deem unintelligent or too lazy to find some facts to present.