(11-28-2012 12:20 PM)Buced_Up Wrote:  Has anyone heard any direct answer from Noland about future conference affiliation? As involved as he is, I would be surprised if this is not on his radar. Especially with everyone complaining about the lowly A-Sun. I think he'll do everything he can to advance our conference affiliation.

Will anyone step up to the plate and ask a direct question of Noland about future conference affiliation?

Will App State and GA Southern go to the Sun Belt?

(11-28-2012 02:58 PM)Buc66 Wrote:  

(11-28-2012 12:20 PM)Buced_Up Wrote:  Has anyone heard any direct answer from Noland about future conference affiliation? As involved as he is, I would be surprised if this is not on his radar. Especially with everyone complaining about the lowly A-Sun. I think he'll do everything he can to advance our conference affiliation.

Will anyone step up to the plate and ask a direct question of Noland about future conference affiliation?

He's at every game. Ask him yourself. He's easy to talk to.

Football or not, ETSU probably wouldn't be poised to move up right now. ETSU has a similar problem as App St - location. The Tri Cities is not a desirable location for any of the better conferences (CUSA, A10, etc.). Marshall is lucky they moved up when they did because it probably wouldn't happen today. Realignment motivation is different now. It's all jockeying for a place in the pecking order for TV markets. Even if ETSU had football and was successful at it location would kill movement. App St will take the first offer they can get for an FBS conference. They've been working on it for years and have had loads of success in football. The offers aren't there. Much of realignment is about geography and no athletic director or president can fix that.

(11-28-2012 06:43 PM)LetsgoBucs Wrote:  Football or not, ETSU probably wouldn't be poised to move up right now. ETSU has a similar problem as App St - location. The Tri Cities is not a desirable location for any of the better conferences (CUSA, A10, etc.). Marshall is lucky they moved up when they did because it probably wouldn't happen today. Realignment motivation is different now. It's all jockeying for a place in the pecking order for TV markets. Even if ETSU had football and was successful at it location would kill movement. App St will take the first offer they can get for an FBS conference. They've been working on it for years and have had loads of success in football. The offers aren't there. Much of realignment is about geography and no athletic director or president can fix that.

App State is wanting to move up to the FBS. We are wanting to get BACK to the FCS. That is our dream right now. FCS has nothing to do with location like the FBS does. We just want to get back to where we were ten years ago with FCS football and good basketball.

(11-28-2012 05:50 PM)ETSUfan1 Wrote:  

(11-28-2012 02:58 PM)Buc66 Wrote:  

(11-28-2012 12:20 PM)Buced_Up Wrote:  Has anyone heard any direct answer from Noland about future conference affiliation? As involved as he is, I would be surprised if this is not on his radar. Especially with everyone complaining about the lowly A-Sun. I think he'll do everything he can to advance our conference affiliation.

Will anyone step up to the plate and ask a direct question of Noland about future conference affiliation?

He's at every game. Ask him yourself. He's easy to talk to.

Can't get to the games, don't live in TN. It is good to hear that he is open and easy to talk with. I was actually thinking that someone in the media might have asked him by now about all this conference reshuffling and where ETSU stacks up. That's all.

(11-28-2012 08:36 PM)bucfan81 Wrote:  

(11-28-2012 06:43 PM)LetsgoBucs Wrote:  Football or not, ETSU probably wouldn't be poised to move up right now. ETSU has a similar problem as App St - location. The Tri Cities is not a desirable location for any of the better conferences (CUSA, A10, etc.). Marshall is lucky they moved up when they did because it probably wouldn't happen today. Realignment motivation is different now. It's all jockeying for a place in the pecking order for TV markets. Even if ETSU had football and was successful at it location would kill movement. App St will take the first offer they can get for an FBS conference. They've been working on it for years and have had loads of success in football. The offers aren't there. Much of realignment is about geography and no athletic director or president can fix that.

App State is wanting to move up to the FBS. We are wanting to get BACK to the FCS. That is our dream right now. FCS has nothing to do with location like the FBS does. We just want to get back to where we were ten years ago with FCS football and good basketball.

I completely agree with you on this. It is earlier posts on this thread that posed the what if we hadn't dropped football would we be moving up idea.

I don't see any reason ETSU couldn't move conferences if there are openings in the SoCon. Old feelings no longer matter in he current realignment carousel. Charlotte was also kicked out of CUSA back in the day for not having football. They got right back in though when a need arose that they could fill.