(02-17-2013 07:17 PM)ETSUfan1 Wrote: Man the SoCon is sounding less and less desirable. Furman, Wofford, Elon, Samford, Citadel, maybe Mercer and Kennesaw too? eeehhh.
got a far-fetched idea here,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
how does the big south sound
IF etsu, utc, western carolina, and mercer made a "group offer" to join
benefits for big south conference,,,,,,,,,
1. would be a big bump-up in conference rpi
2. would bring more "name recognition" to conference (i.e. - compare utc to high point)
3. would put the conference at 16 full member schools, which would be strong for when liberty goes fbs or for when socon makes grabs for any of the private schools (campbell, high point, liberty, csu, gardner-webb, presbyterian, mercer)
benefits for etsu,,,,,,,,,
1. we get the hell out of the asun
2. big south is a football conference
3. rekindled old socon rivalries with utc, wcu, and vmi
4. continued/rekindled asun rivalries with mercer and campbell
5. we get the hell out of the asun
5. though the conference rpi would be pretty much a lateral move (if utc, mercer, and wcu is in the mix), all travels would be very close,,,,no florida schools!!!
6. closest big south rival would be only 1 hour = unc ashville
7. get annual home/away payback opportunities after this years losses to csu
8. we get the hell out of the asun
benefits for utc and wcu,,,,,,,,,,
1. they get out of the socon (which apparently wants to be all private anyway), without a drop in conference rpi,,,,,,considering all 4 schools make the move
2. they get back with us!!!
benefits for mercer,,,,,,,,,,
1. they get the hell out of the asun
2. they get the hell out of the asun
3. big south is a football conference
4. they get the hell out of the asun
also, big south wouldnt be too bad either if uscu was somehow in the mix. maybe to replace one of the private schools if other conference expansions come calling (socon)
in all,,,,,,,,,,,,
what im thinking here is not for etsu to join the big south just because it has football and we want the hell out of the asun,,,,,,,,,,but, with mercer, wcu, and utc coming with us, the big south could be a great regional league for all involved
current wiki map of big south,,,,,,,,,