bladhmadh
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RE: Are ULL and ASU locks for CUSA if it goes to 16?
(04-09-2013 11:12 PM)chiefsfan Wrote: (04-09-2013 11:08 PM)ark30inf Wrote: (04-09-2013 10:58 PM)brockmeaux Wrote: Unfortunately, no, I don't think UL or ASU are locks if CUSA decides to go to 16. I think geographically we both make sense, and we're both pretty successful programs that would be exponentially more successful if given the exposure that comes with a more highly-regarded conference. But - and I can't speak for ASU - our last president, who ran the show for more than 30 years, severely neglected athletics, so our facilities and reputation are behind where they should be. We're working on both with our athletics master plan, but that won't get us any notice until shovels hit dirt, which should hopefully be happening in the next month or so.
And yes, UL's desperate, but as somebody who has dreams of our school to be one of the "big boys" MANY years down the road, I don't regard that as a bad thing. To be fair to our administration, this is the FIRST thing they've ever said that isn't "gee, we like where we are and we want to continue to build a strong conference here," and it wasn't something that we went out and plastered on the walls, but only in direct response to the CBS article. I think for the UL fan base by and large, leaving the Sun Belt is less about the quality of Appalachian State or Georgia Southern (who are both highly successful teams, and as a fan, I have no problem at all playing those schools), and more about the perception of the Sun Belt as a whole. We recruit against LSU, LaTech, Houston, Tulane, Southern Miss, Ole Miss, etc., and I know from first-hand accounts that some of those recruiters use the Sun Belt as a detriment. Things like "go to UL if you really want to play in a conference with McNeese and Lamar; come to *insert school* where you can play against all these great teams, and you'll get to be on TV more." While neither of those schools are on the radar, it won't stop people from using it. And honestly, as a fan, I know that Coach Hud is probably the best thing to ever happen to our school and he hates the prospect of having to recruit to a conference that has Liberty and/or Jacksonville State on it's yearly schedule; the longer we're in the Sun Belt, the higher the odds are of losing him, and you never know if the replacement will be able to reach the same heights as the predecessor so that issue has us all on pins and needles. I really think that, if we don't at least hear that an offer is coming, he'll be at another school come January, even if the money isn't that much better.
In this instance we have a little more experience than you. When Hugh Freeze left our fan base went into a deep funk. Then Malzahn came and it was even better. Then Malzahn left and we got some of the funk and we got a hot young offensive-minded coach and the funk was gone again.
I think we are at the spot where if Bryan Harsin does great and heads off in triumph to Boise we feel confident that we know what mold our next man would come from and that we don't have to go with some goob.
UL will be fine if Hudspeth leaves. UL will be a VERY attractive position for those type of coaches. Attendance, facilities plan, bowl history, good recruiting ground, etc., etc.
Agreed, I know people like to criticize how many coaching searches we have been through, but it offers us an invaluable amount of confidence as a fan base.
ULL will be fine with or without Hudspeth. The only way they would be in any trouble would be if a massive amount of fans literally left with Hudspeth. Somehow I tend to believe that the Cajuns have better fans than that.
given his personal history I think it will be a couple of years before he goes anywhere
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Are ULL and ASU locks for CUSA if it goes to 16?
