Benson wants to add Liberty just so we will be at 12 in 2014. Good thing the presidents aren't listening.From what I've been told is Benson would add Liberty today if given the chance. He is really stuck on having 12 teams in 2014 and doesn't want to wait.Was told JMU said no and MSU said get back with us next year. I say wait for MSU and see how it plays out. Do we really need a championship game next year?

(05-09-2013 08:17 AM)statefanatic Wrote:  Benson wants to add Liberty just so we will be at 12 in 2014. Good thing the presidents aren't listening.From what I've been told is Benson would add Liberty today if given the chance. He is really stuck on having 12 teams in 2014 and doesn't want to wait.Was told JMU said no and MSU said get back with us next year. I say wait for MSU and see how it plays out. Do we really need a championship game next year?

Oh great, here comes the title wave of Liberty fans again.

No, I don't think we need a champ game next year.

Benson probably feels like he is in a corner because he was boasting to Georgia Southern and App that we could hypothetically host the champ game if we win at that level and now that is not possible with 11 teams.

It also makes it pointless to add NMSU and Idaho if we are not going to go to 12.

I think we should definitely go to 12 but it would be better to wait until 2015 and get a team we would be happier with in the long run.

I personally like Liberty a lot, but I think they are the 4th best option...
1) JMU
1) Missouri St
3) Jax St.
4) Liberty
5) Lamar

(05-09-2013 08:25 AM)GaSouthern Wrote:  

(05-09-2013 08:17 AM)statefanatic Wrote:  Benson wants to add Liberty just so we will be at 12 in 2014. Good thing the presidents aren't listening.From what I've been told is Benson would add Liberty today if given the chance. He is really stuck on having 12 teams in 2014 and doesn't want to wait.Was told JMU said no and MSU said get back with us next year. I say wait for MSU and see how it plays out. Do we really need a championship game next year?

Oh great, here comes the title wave of Liberty fans again.

No, I don't think we need a champ game next year.

Benson probably feels like he is in a corner because he was boasting to Georgia Southern and App that we could hypothetically host the champ game if we win at that level and now that is not possible with 11 teams.

It also makes it pointless to add NMSU and Idaho if we are not going to go to 12.

I think we should definitely go to 12 but it would be better to wait until 2015 and get a team we would be happier with in the long run.

I personally like Liberty a lot, but I think they are the 4th best option...
1) JMU
1) Missouri St
3) Jax St.
4) Liberty
5) Lamar

He also made us join for 2014 and not wait another year, which I'm Monken would have rather done because we would have had a damn good shot at the National Title this year.

(05-09-2013 08:17 AM)statefanatic Wrote:  Benson wants to add Liberty just so we will be at 12 in 2014. Good thing the presidents aren't listening.From what I've been told is Benson would add Liberty today if given the chance. He is really stuck on having 12 teams in 2014 and doesn't want to wait.Was told JMU said no and MSU said get back with us next year. I say wait for MSU and see how it plays out. Do we really need a championship game next year?

The long-term answer is most certainly no. With that said, I've seen and heard a lot of App fans clamoring for 12 teams in '14 so we would have some postseason aspirations since we won't be eligible for a bowl until 2015. I think that's incredibly short-sighted. I'd rather wait for the best possible candidate for the SBC to show itself than adding a token school just for the sake of even numbers and staging a championship a year early.

(05-09-2013 08:17 AM)statefanatic Wrote:  Benson wants to add Liberty just so we will be at 12 in 2014. Good thing the presidents aren't listening.From what I've been told is Benson would add Liberty today if given the chance. He is really stuck on having 12 teams in 2014 and doesn't want to wait.Was told JMU said no and MSU said get back with us next year. I say wait for MSU and see how it plays out. Do we really need a championship game next year?

I totally agree. Wait a year, take Missouri State. I'm afraid this thread will attract the Liberty flies once more.

I will say this about Liberty.

They have been a really fun OOC opponent for JMU over several years, we always have a great time visiting their campus and they have one of the most fun game day presentations available. They really show up to games and interact well with their students, band and multimedia etc.

I am hopeful JMU makes a move, though it doesn't sound like it will be to the SB. That said, if we move up to FBS, I would be fine playing Liberty on a regular OOC basis...

If you look at athletics for what they are...I think Liberty could add a lot to the SB.

**** it. Add Liberty. Gives us another FBS win for the next ten years, it's close(ish) to Boone and we can turn this entire board into a religious debate about LU and the rest of the Flat Earth Society for years to come.

Seriously though, if this is true I may need to reevaluate my opinion of Benson. Hold strong presidents!

BRING ON JSU!!! And in a couple of years when Idaho bolts then we can add MSU. Problem solved.

Hold firm presidents. Hold firm.

(05-09-2013 08:25 AM)GaSouthern Wrote:  

(05-09-2013 08:17 AM)statefanatic Wrote:  Benson wants to add Liberty just so we will be at 12 in 2014. Good thing the presidents aren't listening.From what I've been told is Benson would add Liberty today if given the chance. He is really stuck on having 12 teams in 2014 and doesn't want to wait.Was told JMU said no and MSU said get back with us next year. I say wait for MSU and see how it plays out. Do we really need a championship game next year?

Oh great, here comes the title wave of Liberty fans again.

No, I don't think we need a champ game next year.

Benson probably feels like he is in a corner because he was boasting to Georgia Southern and App that we could hypothetically host the champ game if we win at that level and now that is not possible with 11 teams.

It also makes it pointless to add NMSU and Idaho if we are not going to go to 12.

I think we should definitely go to 12 but it would be better to wait until 2015 and get a team we would be happier with in the long run.

I personally like Liberty a lot, but I think they are the 4th best option...
1) JMU
1) Missouri St
3) Jax St.
4) Liberty
5) Lamar

Jax state is going to be a no.... There's atleast 2 core members of this conference that would say no to them. I think Jax St is out if the picture. IMO.

I would rather add liberty than a 3rd Alabama school and 6th Alabama FBS school.

(05-09-2013 08:49 AM)jmusuperfan Wrote:  I will say this about Liberty.

They have been a really fun OOC opponent for JMU over several years, we always have a great time visiting their campus and they have one of the most fun game day presentations available. They really show up to games and interact well with their students, band and multimedia etc.

I am hopeful JMU makes a move, though it doesn't sound like it will be to the SB. That said, if we move up to FBS, I would be fine playing Liberty on a regular OOC basis...

If you look at athletics for what they are...I think Liberty could add a lot to the SB.

It has been a fun series for sure. Wish we could have picked up a win, especially in that monsoon game. Thanks for the kind words. In time others here would enjoy coming to LU for a game too. Enjoyed the game up at JMU as well.

(05-09-2013 09:19 AM)Atlanta Trojan Wrote:  

(05-09-2013 08:25 AM)GaSouthern Wrote:  

(05-09-2013 08:17 AM)statefanatic Wrote:  Benson wants to add Liberty just so we will be at 12 in 2014. Good thing the presidents aren't listening.From what I've been told is Benson would add Liberty today if given the chance. He is really stuck on having 12 teams in 2014 and doesn't want to wait.Was told JMU said no and MSU said get back with us next year. I say wait for MSU and see how it plays out. Do we really need a championship game next year?

Oh great, here comes the title wave of Liberty fans again.

No, I don't think we need a champ game next year.

Benson probably feels like he is in a corner because he was boasting to Georgia Southern and App that we could hypothetically host the champ game if we win at that level and now that is not possible with 11 teams.

It also makes it pointless to add NMSU and Idaho if we are not going to go to 12.

I think we should definitely go to 12 but it would be better to wait until 2015 and get a team we would be happier with in the long run.

I personally like Liberty a lot, but I think they are the 4th best option...
1) JMU
1) Missouri St
3) Jax St.
4) Liberty
5) Lamar

Jax state is going to be a no.... There's atleast 2 core members of this conference that would say no to them. I think Jax St is out if the picture. IMO.

I would rather add liberty than a 3rd Alabama school and 6th Alabama FBS school.

People keep saying Liberty is out of the picture, yet people keep talking about them. I don't think anyone is off the table as of right now. Maybe Benson can reapproach Idiana State. This is stupid. Take a team that wants to be here, and the probability of them leaving being low. That will bring stability to the conference and we can begin having real rivalries that stick around longer then 5 years.

We must wait for Missouri state... They are the BEST add IMO.... We don't HAVE to have 12 members right away! This conference has done just fine with 8-10 football members.

Missouri state or nothing!!!!!

I also see it as very short sided to keep JSU down just because they are in Alabama. This state has won the last 4 national championships, during that time JSU was ranked #1 is FCS at some point as well as beat Old Mrs. To say this state can't handle a dozen more scholarship football players is ridiculous.

Also, North Carolina will be adding it's 6th and 7th FBS teams over the next couple of years. And that state will not implode for football players.

If JSU is ready and willing, they should a get a fair shot at it, not blackballed by a scared group from Troy. Besides, they won't be competing with you for players, more like competing with UAb for players. And really, are you scared of anything UAb wants???

You can't overestimate the power of a strong media market. The internet has a population of about 3 billion. With their established online diploma mill status, Liberty could bring in huge numbers in TV money. Or something.

I'd rank Liberty as my 4th preference probably behind JSU. JMU and MSU are worth waiting for as long as they're actually going to join. What I don't want to happen is agreeing to wait a year just to have them turn us down, then all we've done is lose a year of recruiting for the next team in line and a year of championship game revenue/exposure.

What the SBC leadership needs to do now is find out in concrete what UTA's football plans are for the near future. IMO, the worst case scenario is taking a team that the conference members settle on (i.e. someone other than MSU and JMU) and UTA then announces their intention to start up a FBS team. With the new playoff pay out structure we don't need to find ourselves expanding to 13-14 and reducing per-team revenue.

(05-09-2013 08:58 AM)Usajags Wrote:  BRING ON JSU!!! And in a couple of years when Idaho bolts then we can add MSU. Problem solved.

I feel sort of the same way. I'd be fine with bringing on JSU - glad to hear an Alabama based fan say that.

But, I feel the same way about Liberty. I have no problem with what they believe, I'm actually on board with most of it. Their Athletics will improve with an FBS move and they have plenty of $ to fund niece facilities - gives us VA for the footprint and TV contracts.
That would take us to 12 and get us the Conf. Championship game. We all know Idaho is a temp fit, so this isnt going to stand in the way of bringing in MSU. As soon as Idaho goes, MSU fits better in the West anyway.

As far as the issue with being in the same conference with Liberty, I really dont get what the big deal is. Other students/fans whatever - dont have to go there, we arent going to be having Academic competitions! You dont have to like what they teach or believe. I find it funny that the groups that demand "Tolerance" so much are so often the same groups that have no tolerance for any Faith based institutions. Either have tolerance for all, or don't preach it! Why not just live and let live. If you find your differences to be a reason to be "a hater"... well "a haters gonna hate".. and maybe you can use that as a reason to approach your games with them as some sort of Rivalry if you want to. A good Rivalry needs a reason for teams to hate each other.

Bottom line is that bringing in Liberty doesn't hinder us from bringing in MO State down the road. I'd rather have JMU, but if they are out.. bring Liberty on. We could spend a year waiting and then JMU could go CUSA, MAC or stay put. MO State could decide that they aren't ready for another decade. Going to 12 now doesnt hinder us from doing anything in the future. We could go to 12, Idaho could leave and we could lose a member? Besides, all the payouts might work out differently than we think they will. The conference payouts could goto 1Mill/team upto 14 or even 16? As the playoffs make more money, they could raise the $ payout for highest ranked Go5?

I think waiting for teams that may NEVER actually get there or who might go somewhere else even if they decide they are ready is a mistake. Membership may be fluid, we know/hope that Idaho is bound for somewhere else and that we are going to need two more teams than we have now to be at 12 then. Liberty fills one of those slots, then we wait for the other to be ready (JMU or MOSt.)... we either then remove Idaho, and take one of them. If both are ready, we could keep idaho and goto 14. OR we could take them both, keep Idaho, have that TXArlington bring on Football - add JSU and goto to 16 if that becomes the normal a few years from now and the payouts are adjusted to make that worth doing. Our options are not limited by bringing in Liberty!

I say, GIVE ME LIBERTY.. Let's get this conference to 12 ASAP and then we arent waiting for anybody. I'm tired of waiting on people who don't know what they want or when they want it. OR - give me JSU now and let's get this deal done.

I wonder what kinda contract we have with Idaho. Maybe we could drop them if we wanted to if UTA or UALR were to add football. But I'm sure Benson didn't think that far ahead. Just reacted and added, just like he did with Ga St.

(05-09-2013 09:32 AM)Atlanta Trojan Wrote:  We must wait for Missouri state... They are the BEST add IMO.... We don't HAVE to have 12 members right away! This conference has done just fine with 8-10 football members.

Missouri state or nothing!!!!!

Except Missouri State has been struggling in football, they would be mauled in FBS. You guys are expanding to 12 for football, make no mistake...