I think the UNT/UTSA rivalry is alive and in full force. Both schools are often in the same recruiting battles and UTSA went up to Denton and knocked them out of the CUSA championship game last year. Great story to start a rivalry

(07-24-2014 09:02 PM)MTPiKapp Wrote:  

(07-24-2014 06:21 PM)FAUAEPi Wrote:  Why won't somebody new hate us?

Who outside of FIU hates you guys currently?

Besides the retirement home population of Boca? That's it.
All fans of Florida schools dislike each other, giving off a rivalry feel during games, but no real hate or rivalries there.

We dislike a good amount of teams down here other than FIU. Miami, UCF, USF, Middle (because y'all have owned us in EVERYTHING but baseball for years now), WKU (we'll never forget that beatdown in our stadium opener in 2011, ever). But nobody seems to reciprocate.

SO SCREW YOU CHARLOTTE, MIDDLE, MARSHALL, WKU, UAB, AND EVERYBODY ELSE. YOU ALL SMELL FUNNY AND YOU'RE STUPID!

I hate UNT.

(07-24-2014 04:30 PM)WKUYG Wrote:  I think with in 3 to 5 years WKU and UAB will be back to the heated rivalry we use to have in basketball. I can see Charlotte being right there too.

Our ladies basketball use to have rivalries with ODU and La Tech....back then all 3 were top 10 basketball programs

On the football side I think Marshall and S. Miss will turn into good a rivalry for WKU...

of course a good rivalry takes both schools being winners over a number of years...then the longer it goes a school can be down and you still want to beat them more than anyone else.

You're doing your part

I'm very excited about the rivalries Rice now has with North Texas and UTSA. We've only been in the league together for one season, but it's already intense. The games we play against one another are meaningful. I hope the schools in the West that are struggling will keep improving. It will only make things more interesting. This could really be a lot of fun as the programs and rivalries grow. I see a lot of stability as we move forward. We need to take advantage of it.

Hopefully, CUSA will expand to 16 at some point. Louisiana-Lafayette would be a perfect addition to the West. They're in a perfect geographic location for every other member in the West and their fans travel like mad. Cross-divisional play does nothing to foster rivalries and it hurts at the gate. It should be kept to a minimum. Rivalries are all about playing meaningful games against schools in your immediate area every year. It's about increasing ticket sales as fans travel to road games in their cars. Attendance is everything in the G5. Money not being made through TV must be made up through regional rivalries. Louisiana-Lafayette would be a perfect rival for those of us in the West.

(07-24-2014 04:24 PM)MTPiKapp Wrote:  

(07-24-2014 04:11 PM)blazerwkr Wrote:  Only thing I hate about our move to possibly the west is if we were all still in the east we'd have many more close rivals in MTSU, WKY, ODU & USM & that would be better for attendance. Instead we'll have mostly just USM w/ LaT for possible close rivals unless we keep Troy/USA

You're closer to Rice and UNT than you are ODU...

UAB has a history with ODU

(07-24-2014 05:50 PM)blazerwkr Wrote:  

(07-24-2014 04:24 PM)MTPiKapp Wrote:  

(07-24-2014 04:11 PM)blazerwkr Wrote:  Only thing I hate about our move to possibly the west is if we were all still in the east we'd have many more close rivals in MTSU, WKY, ODU & USM & that would be better for attendance. Instead we'll have mostly just USM w/ LaT for possible close rivals unless we keep Troy/USA

You're closer to Rice and UNT than you are ODU...

True but there's past rivalry history w/ ODU going back to Great Midwest days not so much Rice/UNT even though we've been playing them. Main point being that if we stayed in the east there'd be more closer rivalry games so better fan travel than in the west

Sunbelt days. ODU was not in the GMC they were dominating the colonial then

(07-24-2014 04:11 PM)blazerwkr Wrote:  Only thing I hate about our move to possibly the west is if we were all still in the east we'd have many more close rivals in MTSU, WKY, ODU & USM & that would be better for attendance. Instead we'll have mostly just USM w/ LaT for possible close rivals unless we keep Troy/USA

I feel for your fans. You guys are going to be on somewhat of an island if you shift to the West. There's LTU and USM nearby, but the rest of us are located too far away to drive.

(07-25-2014 04:55 PM)bladhmadh Wrote:  

(07-24-2014 05:50 PM)blazerwkr Wrote:  

(07-24-2014 04:24 PM)MTPiKapp Wrote:  

(07-24-2014 04:11 PM)blazerwkr Wrote:  Only thing I hate about our move to possibly the west is if we were all still in the east we'd have many more close rivals in MTSU, WKY, ODU & USM & that would be better for attendance. Instead we'll have mostly just USM w/ LaT for possible close rivals unless we keep Troy/USA

You're closer to Rice and UNT than you are ODU...

True but there's past rivalry history w/ ODU going back to Great Midwest days not so much Rice/UNT even though we've been playing them. Main point being that if we stayed in the east there'd be more closer rivalry games so better fan travel than in the west

Sunbelt days. ODU was not in the GMC they were dominating the colonial then

I always get them mixed up, Old timers disease along w/ too much beer drunk as a young man

(07-25-2014 05:01 PM)Afflicted Wrote:  

(07-24-2014 04:11 PM)blazerwkr Wrote:  Only thing I hate about our move to possibly the west is if we were all still in the east we'd have many more close rivals in MTSU, WKY, ODU & USM & that would be better for attendance. Instead we'll have mostly just USM w/ LaT for possible close rivals unless we keep Troy/USA

I feel for your fans. You guys are going to be on somewhat of an island if you shift to the West. There's LTU and USM nearby, but the rest of us are located too far away to drive.

I disagree.

- UTSA is the same distance from them as ODU is.
- UNT/Rice are the same distance from them as FAU/FIU are.
- Southern Miss is about the same distance from them as MTSU is.
- La Tech is about the same distance from them as WKU is.

In the West, UTEP is the only real exception since they're much farther than either Marshall or Charlotte are. The rest are quite comparable though. The real drawback for them wouldn't be distance, but rather having to sacrifice a couple rivalries they may already have with eastern division teams for the more unfamiliar western schools.

(07-25-2014 05:31 PM)Volkmar Wrote:  

(07-25-2014 05:01 PM)Afflicted Wrote:  

(07-24-2014 04:11 PM)blazerwkr Wrote:  Only thing I hate about our move to possibly the west is if we were all still in the east we'd have many more close rivals in MTSU, WKY, ODU & USM & that would be better for attendance. Instead we'll have mostly just USM w/ LaT for possible close rivals unless we keep Troy/USA

I feel for your fans. You guys are going to be on somewhat of an island if you shift to the West. There's LTU and USM nearby, but the rest of us are located too far away to drive.

I disagree.

- UTSA is the same distance from them as ODU is.
- UNT/Rice are the same distance from them as FAU/FIU are.
- Southern Miss is about the same distance from them as MTSU is.
- La Tech is about the same distance from them as WKU is.

In the West, UTEP is the only real exception since they're much farther than either Marshall or Charlotte are. The rest are quite comparable though. The real drawback for them wouldn't be distance, but rather having to sacrifice a couple rivalries they may already have with eastern division teams for the more unfamiliar western schools.

la tech is about two hours farther away than wku

(07-25-2014 07:17 PM)bladhmadh Wrote:  

(07-25-2014 05:31 PM)Volkmar Wrote:  

(07-25-2014 05:01 PM)Afflicted Wrote:  

(07-24-2014 04:11 PM)blazerwkr Wrote:  Only thing I hate about our move to possibly the west is if we were all still in the east we'd have many more close rivals in MTSU, WKY, ODU & USM & that would be better for attendance. Instead we'll have mostly just USM w/ LaT for possible close rivals unless we keep Troy/USA

I feel for your fans. You guys are going to be on somewhat of an island if you shift to the West. There's LTU and USM nearby, but the rest of us are located too far away to drive.

I disagree.

- UTSA is the same distance from them as ODU is.
- UNT/Rice are the same distance from them as FAU/FIU are.
- Southern Miss is about the same distance from them as MTSU is.
- La Tech is about the same distance from them as WKU is.

In the West, UTEP is the only real exception since they're much farther than either Marshall or Charlotte are. The rest are quite comparable though. The real drawback for them wouldn't be distance, but rather having to sacrifice a couple rivalries they may already have with eastern division teams for the more unfamiliar western schools.

la tech is about two hours farther away than wku

Yep, you're right about that one. Two hours isn't that much in my book, but I can see how it would make a difference for some.

(07-24-2014 04:30 PM)WKUYG Wrote:  I think with in 3 to 5 years WKU and UAB will be back to the heated rivalry we use to have in basketball. I can see Charlotte being right there too.

(07-24-2014 06:24 PM)AdoptedMonarch Wrote:  The first ODU game that I attended, as a new arrival in Norfolk, was the 1986 men's basketball game in which UAB Coach Gene Bartow and several of his players went into the stands after some home team fans who were (allegedly) throwing ice.

The brawl made it onto Headline News, and I was hooked as a transplanted fan ever after.

(07-24-2014 07:24 PM)blazerwkr Wrote:  Ah the good old days of the Black & Blue Sunbelt & GMW

The "original" Sun Belt Conference (1976-'91) will always be one of my favorite sports memories. Just a great non-football league in every way.

Going forward, C-USA should obviously seek to stoke some of that passion among the schools that were a part of it (UAB, Charlotte, ODU, WKU)

(07-25-2014 03:51 PM)FAUAEPi Wrote:  

(07-24-2014 06:59 PM)Stick4489 Wrote:  

(07-24-2014 06:21 PM)FAUAEPi Wrote:  Why won't somebody new hate us?

Well, I mean, we'll hate you.

After the heartbreaker y'all gave us down here last season? Deal.

FAU and FIU. For Marshall to continue to use Florida as its best recruiting grounds (particularly in your all's background of SE Florida), then we have to be a better option for football than you guys. So, we need to continue beating you. These are two wins that are very important to us. FAU came entirely too close to doing that last year, and we're going to stomp on you in the Joan for that.

Does that help you feel better?

(07-26-2014 05:41 AM)Stick4489 Wrote:  

(07-25-2014 03:51 PM)FAUAEPi Wrote:  

(07-24-2014 06:59 PM)Stick4489 Wrote:  

(07-24-2014 06:21 PM)FAUAEPi Wrote:  Why won't somebody new hate us?

Well, I mean, we'll hate you.

After the heartbreaker y'all gave us down here last season? Deal.

SON OF A *****


But that's an awesome picture. That game is easily top 25 of the season last year. Add the Middle Marshall game too. If we were in the SEC, ESPN would be replaying those games all offseason on ESPNU.

(07-26-2014 07:40 AM)Cnelson203 Wrote:  FAU and FIU. For Marshall to continue to use Florida as its best recruiting grounds (particularly in your all's background of SE Florida), then we have to be a better option for football than you guys. So, we need to continue beating you. These are two wins that are very important to us. FAU came entirely too close to doing that last year, and we're going to stomp on you in the Joan for that.

Does that help you feel better?

Yes. Thank you.

SEE GUYS IT'S NOT THAT HARD!

I really don't care what division UAB is in.

Quite honestly there are only four I will drive to any way. Two west and two east. The rest I am flying.

From Birmingham

194.8 Murfreesboro Tn - East
232.2 Hattiesburg Ms - West
256.9 Bowling Green Ky - East
385.2 Ruston La - West
391.1 Charlotte NC - East
530.1 Huntington WV - East
666.9 Houston Tx - West
673.8 Denton Tx - West
710.4 Norfolk Va - East
725.9 Ft Lauderdale Fl - East
746.2 Miami Fl - East
862.1 San Antonio Tx - West
1,274 El Paso Tx - West


Between the non-stop to Charlotte and the Southwest flights out of Birmingham geographically it won't effect my travel either way. I would even argue I can fly cheaper to the Western schools using Southwest.

I would drive to Charlotte and the other 4 cities you mentioned AB.

I'm flying with the non-stop.

Point is all but four or five schools most folks are flying to. I know we have a few that will drive to El Paso. Not me. Never doing that again and this is coming from a native Texan. Unless you are A UAB fan driving to every road game there is not a lot of difference in being in the west or east travel wise. I do think we need to be playing MTSU and Southern Miss every year one way or another.