(09-18-2014 09:04 AM)NBPirate Wrote:  Marshall fans pushing the CUSA narrative because they're bitter they didn't get invited to the AAC. They'll never admit it, but we all know thats the case.

It's more the AAC invitees looking down their noses at CUSA.

(09-18-2014 04:05 PM)VA49er Wrote:  

(09-18-2014 09:04 AM)NBPirate Wrote:  Marshall fans pushing the CUSA narrative because they're bitter they didn't get invited to the AAC. They'll never admit it, but we all know thats the case.

It's more the AAC invitees looking down their noses at CUSA.

No, it is Marshall fans pushing a narrative because they are bitter they didn't get invited to the AAC.

(09-18-2014 02:26 PM)apex_pirate Wrote:  

(09-18-2014 08:02 AM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(09-17-2014 10:21 PM)apex_pirate Wrote:  

(09-17-2014 03:54 PM)MUsince96 Wrote:  

(09-17-2014 03:48 PM)NBPirate Wrote:  National perception is what matters.

I agree.

http://collegefootballtalk.nbcsports.com...onference/

Yes, but a conference having the most wins against fellow G5 conferences isn't gonna to shape national perception. According to one national media analyst, it is an individual school's body of work. So, is beating a bunch of G5s alone good enough or does it need to be wins against G5s and P5s?

Seems like you might be conflating perceptions of conference strength with perceptions of a school's strength. I think this is because Aresco tried to tie so much of his argument that the AAC is a "power" footbal conference to UCF's win in the Fiesta bowl. It's the flagship argument, the "if our best team is better than your best team, our conference is better" view.

But that's not how it usually works. E.g., last year, just about everyone perceived that FSU was the strongest team, stronger than any SEC team, but everyone also thought the SEC was a much stronger conference than the ACC.

So this year, it could very well end of up being that while ECU has the best resume and is nationally regarded as the top G5 team, C-USA or some other G5 conference could be regarded as stronger than the AAC.

IMO, that's how it stands right now, after week three: ECU is the #1 team in the G5 poll, thanks to their win over VT. But the AAC is regarded as the #2 or #3 G5 conference thanks to other poor results.

IMO, national perception is drawn from end of year results. The AAC didn't have a particularly stellar year last season yet the Fiesta win was huge in how it affected the perception of the AAC. Aresco is smart enough to see this and play on it...as he absolutely should. IMO, that end of year national perception will be drawn by the selection committee's G5 choice. Yes, the committee is smart enough to know they are only choosing the highest rated champ and that rating takes into account only the strength of that one school's resume. But ultimately, the general public forms much of its opinion of the G5 conferences based on its ability to get where it was chosen for a BCS or, this year, an Access bowl. The MWC basically had a few teams at the top and a horrid rest of the conference. Didn't stop the public from forming the opinion that the MWC was the strongest midget. The MWC was picked apart and is a shell of itself. Still good at the top but not what it was. If the AAC gets the G5 spot this year (very much in doubt), I see no reason why the wave the AAC is riding wouldn't continue. Obsessive fans like us could point all day at why C-USA or the MAC was actually better...but in the end, it will be the average joe fan who knows little about the G5 who makes their judgment...annointing whatever conference they feel is the best. ESPN doesn't have to write stories about which conference is the best. Articles like the NBC one get lost a few days after they are written. IMO, the team that gets the most exposure during and at the end of the season is the one that will help set the stage. If you have a few teams that do well, even if the rest of the conference sucks, then you will still reap the benefits of the exposure those schools received. Unfair as it may seem, that is exactly how the MWC made it to the top at one point and how ACC has remained a power conference in the eyes of the fans.

I see your point but do not think you are correct. For one thing, while Aresco hailed UCF's win to high-heaven, I do not think he actually succeeded in creating a national impression that the AAC was even the clear-cut top G5 conference last year, much less a "tweener" or actually worthy of Power status. I simply do not believe any such perception has existed. And i think that is because fans aren't quite so dumb: They saw that not only didn't the AAC have a "particularly stellar" year last year, the AAC was actually quite weak, and furthermore a lot of the strength that did exist came from Louisville, who everyone knew was leaving the conference. The AAC board is a cloistered world where fans backslap each other about how great the AAC is and how it is regarded highly, but IMO the national perception of the AAC, despite UCF's Fiesta win and Aresco's touting of that, was that the AAC was at best the slightly best G5 conference and nothing more. Aresco's propaganda didn't work except among the already-converted, the AAC fans.

Going in to this season, the national impression was that the MWC and AAC would battle for G5 supremacy, but neither had any hopes of producing "power level" results.

Therefore, if Aresco or anyone else thinks the AAC can continue to schlep through the season with lousy results OOC, but everything will come up roses as long as ECU (or some other AAC team) makes an Access bowl and wins it, I think they are mistaken.

(09-18-2014 04:40 PM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(09-18-2014 02:26 PM)apex_pirate Wrote:  

(09-18-2014 08:02 AM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(09-17-2014 10:21 PM)apex_pirate Wrote:  

(09-17-2014 03:54 PM)MUsince96 Wrote:  I agree.

http://collegefootballtalk.nbcsports.com...onference/

Yes, but a conference having the most wins against fellow G5 conferences isn't gonna to shape national perception. According to one national media analyst, it is an individual school's body of work. So, is beating a bunch of G5s alone good enough or does it need to be wins against G5s and P5s?

Seems like you might be conflating perceptions of conference strength with perceptions of a school's strength. I think this is because Aresco tried to tie so much of his argument that the AAC is a "power" footbal conference to UCF's win in the Fiesta bowl. It's the flagship argument, the "if our best team is better than your best team, our conference is better" view.

But that's not how it usually works. E.g., last year, just about everyone perceived that FSU was the strongest team, stronger than any SEC team, but everyone also thought the SEC was a much stronger conference than the ACC.

So this year, it could very well end of up being that while ECU has the best resume and is nationally regarded as the top G5 team, C-USA or some other G5 conference could be regarded as stronger than the AAC.

IMO, that's how it stands right now, after week three: ECU is the #1 team in the G5 poll, thanks to their win over VT. But the AAC is regarded as the #2 or #3 G5 conference thanks to other poor results.

IMO, national perception is drawn from end of year results. The AAC didn't have a particularly stellar year last season yet the Fiesta win was huge in how it affected the perception of the AAC. Aresco is smart enough to see this and play on it...as he absolutely should. IMO, that end of year national perception will be drawn by the selection committee's G5 choice. Yes, the committee is smart enough to know they are only choosing the highest rated champ and that rating takes into account only the strength of that one school's resume. But ultimately, the general public forms much of its opinion of the G5 conferences based on its ability to get where it was chosen for a BCS or, this year, an Access bowl. The MWC basically had a few teams at the top and a horrid rest of the conference. Didn't stop the public from forming the opinion that the MWC was the strongest midget. The MWC was picked apart and is a shell of itself. Still good at the top but not what it was. If the AAC gets the G5 spot this year (very much in doubt), I see no reason why the wave the AAC is riding wouldn't continue. Obsessive fans like us could point all day at why C-USA or the MAC was actually better...but in the end, it will be the average joe fan who knows little about the G5 who makes their judgment...annointing whatever conference they feel is the best. ESPN doesn't have to write stories about which conference is the best. Articles like the NBC one get lost a few days after they are written. IMO, the team that gets the most exposure during and at the end of the season is the one that will help set the stage. If you have a few teams that do well, even if the rest of the conference sucks, then you will still reap the benefits of the exposure those schools received. Unfair as it may seem, that is exactly how the MWC made it to the top at one point and how ACC has remained a power conference in the eyes of the fans.

I see your point but do not think you are correct. For one thing, while Aresco hailed UCF's win to high-heaven, I do not think he actually succeeded in creating a national impression that the AAC was even the clear-cut top G5 conference last year, much less a "tweener" or actually worthy of Power status. I simply do not believe any such perception has existed. And i think that is because fans aren't quite so dumb: They saw that not only didn't the AAC have a "particularly stellar" year last year, the AAC was actually quite weak, and furthermore a lot of the strength that did exist came from Louisville, who everyone knew was leaving the conference. The AAC board is a cloistered world where fans backslap each other about how great the AAC is and how it is regarded highly, but IMO the national perception of the AAC, despite UCF's Fiesta win and Aresco's touting of that, was that the AAC was at best the slightly best G5 conference and nothing more. Aresco's propaganda didn't work except among the already-converted, the AAC fans.

Going in to this season, the national impression was that the MWC and AAC would battle for G5 supremacy, but neither had any hopes of producing "power level" results.

Therefore, if Aresco or anyone else thinks the AAC can continue to schlep through the season with lousy results OOC, but everything will come up roses as long as ECU (or some other AAC team) makes an Access bowl and wins it, I think they are mistaken.

Lol....I don't why we couldn't get away with that. The ACC has been doing just that for years.

Can't we have a thread where people aren't trying to go out of their way to be demeaning and spiteful?

(09-18-2014 05:23 PM)miko33 Wrote:  Can't we have a thread where people aren't trying to go out of their way to be demeaning and spiteful?

Miko, what is buzz with pitt. Is the fan base ok with 6-6, 7-5? Do you expect more than that?

(09-18-2014 05:14 PM)Attackcoog Wrote:  

(09-18-2014 04:40 PM)quo vadis Wrote:  Therefore, if Aresco or anyone else thinks the AAC can continue to schlep through the season with lousy results OOC, but everything will come up roses as long as ECU (or some other AAC team) makes an Access bowl and wins it, I think they are mistaken.

Lol....I don't why we couldn't get away with that. The ACC has been doing just that for years.

The ACC hasn't been doing that for years. Have you seen their BCS bowl record? It's pretty putrid.

(09-18-2014 04:38 PM)PirateMarv Wrote:  

(09-18-2014 04:05 PM)VA49er Wrote:  

(09-18-2014 09:04 AM)NBPirate Wrote:  Marshall fans pushing the CUSA narrative because they're bitter they didn't get invited to the AAC. They'll never admit it, but we all know thats the case.

It's more the AAC invitees looking down their noses at CUSA.

No, it is Marshall fans pushing a narrative because they are bitter they didn't get invited to the AAC.

Sorry, no ECU fan can complain about another team's fan "pushing a narrative" when it comes to changing conferences.

(09-18-2014 04:38 PM)PirateMarv Wrote:  

(09-18-2014 04:05 PM)VA49er Wrote:  

(09-18-2014 09:04 AM)NBPirate Wrote:  Marshall fans pushing the CUSA narrative because they're bitter they didn't get invited to the AAC. They'll never admit it, but we all know thats the case.

It's more the AAC invitees looking down their noses at CUSA.

No, it is Marshall fans pushing a narrative because they are bitter they didn't get invited to the AAC.

Nope.

(09-18-2014 09:04 AM)NBPirate Wrote:  Marshall fans pushing the CUSA narrative because they're bitter they didn't get invited to the AAC. They'll never admit it, but we all know thats the case.

Reminds me of how AAC fans push the "Boise State will never be relevant again" narrative (despite plenty of evidence to the contrary) because you're bitter that we didn't join your conference after being sold a bill of goods.

(09-19-2014 11:16 AM)BoiseStateOfMind Wrote:  Reminds me of how AAC fans push the "Boise State will never be relevant again" narrative (despite plenty of evidence to the contrary) because you're bitter that we didn't join your conference after being sold a bill of goods.

Remains to be seen. Boise didn't make a BCS bowl last year and this year looks like Boise is already done for the Peach Bowl slot. Had Boise come to the Big East/AAC then you'd have had at least 1 year in an auto-bid BCS league.

(09-19-2014 11:38 AM)mlb Wrote:  

(09-19-2014 11:16 AM)BoiseStateOfMind Wrote:  Reminds me of how AAC fans push the "Boise State will never be relevant again" narrative (despite plenty of evidence to the contrary) because you're bitter that we didn't join your conference after being sold a bill of goods.

Remains to be seen. Boise didn't make a BCS bowl last year and this year looks like Boise is already done for the Peach Bowl slot. Had Boise come to the Big East/AAC then you'd have had at least 1 year in an auto-bid BCS league.

Recruiting has improved and new state-of-the-art facilities have been built. The infrastructure is there, we're just in the middle of a rebuilding cycle (which happens to every program). I'm not a huge fan of the Mountain West for a variety of reasons, but until a P5 invite finally comes, we're better off in a conference that makes sense geographically, gave us a sweetheart deal, and allows us to maintain historical rivalries (Fresno, Nevada) than in a conference where we'd have to travel to play the likes of Temple, SMU, and Tulane.

Face it, AAC fans are just bitter that the two biggest names in the G5 (BYU and us) aren't in your conference, nor do we want to be. You all live in a bubble and tell yourselves that the AAC is the greatest conference ever and can't believe others don't see it that way.

(09-19-2014 11:51 AM)BoiseStateOfMind Wrote:  

(09-19-2014 11:38 AM)mlb Wrote:  

(09-19-2014 11:16 AM)BoiseStateOfMind Wrote:  Reminds me of how AAC fans push the "Boise State will never be relevant again" narrative (despite plenty of evidence to the contrary) because you're bitter that we didn't join your conference after being sold a bill of goods.

Remains to be seen. Boise didn't make a BCS bowl last year and this year looks like Boise is already done for the Peach Bowl slot. Had Boise come to the Big East/AAC then you'd have had at least 1 year in an auto-bid BCS league.

Recruiting has improved and new state-of-the-art facilities have been built. The infrastructure is there, we're just in the middle of a rebuilding cycle (which happens to every program). I'm not a huge fan of the Mountain West for a variety of reasons, but until a P5 invite finally comes, we're better off in a conference that makes sense geographically, gave us a sweetheart deal, and allows us to maintain historical rivalries (Fresno, Nevada) than in a conference where we'd have to travel to play the likes of Temple, SMU, and Tulane.

Face it, AAC fans are just bitter that the two biggest names in the G5 (BYU and us) aren't in your conference, nor do we want to be. You all live in a bubble and tell yourselves that the AAC is the greatest conference ever and can't believe others don't see it that way.

I would have to say that UConn with 4 or is it 5, whatever, BB national championships trumps BYU and Boise as a big name. Could probably think of others as well. Boise was a fun story for about 5 years, but now yo britches are shrinking.

I'm talking about football, not basketball - hence the reference to the "G5," which is a meaningless distinction in basketball.

(09-19-2014 12:03 PM)BoiseStateOfMind Wrote:  I'm talking about football, not basketball - hence the reference to the "G5," which is a meaningless distinction in basketball.

So, still bigger name = UConn.

If you don't think the ESPN media folks won't use the same reference for BB, you are mistaken, they will.

The question is what the term "bigger name" entails?

If you meant football performance the past 5 years then okay. If you meant name recognition, academics, sports other than football, markets, fan-base, and/or athletic budgets then I disagree.

(09-19-2014 11:55 AM)Tigeer Wrote:  

(09-19-2014 11:51 AM)BoiseStateOfMind Wrote:  

(09-19-2014 11:38 AM)mlb Wrote:  

(09-19-2014 11:16 AM)BoiseStateOfMind Wrote:  Reminds me of how AAC fans push the "Boise State will never be relevant again" narrative (despite plenty of evidence to the contrary) because you're bitter that we didn't join your conference after being sold a bill of goods.

Remains to be seen. Boise didn't make a BCS bowl last year and this year looks like Boise is already done for the Peach Bowl slot. Had Boise come to the Big East/AAC then you'd have had at least 1 year in an auto-bid BCS league.

Recruiting has improved and new state-of-the-art facilities have been built. The infrastructure is there, we're just in the middle of a rebuilding cycle (which happens to every program). I'm not a huge fan of the Mountain West for a variety of reasons, but until a P5 invite finally comes, we're better off in a conference that makes sense geographically, gave us a sweetheart deal, and allows us to maintain historical rivalries (Fresno, Nevada) than in a conference where we'd have to travel to play the likes of Temple, SMU, and Tulane.

Face it, AAC fans are just bitter that the two biggest names in the G5 (BYU and us) aren't in your conference, nor do we want to be. You all live in a bubble and tell yourselves that the AAC is the greatest conference ever and can't believe others don't see it that way.

I would have to say that UConn with 4 or is it 5, whatever, BB national championships trumps BYU and Boise as a big name. Could probably think of others as well. Boise was a fun story for about 5 years, but now yo britches are shrinking.

Boise's light is fading and other similar schools are catching up. Without a doubt...Connecticut, Cincinnati, UCF are every bit as big if not bigger than Boise's light.

(09-19-2014 11:51 AM)BoiseStateOfMind Wrote:  Face it, AAC fans are just bitter that the two biggest names in the G5 (BYU and us) aren't in your conference, nor do we want to be. You all live in a bubble and tell yourselves that the AAC is the greatest conference ever and can't believe others don't see it that way.

Also remains to be seen. There is a strong possibility that after this year BYU recognizes they need to move to a conference. With all of their games scheduled against AAC schools and the Miami Bowl tie in it seems that they have an in.

As far as greatest conference ever... I'm positive nobody has ever said that. There is a strong belief, however, that it is the best of the G5. 3 schools that have played in BCS bowls call it home (UC, UCF, UConn), the current basketball champion calls it home, and 2 of the favorites to win the Peach Bowl slot call it home.

(09-19-2014 12:18 PM)ARSTATEFAN1986 Wrote:  Boise's light is fading and other similar schools are catching up. Without a doubt...Connecticut, Cincinnati, UCF are every bit as big if not bigger than Boise's light.

As long as Gunner Kiel is in Clifton then Cincinnati will get national attention.

(09-18-2014 09:30 AM)MUsince96 Wrote:  

(09-18-2014 09:04 AM)NBPirate Wrote:  Marshall fans pushing the CUSA narrative because they're bitter they didn't get invited to the AAC. They'll never admit it, but we all know thats the case.

I think it's more of C-USA fans serving up a nice helping of crow after all the preseason talk from the AAC being above the rest of us. To each his own though.

You do know it's very early in the season and the top half of the AAC was out playing real team right? At this point the records don't really tell the whole story.

ECU by far has the most impressive record in the G5 and if they beat UNC they will no doubt be in the top 25 with a loss.

If Marshall lost a game this year they would not sniff the top 25.