(12-07-2014 09:37 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  

(12-07-2014 09:26 PM)arkstfan Wrote:  

(12-07-2014 09:22 PM)Side Show Joe Wrote:  The Big 12 getting shafted by the playoff committee certainly sets up the possibility of some programs relocating, but I don't think C-USA needs to be effected. If UAB is forced to end their program, that will be a terrible thing, but it doesn't mean C-USA has to add another program. At 13 football teams, the conference could easily operate with unbalanced divisions and still have a championship game. Also, by not replacing UAB, each member will see their portion of the conference payout increase.

The AAC doesn't command the large media deal it did as the Big East, and I believe C-USA raised their conference buy-outs, in an effort to curtail future raids by the AAC.

Personally, I'm hoping for stability in the G5.

13 is so easy that MAC went and got UMass to deal with the hassle and then booted UMass when Temple left.

You can't play an 8 game slate and have everyone play everyone in their division.

Issues with 13 schools.

1) You have to get a waiver by the NCAA to have 13.
2) It really messes up the conference schedule.
3) The TV contract specifies 14 most likely.

UAB leaving in football such short notice like that forces CUSA's hand to expand immediately. We may hear something as soon as the next couple of weeks about it.

I think C-USA needs to stand by UAB until they exhaust all of their legal options. I feel they deserve the conference's loyalty.

A 13 team lineup isn't as easy to manage as a 12 or 14, but I think it is a better option for C-USA.

(12-07-2014 01:02 PM)arkstfan Wrote:  

(12-07-2014 12:22 PM)_sturt_ Wrote:  My only comment is that I doubt there's a real desire to deal a "hit" to the SBC.

I disagree.

Bankowsky WANTED to go to 16 and it was widely believed his targets were Arkansas State and Louisiana.

At the time that encompassed all the football success the Sun Belt had left but for Troy.

There are a number of reasons to try to take someone out of business.

First is CFP.

Right now the CFP distributes $59 million ($60 million max) to the five leagues capped at $12 million per. If there are four leagues that distribution can go to $15 million per conference.

The performance bonus pool is $24 million. 1st gets $8 million, 2nd gets $6.4 million, 3rd gets $4.8 million, 4th gets $3.2 million, 5th gets $1.6 million.

If there are four leagues the performance pool becomes: $9.6 million for first, $7.2 million for 2nd, $4.8 million for 3rd, $2.4 million for 4th.

If there are four leagues rather than five, the networks have less leverage in filling content and if a league is larger, the impact of week night games is spread across more schools.

The SBC is locked into a mid major TV deal with ESPN through the end of the decade with almost no cash or exposure.

Let's say if you are the MAC and you are moving from 12 to 14 schools which is part of the SBC decimation plan. The MAC at a minimum was splitting 13.6 million (12 million + 1.6 million) and now would be splitting 17.4 million (15 million + 2.4 million). The difference would be 1.13 mil per school for 12 teams and 1.24 million for 14 teams. 110,000 per school.

That difference escalates depending on how a conference performs. The MAC by taking Georgia Southern and Appalachian State might be able to compete more for the Access Bowl by doing so and lead to even more revenue. Participation in the Access Bowl is another 6 million and then its split 50-50 between the conference and participating team.

If its a choice for ASU/GS of moving to the MAC or staying in a conference with Idaho, NMSU, ULM, Troy, USA, GSU that will need to find several FCS call ups to survive I say the would try the MAC.

(12-07-2014 09:48 PM)Side Show Joe Wrote:  

(12-07-2014 09:37 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  

(12-07-2014 09:26 PM)arkstfan Wrote:  

(12-07-2014 09:22 PM)Side Show Joe Wrote:  The Big 12 getting shafted by the playoff committee certainly sets up the possibility of some programs relocating, but I don't think C-USA needs to be effected. If UAB is forced to end their program, that will be a terrible thing, but it doesn't mean C-USA has to add another program. At 13 football teams, the conference could easily operate with unbalanced divisions and still have a championship game. Also, by not replacing UAB, each member will see their portion of the conference payout increase.

The AAC doesn't command the large media deal it did as the Big East, and I believe C-USA raised their conference buy-outs, in an effort to curtail future raids by the AAC.

Personally, I'm hoping for stability in the G5.

13 is so easy that MAC went and got UMass to deal with the hassle and then booted UMass when Temple left.

You can't play an 8 game slate and have everyone play everyone in their division.

Issues with 13 schools.

1) You have to get a waiver by the NCAA to have 13.
2) It really messes up the conference schedule.
3) The TV contract specifies 14 most likely.

UAB leaving in football such short notice like that forces CUSA's hand to expand immediately. We may hear something as soon as the next couple of weeks about it.

I think C-USA needs to stand by UAB until they exhaust all of their legal options. I feel they deserve the conference's loyalty.

A 13 team lineup isn't as easy to manage as a 12 or 14, but I think it is a better option for C-USA.

I say go to 14 at least in CUSA, using the opportunity to better the football lineup.

(12-07-2014 01:02 PM)arkstfan Wrote:  

(12-07-2014 12:22 PM)_sturt_ Wrote:  My only comment is that I doubt there's a real desire to deal a "hit" to the SBC.

I disagree.

Bankowsky WANTED to go to 16 and it was widely believed his targets were Arkansas State and Louisiana.

At the time that encompassed all the football success the Sun Belt had left but for Troy.

But there are reasons for both of those two to be good fits to an eight school Conference USA West division, so the common speculation that ULouisiana and AR State were targets does not on its own prove that the CUSA commissioner was doing so in order to "deal a hit" to the SBC.

Its a response to people playing Fantasy Football Realignment like its a Risk game, such as:

(12-07-2014 09:55 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  ... which is part of the SBC decimation plan. ...

... which often extends into people deluding themselves into believing that the conferences are actually playing a game of Football Realignment Risk.

Before there can be an "SBC decimation plan" as a conspiracy of multiple conferences, each participating conference has to want to play the game of "eliminate the SBC", when its far more likely that no conference wants to play that game. It would, in particular, be insane to imagine that the MAC would want to play that game, when the two bowl games with the CBS are responsible for the MAC getting all of its winning schools into a bowl game, and when the center of gravity of the Sunbelt is in the Deep South.

KittonHead, I know you love realignment talk. You come up with some unique scenarios, most of which would never happen. However, one constant I see is that I don't feel like you know a lot about South Alabama. Let me give you some information.

-- USA is a national research institution, has its own board, and has a medical school.
-- USA has a huge $459 million dollar endowment, by FAR the largest in the Sun Belt.
-- USA has an excellent baseball history with 25 NCAA Tournaments, by FAR the largest in the Sun Belt.
-- USA has a good basketball history; 8 NCAA Tournaments which is the most in the Sun Belt.
-- Obviously, USA football is new. We started from scratch in 2009, our last transition season was 2012, and we were bowl eligible in 2013 and 2014. We are playing our first bowl this year. We are the youngest football program ever to make a bowl.
-- USA added softball in 2007 to offset football. We've already been to 3 NCAA Tournaments and hosted a regional.
-- USA has 3 individual national championships in Track and Field.
-- USA has relatively good Olympic sports. Our men's and women's tennis history is probably the best in the Sun Belt, and women's soccer, golf, cross country, and track are all doing well right now.
-- USA has great facilities. Among them are Stanky Field (4,500), which is a very nice baseball stadium, the Mitchell Center (10,041), which is a really nice basketball arena, and our football facilities (sans stadium), which are first class. It was said that when Arkansas State came to practice for the GoDaddy Bowl several years ago and used our practice facilities it forced their admins to act to upgrade theirs.
-- USA has been one of the fastest growing universities in the southeast for several years.
-- USA is located in Mobile, the #59 TV DMA.
-- Here's a fun one... our mascot, SouthPaw, won the Mascot National Championship in 2010. Haha.

Hope this gives you more information about South Alabama. :)

(12-07-2014 10:00 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  

(12-07-2014 09:48 PM)Side Show Joe Wrote:  

(12-07-2014 09:37 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  

(12-07-2014 09:26 PM)arkstfan Wrote:  

(12-07-2014 09:22 PM)Side Show Joe Wrote:  The Big 12 getting shafted by the playoff committee certainly sets up the possibility of some programs relocating, but I don't think C-USA needs to be effected. If UAB is forced to end their program, that will be a terrible thing, but it doesn't mean C-USA has to add another program. At 13 football teams, the conference could easily operate with unbalanced divisions and still have a championship game. Also, by not replacing UAB, each member will see their portion of the conference payout increase.

The AAC doesn't command the large media deal it did as the Big East, and I believe C-USA raised their conference buy-outs, in an effort to curtail future raids by the AAC.

Personally, I'm hoping for stability in the G5.

13 is so easy that MAC went and got UMass to deal with the hassle and then booted UMass when Temple left.

You can't play an 8 game slate and have everyone play everyone in their division.

Issues with 13 schools.

1) You have to get a waiver by the NCAA to have 13.
2) It really messes up the conference schedule.
3) The TV contract specifies 14 most likely.

UAB leaving in football such short notice like that forces CUSA's hand to expand immediately. We may hear something as soon as the next couple of weeks about it.

I think C-USA needs to stand by UAB until they exhaust all of their legal options. I feel they deserve the conference's loyalty.

A 13 team lineup isn't as easy to manage as a 12 or 14, but I think it is a better option for C-USA.

I say go to 14 at least in CUSA, using the opportunity to better the football lineup.

Bankowsky couldn't find enough support to expand to 16. I doubt he will be able to add a new team and get back to 14. I see no desire from the newer C-USA members to add more teams that would only make the conference look more like the Belt they left. I doubt the older programs would want that either. If the media deal doesn't require C-USA to expand back to 14, I doubt we will.

(12-07-2014 10:33 PM)SkullyMaroo Wrote:  KittonHead, I know you love realignment talk. You come up with some unique scenarios, most of which would never happen. However, one constant I see is that I don't feel like you know a lot about South Alabama. Let me give you some information.

-- USA is a national research institution, has its own board, and has a medical school.
-- USA has a huge $459 million dollar endowment, by FAR the largest in the Sun Belt.
-- USA has an excellent baseball history with 25 NCAA Tournaments, by FAR the largest in the Sun Belt.
-- USA has a good basketball history; 8 NCAA Tournaments which is the most in the Sun Belt.
-- Obviously, USA football is new. We started from scratch in 2009, our last transition season was 2012, and we were bowl eligible in 2013 and 2014. We are playing our first bowl this year. We are the youngest football program ever to make a bowl.
-- USA added softball in 2007 to offset football. We've already been to 3 NCAA Tournaments and hosted a regional.
-- USA has 3 individual national championships in Track and Field.
-- USA has relatively good Olympic sports. Our men's and women's tennis history is probably the best in the Sun Belt, and women's soccer, golf, cross country, and track are all doing well right now.
-- USA has great facilities. Among them are Stanky Field (4,500), which is a very nice baseball stadium, the Mitchell Center (10,041), which is a really nice basketball arena, and our football facilities (sans stadium), which are first class. It was said that when Arkansas State came to practice for the GoDaddy Bowl several years ago and used our practice facilities it forced their admins to act to upgrade theirs.
-- USA has been one of the fastest growing universities in the southeast for several years.
-- USA is located in Mobile, the #59 TV DMA.
-- Here's a fun one... our mascot, SouthPaw, won the Mascot National Championship in 2010. Haha.

Hope this gives you more information about South Alabama. :)

If you could please provide pictures of the campus attached to your resume so I can review.

Virtual Tour of USA: http://3dtoursrv.southalabama.edu

(12-07-2014 10:33 PM)SkullyMaroo Wrote:  KittonHead, I know you love realignment talk. You come up with some unique scenarios, most of which would never happen. However, one constant I see is that I don't feel like you know a lot about South Alabama. Let me give you some information.

-- USA is a national research institution, has its own board, and has a medical school.
-- USA has a huge $459 million dollar endowment, by FAR the largest in the Sun Belt.
-- USA has an excellent baseball history with 25 NCAA Tournaments, by FAR the largest in the Sun Belt.
-- USA has a good basketball history; 8 NCAA Tournaments which is the most in the Sun Belt.
-- Obviously, USA football is new. We started from scratch in 2009, our last transition season was 2012, and we were bowl eligible in 2013 and 2014. We are playing our first bowl this year. We are the youngest football program ever to make a bowl.
-- USA added softball in 2007 to offset football. We've already been to 3 NCAA Tournaments and hosted a regional.
-- USA has 3 individual national championships in Track and Field.
-- USA has relatively good Olympic sports. Our men's and women's tennis history is probably the best in the Sun Belt, and women's soccer, golf, cross country, and track are all doing well right now.
-- USA has great facilities. Among them are Stanky Field (4,500), which is a very nice baseball stadium, the Mitchell Center (10,041), which is a really nice basketball arena, and our football facilities (sans stadium), which are first class. It was said that when Arkansas State came to practice for the GoDaddy Bowl several years ago and used our practice facilities it forced their admins to act to upgrade theirs.
-- USA has been one of the fastest growing universities in the southeast for several years.
-- USA is located in Mobile, the #59 TV DMA.
-- Here's a fun one... our mascot, SouthPaw, won the Mascot National Championship in 2010. Haha.

Hope this gives you more information about South Alabama. :)

I think you're going to need to get his address and do this in person.

USA's endowment figures are somewhat deceptive. The vast majority of assets are owned by the University Foundation, not the school.

The school has a sizeable endowment by any measure, but it's more like $150 million.

The Foundation has proven to be an unbelievable great thing but it's investments tend to be riskier and the foundation's assets are more volatile.

In terms of pure endowment the SBC is pretty even among schools like Texas State, UL, and USA, somewhere between $140-160~ million.

(12-07-2014 11:17 PM)SkullyMaroo Wrote:  Virtual Tour of USA: http://3dtoursrv.southalabama.edu

The buildings look nice but very spread out based on the panorama.

Would USA really want to leave the SBC where its been forever for CUSA?