(01-30-2015 10:00 AM)Dman Wrote:  http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball...o-keep-uab



C-USA: League will be patient on whether to keep UAB

I'm hoping for a good outcome for UAB. I doubt it will happen, but it should.

(01-30-2015 07:14 AM)BRtransplant Wrote:  One problem the SBC has had is the fact that many very good SBC teams have had to start the season off with a brutal money game played in a very hostile environment and very early in the season. Though you can sometimes get lucky and play one of these games in a year when the opponent isn't having a good year, more often you're facing a Top 25 (if not a TOP 10) team. Any hope of being ranked that year is gone after you lose big to a P5 powerhouse. Almost all of us have been there.

The Biggest difference is who teams schedule. NIU this year for example played Northwestern, a mediocre Big 10 school OOC. Last year, they played Pu8rdue, who recruits more against SBC teams than they do Big 10 teams. Those were money games for NIU, though they did not earn a crazy amount for it

For most of us, we choose to reject a cheap money game with a lower tier P5, in favor of a home and home with that school, and instead take a much larger payday to play a better P5.

I doubt you see SBC teams move away from that.

(01-29-2015 08:59 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  

(01-29-2015 02:19 PM)Bull_In_Exile Wrote:  I don't think 225 students from the whole of New York State makes you "well known in Buffalo". I lived there 25 years and met exactly *1* OU alumni (who was a contractor working out of Erie PA).

90% of people in Buffalo think "Buckeyes" if you said Ohio U. The 5% who know better are UB fans

I remember when Buffalo first joined the MAC and a UB grad I knew said that he was elated about the move up to big time football and that they are playing schools like Miami and OU now.

When presidents at the G5 level are thinking about what conference they belong in they think first about geography and institutional fit. This crap about my TV deal being bigger than yours because it pays 1.1 million vs. 850,000 I don't think is a prime consideration.

Ohio has a new president who wants athletics to be the very best it can be. That is a stark difference from decades past. Attendance was toward the bottom of the MAC in the 80's and the school had 14,000 students main campus. Now the main campus has 23,000 students by itself and leading MAC in FB/BB attendance.

Whoa there cowboy I never said anything bad about Ohio U. I said you don't have Pull in Buffalo, and you don't. I like Ohio's athletics and academics they are very good. So good that you not need to stretch the truth to the point of fracture to promote the school. I can't speak for Pittsburgh but really the only people in Buffalo who know Ohio U's mascot is not Brutus are UB fans.

When UB was thrilled to join the MAC we were moving up from the FCS (well DIAA in those days) and we said what every school coming up from the FCS says.

I also agree with you 100% on the importance of geography and fit over TV markets, especially over *local* tv markets.

I see UB making the moves now that Ohio made 10 years ago and I believe our days of being in the MAC's basement in anything are nearly at an end.

The fact we are the largest, best funded, most comprehensive university among one of the largest comprehensive system of universities, colleges, and community colleges in the nation will help us even further.

(01-29-2015 10:06 PM)HerdZoned Wrote:  

(01-26-2015 09:23 PM)Louisiana99 Wrote:  The conference is only 13 years old in football, we will get there soon enough.

That argument is kinda invalid. CUSA is only 20 year old this year and has many teams in all of CUSA1.0 CUSA2.0 and CUSA3.0 ranked. Louisville was ranked in the 2nd year of CUSA and USM finished in the final rankings ranked 14th in 1999, the 4th year of CUSA.

In 13 years of the Sun Belt only 3 weeks has a Sun Belt team even got a spot of a vote in the polls, that's including both the AP and Coaches.

But CUSA was not an organic creation. Apples and Oranges.

(01-30-2015 07:14 AM)BRtransplant Wrote:  One problem the SBC has had is the fact that many very good SBC teams have had to start the season off with a brutal money game played in a very hostile environment and very early in the season. Though you can sometimes get lucky and play one of these games in a year when the opponent isn't having a good year, more often you're facing a Top 25 (if not a TOP 10) team. Any hope of being ranked that year is gone after you lose big to a P5 powerhouse. Almost all of us have been there.

Same thing happens in Conf USA,no difference at all.

(01-31-2015 05:34 AM)baruna falls Wrote:  

(01-30-2015 07:14 AM)BRtransplant Wrote:  One problem the SBC has had is the fact that many very good SBC teams have had to start the season off with a brutal money game played in a very hostile environment and very early in the season. Though you can sometimes get lucky and play one of these games in a year when the opponent isn't having a good year, more often you're facing a Top 25 (if not a TOP 10) team. Any hope of being ranked that year is gone after you lose big to a P5 powerhouse. Almost all of us have been there.

Same thing happens in Conf USA,no difference at all.

Maybe, but CUSA has had many teams ranked through the years. And by the way, the AAC takes it's share of ass whippings too.

(01-29-2015 10:42 PM)ark30inf Wrote:  

(01-29-2015 10:06 PM)HerdZoned Wrote:  

(01-26-2015 09:23 PM)Louisiana99 Wrote:  The conference is only 13 years old in football, we will get there soon enough.

That argument is kinda invalid. CUSA is only 20 year old this year and has many teams in all of CUSA1.0 CUSA2.0 and CUSA3.0 ranked. Louisville was ranked in the 2nd year of CUSA and USM finished in the final rankings ranked 14th in 1999, the 4th year of CUSA.

In 13 years of the Sun Belt only 3 weeks has a Sun Belt team even got a spot of a vote in the polls, that's including both the AP and Coaches.

That's a pretty disingenuous argument without taking into account the starting line for both conferences. CUSA had 20 years but has had the benefit of being built by long-established football programs with long histories in major conferences TCU, SMU, Rice, Houston, or programs with national reputations in basketball established before they became members. The SBC had NO such legacy to build with.

Yes.

The real reason AAC>CUSA>SBC has to do with the amount of tradition at the high FBS level. SBC is full of new programs with no name recognition.

If you look at who is still in CUSA 3.0.....Rice is former SWC, UTEP WAC when that was a CFA conference, Southern Miss as CFA independent, Marshall who has cracked the Top 25 4-5 times in 20 years of FBS ball. The only schools with under 10 years are the top level are WKU, ODU, UTSA and Charlotte.

In the SBC, you've got Idaho/NMSU from WAC 2.0, ULL, ULM, AState, Troy that have been around for a while. Then 5 schools that have been at the top level less than 5 years (TXST, USA, GSU, GoSo, ASU). Collectively this group may play as good football as CUSA but there is less tradition at the top level.

The AAC has the most tradition with EVERY school having made a Bowl Coalition, Bowl Alliance, BCS or CFP bowl. South Florida even made a Sun Bowl which was a Bowl Coalition tier II bowl.

(02-01-2015 04:58 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  

(01-29-2015 10:42 PM)ark30inf Wrote:  

(01-29-2015 10:06 PM)HerdZoned Wrote:  

(01-26-2015 09:23 PM)Louisiana99 Wrote:  The conference is only 13 years old in football, we will get there soon enough.

That argument is kinda invalid. CUSA is only 20 year old this year and has many teams in all of CUSA1.0 CUSA2.0 and CUSA3.0 ranked. Louisville was ranked in the 2nd year of CUSA and USM finished in the final rankings ranked 14th in 1999, the 4th year of CUSA.

In 13 years of the Sun Belt only 3 weeks has a Sun Belt team even got a spot of a vote in the polls, that's including both the AP and Coaches.

That's a pretty disingenuous argument without taking into account the starting line for both conferences. CUSA had 20 years but has had the benefit of being built by long-established football programs with long histories in major conferences TCU, SMU, Rice, Houston, or programs with national reputations in basketball established before they became members. The SBC had NO such legacy to build with.

Yes.

The real reason AAC>CUSA>SBC has to do with the amount of tradition at the high FBS level. SBC is full of new programs with no name recognition.

If you look at who is still in CUSA 3.0.....Rice is former SWC, UTEP WAC when that was a CFA conference, Southern Miss as CFA independent, Marshall who has cracked the Top 25 4-5 times in 20 years of FBS ball. The only schools with under 10 years are the top level are WKU, ODU, UTSA and Charlotte.

In the SBC, you've got Idaho/NMSU from WAC 2.0, ULL, ULM, AState, Troy that have been around for a while. Then 5 schools that have been at the top level less than 5 years (TXST, USA, GSU, GoSo, ASU). Collectively this group may play as good football as CUSA but there is less tradition at the top level.

The AAC has the most tradition with EVERY school having made a Bowl Coalition, Bowl Alliance, BCS or CFP bowl. South Florida even made a Sun Bowl which was a Bowl Coalition tier II bowl.

The way I feel about it is that we all make our own history. FIU getting invited into Houston's old slot does nothing to advance FIU. They are still FIU.

I want A-State to concentrate more on "doing" than trying to absorb ECU's old reputation just by wearing their old conference patch.

(01-30-2015 04:42 PM)Bull_In_Exile Wrote:  

(01-29-2015 08:59 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  

(01-29-2015 02:19 PM)Bull_In_Exile Wrote:  I don't think 225 students from the whole of New York State makes you "well known in Buffalo". I lived there 25 years and met exactly *1* OU alumni (who was a contractor working out of Erie PA).

90% of people in Buffalo think "Buckeyes" if you said Ohio U. The 5% who know better are UB fans

I remember when Buffalo first joined the MAC and a UB grad I knew said that he was elated about the move up to big time football and that they are playing schools like Miami and OU now.

When presidents at the G5 level are thinking about what conference they belong in they think first about geography and institutional fit. This crap about my TV deal being bigger than yours because it pays 1.1 million vs. 850,000 I don't think is a prime consideration.

Ohio has a new president who wants athletics to be the very best it can be. That is a stark difference from decades past. Attendance was toward the bottom of the MAC in the 80's and the school had 14,000 students main campus. Now the main campus has 23,000 students by itself and leading MAC in FB/BB attendance.

When UB was thrilled to join the MAC we were moving up from the FCS (well DIAA in those days) and we said what every school coming up from the FCS says.

I also agree with you 100% on the importance of geography and fit over TV markets, especially over *local* tv markets.

I see UB making the moves now that Ohio made 10 years ago and I believe our days of being in the MAC's basement in anything are nearly at an end.

The fact we are the largest, best funded, most comprehensive university among one of the largest comprehensive system of universities, colleges, and community colleges in the nation will help us even further.

These are the traits I'm seeing among schools in the AAC.

1) Tradition: Every school has played at the top level for 15 years. Every school has played in a Coalition/Alliance/BCS/CFP bowl.

2) Academics: There are 4 private schools in the football conference. Each public school is either large enrollment, large endowment, large research schools. Publics in the AAC have all those characteristics or some combination of them. There are no mid sized regional publics with 12,000 students and a 50 million dollar endowment in that conference.

3) Football Budget: The minimum football budget is around 10,000,000 in the AAC with the average being right around 13,000,000. The only MAC/CUSA/SBC school that is above 8,000,000 is Rice at 10,000,000.

The AAC isn't on a different level than the MAC/CUSA/SBC but they have intangibles in their favor over those conferences.

Rice has the best resume but the problem with Rice is Houston is in the AAC and Houston is unlikely to get a bid to the B12. They just picked up a 30 million dollar donation for an endzone building so the school has potential for deep pockets.

Ohio has decent tradition, academics on par with AAC schools and one of the highest football budgets outside of Rice. However for Ohio to get over the 10 million football budget line it will take a 2 million dollar coach and I don't see Ohio going that high. Maybe 1 million after Solich retires but not 2-3 million like Cincinnati did with Tuberville. Donations have improved to the G5 norm but the deep pockets for athletics aren't there like you find at many AAC schools. Large donations for athletics are more in the 2-3 million range, with a handful of donors stepping up to that level.

Buffalo is solid academically but must do more athletically. Only 2 bowls and 0 zero NCAA appearances to Ohio's 8 bowls and 13 NCAAs. Buffalo getting the FB club seating area is what Ohio put in the early 90's to interest folks with deep pockets. It may be easier for UB to pull a Memphis and get the donors in basketball while funding football the best they can in the interim.

The problem with joining CUSA at this point for an Ohio or a Buffalo is not only is it a lateral move but with a conference that is 20 years old you don't have the sense of being part of something new. If Ohio & Buffalo joined the AAC within the next few years the AAC is still in a formative period and you get that sense of being a charter member to something new and exciting.That is why I would be very surprised to see a MAC school move to CUSA at this point.

A long term AAC with UMass, Buffalo, Temple, Ohio, Old Dominion, Charlotte, ECU, USF, UCF, FIU would make sense from an institutional perspective for those schools to latch onto. Large enrollment publics on or close to the East Coast. No Marshall's, Georgia Southern's or Akron's in that conference.

(02-01-2015 06:06 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  

(01-30-2015 04:42 PM)Bull_In_Exile Wrote:  

(01-29-2015 08:59 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  

(01-29-2015 02:19 PM)Bull_In_Exile Wrote:  I don't think 225 students from the whole of New York State makes you "well known in Buffalo". I lived there 25 years and met exactly *1* OU alumni (who was a contractor working out of Erie PA).

90% of people in Buffalo think "Buckeyes" if you said Ohio U. The 5% who know better are UB fans

I remember when Buffalo first joined the MAC and a UB grad I knew said that he was elated about the move up to big time football and that they are playing schools like Miami and OU now.

When presidents at the G5 level are thinking about what conference they belong in they think first about geography and institutional fit. This crap about my TV deal being bigger than yours because it pays 1.1 million vs. 850,000 I don't think is a prime consideration.

Ohio has a new president who wants athletics to be the very best it can be. That is a stark difference from decades past. Attendance was toward the bottom of the MAC in the 80's and the school had 14,000 students main campus. Now the main campus has 23,000 students by itself and leading MAC in FB/BB attendance.

When UB was thrilled to join the MAC we were moving up from the FCS (well DIAA in those days) and we said what every school coming up from the FCS says.

I also agree with you 100% on the importance of geography and fit over TV markets, especially over *local* tv markets.

I see UB making the moves now that Ohio made 10 years ago and I believe our days of being in the MAC's basement in anything are nearly at an end.

The fact we are the largest, best funded, most comprehensive university among one of the largest comprehensive system of universities, colleges, and community colleges in the nation will help us even further.

These are the traits I'm seeing among schools in the AAC.

1) Tradition: Every school has played at the top level for 15 years. Every school has played in a Coalition/Alliance/BCS/CFP bowl.

2) Academics: There are 4 private schools in the football conference. Each public school is either large enrollment, large endowment, large research schools. Publics in the AAC have all those characteristics or some combination of them. There are no mid sized regional publics with 12,000 students and a 50 million dollar endowment in that conference.

3) Football Budget: The minimum football budget is around 10,000,000 in the AAC with the average being right around 13,000,000. The only MAC/CUSA/SBC school that is above 8,000,000 is Rice at 10,000,000.

The AAC isn't on a different level than the MAC/CUSA/SBC but they have intangibles in their favor over those conferences.

Rice has the best resume but the problem with Rice is Houston is in the AAC and Houston is unlikely to get a bid to the B12. They just picked up a 30 million dollar donation for an endzone building so the school has potential for deep pockets.

Ohio has decent tradition, academics on par with AAC schools and one of the highest football budgets outside of Rice. However for Ohio to get over the 10 million football budget line it will take a 2 million dollar coach and I don't see Ohio going that high. Maybe 1 million after Solich retires but not 2-3 million like Cincinnati did with Tuberville. Donations have improved to the G5 norm but the deep pockets for athletics aren't there like you find at many AAC schools. Large donations for athletics are more in the 2-3 million range, with a handful of donors stepping up to that level.

Buffalo is solid academically but must do more athletically. Only 2 bowls and 0 zero NCAA appearances to Ohio's 8 bowls and 13 NCAAs. Buffalo getting the FB club seating area is what Ohio put in the early 90's to interest folks with deep pockets. It may be easier for UB to pull a Memphis and get the donors in basketball while funding football the best they can in the interim.

The problem with joining CUSA at this point for an Ohio or a Buffalo is not only is it a lateral move but with a conference that is 20 years old you don't have the sense of being part of something new. If Ohio & Buffalo joined the AAC within the next few years the AAC is still in a formative period and you get that sense of being a charter member to something new and exciting.That is why I would be very surprised to see a MAC school move to CUSA at this point.

A long term AAC with UMass, Buffalo, Temple, Ohio, Old Dominion, Charlotte, ECU, USF, UCF, FIU would make sense from an institutional perspective for those schools to latch onto. Large enrollment publics on or close to the East Coast. No Marshall's, Georgia Southern's or Akron's in that conference.

The AAC is nothing more than a conference that was dumped by the P5 conference. The sooner you accept that fact, the better off you will be. What is so hard for you guys to understand? The P5 conferences KICKED THE BIG EAST OUT! They want nothing to do with you guys. Your future lies with the MWC, MAC, SBC, and CUSA.

(02-01-2015 06:37 PM)BRtransplant Wrote:  

(02-01-2015 06:06 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  

(01-30-2015 04:42 PM)Bull_In_Exile Wrote:  

(01-29-2015 08:59 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  

(01-29-2015 02:19 PM)Bull_In_Exile Wrote:  I don't think 225 students from the whole of New York State makes you "well known in Buffalo". I lived there 25 years and met exactly *1* OU alumni (who was a contractor working out of Erie PA).

90% of people in Buffalo think "Buckeyes" if you said Ohio U. The 5% who know better are UB fans

I remember when Buffalo first joined the MAC and a UB grad I knew said that he was elated about the move up to big time football and that they are playing schools like Miami and OU now.

When presidents at the G5 level are thinking about what conference they belong in they think first about geography and institutional fit. This crap about my TV deal being bigger than yours because it pays 1.1 million vs. 850,000 I don't think is a prime consideration.

Ohio has a new president who wants athletics to be the very best it can be. That is a stark difference from decades past. Attendance was toward the bottom of the MAC in the 80's and the school had 14,000 students main campus. Now the main campus has 23,000 students by itself and leading MAC in FB/BB attendance.

When UB was thrilled to join the MAC we were moving up from the FCS (well DIAA in those days) and we said what every school coming up from the FCS says.

I also agree with you 100% on the importance of geography and fit over TV markets, especially over *local* tv markets.

I see UB making the moves now that Ohio made 10 years ago and I believe our days of being in the MAC's basement in anything are nearly at an end.

The fact we are the largest, best funded, most comprehensive university among one of the largest comprehensive system of universities, colleges, and community colleges in the nation will help us even further.

These are the traits I'm seeing among schools in the AAC.

1) Tradition: Every school has played at the top level for 15 years. Every school has played in a Coalition/Alliance/BCS/CFP bowl.

2) Academics: There are 4 private schools in the football conference. Each public school is either large enrollment, large endowment, large research schools. Publics in the AAC have all those characteristics or some combination of them. There are no mid sized regional publics with 12,000 students and a 50 million dollar endowment in that conference.

3) Football Budget: The minimum football budget is around 10,000,000 in the AAC with the average being right around 13,000,000. The only MAC/CUSA/SBC school that is above 8,000,000 is Rice at 10,000,000.

The AAC isn't on a different level than the MAC/CUSA/SBC but they have intangibles in their favor over those conferences.

Rice has the best resume but the problem with Rice is Houston is in the AAC and Houston is unlikely to get a bid to the B12. They just picked up a 30 million dollar donation for an endzone building so the school has potential for deep pockets.

Ohio has decent tradition, academics on par with AAC schools and one of the highest football budgets outside of Rice. However for Ohio to get over the 10 million football budget line it will take a 2 million dollar coach and I don't see Ohio going that high. Maybe 1 million after Solich retires but not 2-3 million like Cincinnati did with Tuberville. Donations have improved to the G5 norm but the deep pockets for athletics aren't there like you find at many AAC schools. Large donations for athletics are more in the 2-3 million range, with a handful of donors stepping up to that level.

Buffalo is solid academically but must do more athletically. Only 2 bowls and 0 zero NCAA appearances to Ohio's 8 bowls and 13 NCAAs. Buffalo getting the FB club seating area is what Ohio put in the early 90's to interest folks with deep pockets. It may be easier for UB to pull a Memphis and get the donors in basketball while funding football the best they can in the interim.

The problem with joining CUSA at this point for an Ohio or a Buffalo is not only is it a lateral move but with a conference that is 20 years old you don't have the sense of being part of something new. If Ohio & Buffalo joined the AAC within the next few years the AAC is still in a formative period and you get that sense of being a charter member to something new and exciting.That is why I would be very surprised to see a MAC school move to CUSA at this point.

A long term AAC with UMass, Buffalo, Temple, Ohio, Old Dominion, Charlotte, ECU, USF, UCF, FIU would make sense from an institutional perspective for those schools to latch onto. Large enrollment publics on or close to the East Coast. No Marshall's, Georgia Southern's or Akron's in that conference.

The AAC is nothing more than a conference that was dumped by the P5 conference. The sooner you accept that fact, the better off you will be. What is so hard for you guys to understand? The P5 conferences KICKED THE BIG EAST OUT! They want nothing to do with you guys. Your future lies with the MWC, MAC, SBC, and CUSA.

I see the AAC evolving to become a G5 conference for larger public schools along the eastern seaboard. Ohio is a 40,000 student school counting all campuses. We don't belong in a CUSA/SBC type league full of schools with 14k campus enrollments. Ohio's main campus is only 5 hours from Baltimore-DC area where a lot of out-of-state students originate from.
n
For NIU, the AAC would be about an athletic upgrade but for Ohio it would be more about institutional fit.

Personally, I don't want to be in a conference with the western AAC schools. I'm alright if Tulane and SMU want to tag along if they get left out of B12 expansion but I'm not too keen on the other ones.

In the MAC the only schools we fit in with institutionally are Buffalo and Kent St. The others are mid sized public schools. We've been in a division with UCF, Temple and UMass before and those are kind of institutions as a large public university we want to align with.

(02-01-2015 07:54 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  

(02-01-2015 06:37 PM)BRtransplant Wrote:  

(02-01-2015 06:06 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  

(01-30-2015 04:42 PM)Bull_In_Exile Wrote:  

(01-29-2015 08:59 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  I remember when Buffalo first joined the MAC and a UB grad I knew said that he was elated about the move up to big time football and that they are playing schools like Miami and OU now.

When presidents at the G5 level are thinking about what conference they belong in they think first about geography and institutional fit. This crap about my TV deal being bigger than yours because it pays 1.1 million vs. 850,000 I don't think is a prime consideration.

Ohio has a new president who wants athletics to be the very best it can be. That is a stark difference from decades past. Attendance was toward the bottom of the MAC in the 80's and the school had 14,000 students main campus. Now the main campus has 23,000 students by itself and leading MAC in FB/BB attendance.

When UB was thrilled to join the MAC we were moving up from the FCS (well DIAA in those days) and we said what every school coming up from the FCS says.

I also agree with you 100% on the importance of geography and fit over TV markets, especially over *local* tv markets.

I see UB making the moves now that Ohio made 10 years ago and I believe our days of being in the MAC's basement in anything are nearly at an end.

The fact we are the largest, best funded, most comprehensive university among one of the largest comprehensive system of universities, colleges, and community colleges in the nation will help us even further.

These are the traits I'm seeing among schools in the AAC.

1) Tradition: Every school has played at the top level for 15 years. Every school has played in a Coalition/Alliance/BCS/CFP bowl.

2) Academics: There are 4 private schools in the football conference. Each public school is either large enrollment, large endowment, large research schools. Publics in the AAC have all those characteristics or some combination of them. There are no mid sized regional publics with 12,000 students and a 50 million dollar endowment in that conference.

3) Football Budget: The minimum football budget is around 10,000,000 in the AAC with the average being right around 13,000,000. The only MAC/CUSA/SBC school that is above 8,000,000 is Rice at 10,000,000.

The AAC isn't on a different level than the MAC/CUSA/SBC but they have intangibles in their favor over those conferences.

Rice has the best resume but the problem with Rice is Houston is in the AAC and Houston is unlikely to get a bid to the B12. They just picked up a 30 million dollar donation for an endzone building so the school has potential for deep pockets.

Ohio has decent tradition, academics on par with AAC schools and one of the highest football budgets outside of Rice. However for Ohio to get over the 10 million football budget line it will take a 2 million dollar coach and I don't see Ohio going that high. Maybe 1 million after Solich retires but not 2-3 million like Cincinnati did with Tuberville. Donations have improved to the G5 norm but the deep pockets for athletics aren't there like you find at many AAC schools. Large donations for athletics are more in the 2-3 million range, with a handful of donors stepping up to that level.

Buffalo is solid academically but must do more athletically. Only 2 bowls and 0 zero NCAA appearances to Ohio's 8 bowls and 13 NCAAs. Buffalo getting the FB club seating area is what Ohio put in the early 90's to interest folks with deep pockets. It may be easier for UB to pull a Memphis and get the donors in basketball while funding football the best they can in the interim.

The problem with joining CUSA at this point for an Ohio or a Buffalo is not only is it a lateral move but with a conference that is 20 years old you don't have the sense of being part of something new. If Ohio & Buffalo joined the AAC within the next few years the AAC is still in a formative period and you get that sense of being a charter member to something new and exciting.That is why I would be very surprised to see a MAC school move to CUSA at this point.

A long term AAC with UMass, Buffalo, Temple, Ohio, Old Dominion, Charlotte, ECU, USF, UCF, FIU would make sense from an institutional perspective for those schools to latch onto. Large enrollment publics on or close to the East Coast. No Marshall's, Georgia Southern's or Akron's in that conference.

The AAC is nothing more than a conference that was dumped by the P5 conference. The sooner you accept that fact, the better off you will be. What is so hard for you guys to understand? The P5 conferences KICKED THE BIG EAST OUT! They want nothing to do with you guys. Your future lies with the MWC, MAC, SBC, and CUSA.

I see the AAC evolving to become a G5 conference for larger public schools along the eastern seaboard. Ohio is a 40,000 student school counting all campuses. We don't belong in a CUSA/SBC type league full of schools with 14k campus enrollments. Ohio's main campus is only 5 hours from Baltimore-DC area where a lot of out-of-state students originate from.
n
For NIU, the AAC would be about an athletic upgrade but for Ohio it would be more about institutional fit.

Personally, I don't want to be in a conference with the western AAC schools. I'm alright if Tulane and SMU want to tag along if they get left out of B12 expansion but I'm not too keen on the other ones.

In the MAC the only schools we fit in with institutionally are Buffalo and Kent St. The others are mid sized public schools. We've been in a division with UCF, Temple and UMass before and those are kind of institutions as a large public university we want to align with.

Align with them all you want, but you'll still not change the fact that you're all G5 conference institutions. You were kicked to the curb with the rest of us. Get used to it.