(01-24-2015 01:03 PM)MJG Wrote: The choice is does a UAB/UMass combo work better than EKU or Liberty.
It does if the thinking is that EKU is not ready, Liberty is not desired, and the Sunbelt wants to expand to a CCG right away.
Thing is, there's no indication that the Sun
belt wants to "expand for the sake of getting the CCG", and without that, it could be better to wait until a good all-sports school becomes available.
Indeed, if they wanted to expand FB to 12 with UMass, they could expand BBall to 12 "in-house" by inviting NMSU all-sports. That would tend to improve Sunbelt BBall as well.
Quote: Most of the desired candidates like their current conference better than the Sun Belt.
That's the Go5 realignment universal ... "I don't want to join a club that will take people like me as a member" ... most of the schools you would like don't want to join, and most of the schools that want to join are not appealing adds.
It kinds of goes with the fact that the majority of the adds were you want to add them and they want to join ... have already been made and those are your membership.
Quote: Missouri state and JMU being the obvious first choices.
Missouri State not sure about moving up ...
... and JMU the example of the flip side of wanting to be in clubs that show no strong interest in JMU as members ... "holding out" for an all-sports bid from CUSA, the American, or maybe as a Plan C, the MAC, two of whom have shown no interest in JMU and one of which seems to have JMU on a list as a possible 14th, with no compelling number 13 in sight.