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Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
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BeliefBlazer Offline
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Post: #1
Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
http://grantland.com/the-triangle/southe...nt-losers/

Long Grantland write-up on the Southern Miss program.
06-22-2015 02:54 PM
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shiftyeagle Offline
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Post: #2
RE: Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
Good stuff. Accurate.
06-22-2015 03:01 PM
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CajunFanatico Offline
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Post: #3
RE: Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
A very well-written piece. Thanks for the post.04-cheers

I really want to see USM get their act together so we can have a smash-mouth game soon in a New Orleans Bowl with them. What a crowd that would bring.
06-22-2015 03:23 PM
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gulfcoastgal Offline
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Post: #4
RE: Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
Reflects what I've heard around here from USM folks. The one worrisome, to me anyway, tidbit was towards the end.

Quote:“When you’re in the building, I think you know when it’s happening and it’s not happening, and I believe beyond a shadow of a doubt it’s happening today,” McGillis says. “We’re not going to win in terms of revenue generation. We’re not going to win in terms of television revenue. We’re not going to win in terms of marketing rights fees. We’re not going to win in terms of merchandise sales. But in terms of winning on the field, to me it really feels like it’s been put back together. I think the scoreboard’s going to reflect it this fall. I really do.”

This should be a red flag/concern. I'm on the other side of Mobile and the number of Golden Eagle shirts, flags, car magnets... I see on a daily basis has declined over the 10+ years I've been down here. USM's marketing leaves something to be desired.
06-22-2015 03:32 PM
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goodknightfl Offline
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Post: #5
RE: Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
very depressing article. Good luck USM
06-22-2015 04:53 PM
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monarx Offline
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Post: #6
RE: Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
Maybe its because ODU is still new to the FBS, but I prefer to see CUSA as a rising ship. We almost finished as the top conference outside of the P5, Marshall was an overtime away from a playoff bowl, we had a top 25 basketball team and UAB won a first round game. With historically good teams like UAB, Charlotte, WKU, ODU, La Tech, USM, UTEP etc theres a good chance for hoops to improve too. I realize none of us will ever catch up to the P5, but CUSA is absolutely in the hunt to be the number one G5 conference. There is way more parity amongst the g5 than p5 which makes it more fun too. The rest of the country sees no difference between FAU, Western KY and East Carolina or Tulane. Unless you root for the G5, we're all the same. I know the old school USM and Rice fans think that sucks, but the scenario you all feel left you behind is now the AAC, which arguably is a bigger loser in football. You're in a better football conference than the AAC, or at least you were last season. And you're in a conference that has room to grow and more potential. Theres nowhere for the AAC to go. They've peaked and I suspect UConn and Cincy will either start to sink or get an invite soon too. I'm not discounting rivalries and geography, but thats not what the article was about. You're pining for something that was never within grasp. We all wish we were in a P5 conference, but they don't want to be friends with us so we'll do the best with what friends we do have. As a group, the G5 is still a good neighborhood with good people to play good football with.
06-22-2015 05:32 PM
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Cyniclone Offline
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Post: #7
RE: Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
(06-22-2015 05:32 PM)monarx Wrote:  Maybe its because ODU is still new to the FBS, but I prefer to see CUSA as a rising ship. We almost finished as the top conference outside of the P5, Marshall was an overtime away from a playoff bowl, we had a top 25 basketball team and UAB won a first round game. With historically good teams like UAB, Charlotte, WKU, ODU, La Tech, USM, UTEP etc theres a good chance for hoops to improve too. I realize none of us will ever catch up to the P5, but CUSA is absolutely in the hunt to be the number one G5 conference. There is way more parity amongst the g5 than p5 which makes it more fun too. The rest of the country sees no difference between FAU, Western KY and East Carolina or Tulane. Unless you root for the G5, we're all the same. I know the old school USM and Rice fans think that sucks, but the scenario you all feel left you behind is now the AAC, which arguably is a bigger loser in football. You're in a better football conference than the AAC, or at least you were last season. And you're in a conference that has room to grow and more potential. Theres nowhere for the AAC to go. They've peaked and I suspect UConn and Cincy will either start to sink or get an invite soon too. I'm not discounting rivalries and geography, but thats not what the article was about. You're pining for something that was never within grasp. We all wish we were in a P5 conference, but they don't want to be friends with us so we'll do the best with what friends we do have. As a group, the G5 is still a good neighborhood with good people to play good football with.

It's par for the course. New members are happy to be part of the club, old members are like "dammit, we used to have these great teams and they're gone and now we're here with Dum Dum the Butthole". Not everyone, of course, but the undercurrent is there. It's not as bad in CUSA because there's so many newer members, and the older ones are either happy for the new playmates or aren't in a position to feel superior enough to cast that much butthurt. Southern Miss fans would probably be a lot angrier about their lot if they had winning seasons the past three years.
06-22-2015 06:01 PM
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ESE84 Offline
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Post: #8
RE: Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
(06-22-2015 06:01 PM)Cyniclone Wrote:  Southern Miss fans would probably be a lot angrier about their lot if they had winning seasons the past three years.

If Southern Miss had winning seasons the past three years, they would be in the AAC and we would be stuck with Tulsa.

I would rather have Southern Miss.
06-22-2015 06:17 PM
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wh49er Offline
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Post: #9
RE: Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
All of this is true but it comes off as just another USM fan crying who wants to blame everyone else. A once proud program is only in this situation because of some bad internal decisions.

Good news is one more bad season at UNC and Fedora will be available.
06-22-2015 06:40 PM
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blazers9911 Offline
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Post: #10
RE: Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
Marshall wasn't going to an access bowl. As much as they would have deserved it, that wasn't ever happening last year.
06-22-2015 07:31 PM
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LR Eagle Offline
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Post: #11
RE: Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
Good stuff.
06-22-2015 07:46 PM
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Afflicted Offline
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Post: #12
RE: Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
As mentioned in a previous post, the majority of the really bad butthurt is coming from the older generation of alums. Students at G5-member schools now don't know any better. As time goes on, I suspect we'll hear less and less whining about not being P5.
06-22-2015 09:46 PM
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ExcitedOwl18 Offline
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Post: #13
RE: Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
(06-22-2015 09:46 PM)Afflicted Wrote:  As mentioned in a previous post, the majority of the really bad butthurt is coming from the older generation of alums. Students at G5-member schools now don't know any better. As time goes on, I suspect we'll hear less and less whining about not being P5.
False... I hear students at Rice talk all the time about "the crappy teams we play" or "teams from far away that I don't know anybody at." It's no coincidence that students will get excited and travel to Austin or College Station for games but then have no interest in going to home games. It's actually more of an issue when we play Texas schools IMO... People at Rice know UTSA, UNT, and UTEP, but don't think of the schools or the people that go they know that go there as peers. Students at Rice have heard of UAB, USM, ODU, etc, but don't know enough about them to demote them in their minds. Yes, what I just described is classic elitism, but it's what goes on! I don't agree with it. Also, I would add that people care about the opponent for football much more than basketball.
06-22-2015 10:00 PM
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EagleRockCafe Offline
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Post: #14
RE: Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
Karma is a b#tch. When you fire a coach who devoted his life to Southern Miss football and had 14 straight winning seasons, you are going to feel the consequences. Now USM fans live with that decision. For those that wanted Bower gone, they deserve what USM football is now.
06-22-2015 10:05 PM
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MasMack Offline
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Post: #15
RE: Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
No one deserves what USM football has been that last 3 years. Lol
06-22-2015 10:10 PM
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Afflicted Offline
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RE: Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
(06-22-2015 10:00 PM)ExcitedOwl18 Wrote:  
(06-22-2015 09:46 PM)Afflicted Wrote:  As mentioned in a previous post, the majority of the really bad butthurt is coming from the older generation of alums. Students at G5-member schools now don't know any better. As time goes on, I suspect we'll hear less and less whining about not being P5.
False... I hear students at Rice talk all the time about "the crappy teams we play" or "teams from far away that I don't know anybody at." It's no coincidence that students will get excited and travel to Austin or College Station for games but then have no interest in going to home games. It's actually more of an issue when we play Texas schools IMO... People at Rice know UTSA, UNT, and UTEP, but don't think of the schools or the people that go they know that go there as peers. Students at Rice have heard of UAB, USM, ODU, etc, but don't know enough about them to demote them in their minds. Yes, what I just described is classic elitism, but it's what goes on! I don't agree with it. Also, I would add that people care about the opponent for football much more than basketball.

This is exactly why crossover games suck so badly. The divisions are too far apart for us to give a damn about one another. And I don't know what to tell you about not playing "peers." My attitude is that Tulane, Tulsa, and SMU can go choke on a turd. We play public schools now and we have our rivalry with UH back. We need to be pulling for the return of Southern Miss to prominence and for the overall strengthening of CUSA as the young programs in big markets mature. We are where we are, so lets make the most of it and quit whining.
06-22-2015 10:28 PM
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SApuro Offline
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RE: Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
Good article...stopped reading at UT-San Antonio. How F'in hard is it to call us UTSA?!
06-22-2015 11:10 PM
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WKUYG Away
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Post: #18
RE: Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
its going on 11 years since S.miss was in the same conference as UofL and TCU IT'S TIME TO STOP CRYING OVER IT.

Also lets get another fact vs myth out....it's just as easy today for a CUSA team to make a bigtime/bcs bowl game than it was when uofl and tcu played in CUSA. Actually it's easier 11-1 uofl would have played in a major bowl today playing in CUSA WITH A RANKING OF #6 AND THE BEST THEY GOT was the Liberty Bowl in 2004

All of this crying about S.Miss big wins over Bama or who ever back 10+ years ago has no bearing on any other team in CUSA back then or today other than....SMiss.

S. Miss didn't go 0-12 or be where they are today because of who left CUSA...nope! just like the wins over "named" schools...it's all on them.

Lets get a few facts on the table since this crybaby want to put Rice, UNT and UTEP records out there

when they left CUSA

Cincy had 7 winning season over the last 20 NO RANKINGS

Memphis had 4 winning seasons out of 17 played in CUSA RANKED ONCE AT 25

HOUSTON was ranked 3 out of 17 years while playing in CUSA with 8 winning seasons...also 8 out of their last 22 years by the time they left CUSA

TULANE had 5 winning seasons out of 18 while in CUSA AND 33 OUT OF 111 TOP 25 1 TIME

ECU WINNING RECORD 28 OUT OF 51 YEARS RANKED TWICE

TCU only played 4 years in CUSA



Army 13 TOTAL WINS IN 7 SEASONS WHILE PLAYING IN cusa

So yes the landscape has changed but if it was so great as this whinny person wants us all to think and so bad now...

why did those schools want out at the first chance? At the time most of those schools played in CUSA they were better known for basketball...not football. So if he wants to whine about that I will say he has a case. But there was a good reason uofl wanted out....

11-1 got you a minor bowl game vs Boise State. Today you got a chance at a big payday with 1 loss
06-23-2015 12:35 AM
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b0ndsj0ns Offline
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Post: #19
RE: Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
I have so much respect for the USM program so reading an article like this is pretty tough. It does show how fickle college football can be. All of our schools are 1 bad hire from crumbling what took years to build. ECU destroyed all the positive things done in the 90's with the decision to fire Steve Logan and hire John Thompson. Marshall struggled for years because of the mistake of hiring Mark Snyder. I hope USM is ready to turn the corner and return to being the program that I remember watching for years in the all black smacking every team they faced in the mouth and being scared of no one. USM TTT!!!
06-23-2015 08:29 AM
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Side Show Joe Offline
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RE: Southern Miss, Conference USA, and the Dark Side of Realignment
(06-22-2015 10:00 PM)ExcitedOwl18 Wrote:  
(06-22-2015 09:46 PM)Afflicted Wrote:  As mentioned in a previous post, the majority of the really bad butthurt is coming from the older generation of alums. Students at G5-member schools now don't know any better. As time goes on, I suspect we'll hear less and less whining about not being P5.
False... I hear students at Rice talk all the time about "the crappy teams we play" or "teams from far away that I don't know anybody at." It's no coincidence that students will get excited and travel to Austin or College Station for games but then have no interest in going to home games. It's actually more of an issue when we play Texas schools IMO... People at Rice know UTSA, UNT, and UTEP, but don't think of the schools or the people that go they know that go there as peers. Students at Rice have heard of UAB, USM, ODU, etc, but don't know enough about them to demote them in their minds. Yes, what I just described is classic elitism, but it's what goes on! I don't agree with it. Also, I would add that people care about the opponent for football much more than basketball.

I didn't get that feeling at the Rice/North Texas game last season. Many of the Rice fans I spoke with expressed their happiness about the number of fans we brought to the game. They felt we brought more fans and were more enthusiastic then SMU's fans.

I think developing new rivalries with North Texas, and UTSA will benefit Rice in the long term. Rice still has its' series with UTEP and a recent history of playing Southern Miss.
06-23-2015 08:49 AM
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