"As far as helping out a local team, we did that for 30 years with ECU - that didn't turn out too well. All it did was help build a competitor."

You say that as if it's a bad thing. I look at that in an entirely different way. I would say "We did that for 30 years with ECU, and it turned out great. Not only did we help a local schools and build goodwill in the region, we also helped build a competitor."

Regional rivalries are what fills stadiums on Saturday, and drives the need to enlarge them. Sure, you always want to beat them, and you hate to lose to them. But if you avoid them out of fear of losing, you've already lost anyway.

No school should be motivated to create a schedule just because because it helps the conference get more bowl teams. You can do that by scheduling crap teams that only help the conference, not you. Your school and your fans come first. They should drive your schedule.

(12-23-2015 06:17 PM)ken d Wrote:  ...scheduling crap teams that only help the conference, not you. Your school and your fans come first. They should drive your schedule.

Whoa! Surely there is a middle ground between "crap teams" and getting your teeth kicked in? Schedule to give yourself a chance to go 4-0 OOC...