This board has always mish-mashed these three conferences based on regional interest, but what would it look like based on post-realignment performance? Best combination of basketball / football? Best overall AD's? That sort of thing?

Maybe top 12 football schools.

A best of these three conferences would look like - well, a G5 conference that's a shade better than the others in football. It would look like what you describe - a mish mash, with no particular affinity to one another.

Using the average Sagarin ratings over the past five years, these are the top 8 football teams (the minimum for an NCAA conference) listed in order of strongest to weakest:

Toledo
Western Kentucky
Marshall
Northern Illinois
Louisiana Tech
Arkansas State
Appalachian State
Western Michigan.

Well, if you want to sort them by total athletic budget as a measure of potential for success (using 2016 data), you might want to look at them like this:

Old Dominion University $41,855,635
Rice University $39,125,169
Miami University-Oxford $35,903,047
Florida International University $35,297,643
Texas State University $35,235,858
University at Buffalo $33,575,860
University of North Texas $33,018,941
Ohio University-Main Campus $32,621,410
Western Michigan University $32,568,703
University of Akron Main Campus $32,312,689
Eastern Michigan University $32,311,248
Central Michigan University $31,792,125
University of North Carolina at Charlotte $31,086,388
Middle Tennessee State University $30,528,498
Marshall University $29,367,140
Western Kentucky University $29,177,882
The University of Texas at El Paso $29,100,654
University of Toledo $29,001,171
Coastal Carolina University $28,936,464
University of Alabama at Birmingham $28,840,003
Troy University $28,571,770
Kent State University at Kent $28,535,475
The University of Texas at San Antonio $27,826,471
Ball State University $27,410,832
Georgia State University $27,366,614
University of Louisiana at Lafayette $26,541,072
Florida Atlantic University $26,135,496
Appalachian State University $25,795,349
Northern Illinois University $24,561,563
University of South Alabama $24,059,763
Bowling Green State University-Main Campus $23,753,594
New Mexico State University-Main Campus $22,448,424 (FBS independent, but was in the Sun Belt at the time)
Louisiana Tech University $22,422,298
University of Southern Mississippi $22,230,837
Georgia Southern University $20,921,958
University of Idaho $20,642,478 (reclassified to FCS, but was in the Sun Belt at the time)
Arkansas State University-Main Campus $17,786,342
University of Louisiana at Monroe $14,242,574

(07-31-2018 09:11 AM)Kruciff Wrote:  This board has always mish-mashed these three conferences based on regional interest, but what would it look like based on post-realignment performance? Best combination of basketball / football? Best overall AD's? That sort of thing?

You forgot to include the AAC in you thread. Last time I checked you are still in the G5, and the big boys aren't letting y'all in.

If you are being honest, you know there are programs in other G5 conferences that regularly outperform some members in the AAC.

If I had to pick the top 4 schools from each conference in football AND basketball since realignment ended (2013ish), it would probably look like:

The MAC:
Western Michigan
Toledo
Ohio
Akron

CUSA:
MTSU
Marshall
Southern Miss
La Tech

The SBC:
Troy
ULL
Georgia St
Georgia Southern

(07-31-2018 11:29 AM)TrueBlueDrew Wrote:  If I had to pick the top 4 schools from each conference in football AND basketball since realignment ended (2013ish), it would probably look like:

The MAC:
Western Michigan
Toledo
Ohio
Akron

CUSA:
MTSU
Marshall
Southern Miss
La Tech

The SBC:
Troy
ULL
Georgia St
Georgia Southern

If those are your parameters then you need to drop USM for WKU in CUSA without a doubt.

How do they rank in terms of average football attendance the last 5 years?

(07-31-2018 11:04 AM)Side Show Joe Wrote:  You forgot to include the AAC in you thread. Last time I checked you are still in the G5, and the big boys aren't letting y'all in.

If you are being honest, you know there are programs in other G5 conferences that regularly outperform some members in the AAC.

He didn't list the MWC either

I think the consensus is the AAC & the MWC as a whole are in a higher class (though still lower than the P5) than these conferences. Of course there are schools in any league (P5 included) that are surpassed by one or more G5 schools.

Pretty sure that was the intent here. Not a personal bias since the MWC was omitted as well.

But what about potential? I'd include South Alabama just based on their upcoming potential. New football stadium (hopefully) on the horizon, taking basketball seriously, and they've got a great baseball staff.

(07-31-2018 12:30 PM)GO Coogs GO!!! Wrote:  

(07-31-2018 11:04 AM)Side Show Joe Wrote:  You forgot to include the AAC in you thread. Last time I checked you are still in the G5, and the big boys aren't letting y'all in.

If you are being honest, you know there are programs in other G5 conferences that regularly outperform some members in the AAC.

He didn't list the MWC either

I think the consensus is the AAC & the MWC as a whole are in a higher class (though still lower than the P5) than these conferences. Of course there are schools in any league (P5 included) that are surpassed by one or more G5 schools.

Pretty sure that was the intent here. Not a personal bias since the MWC was omitted as well.

I didn't address the MWC because they are isolated in the west. C-USA, AAC, MAC, and Sun Belt are all located in the same half of the country.

I do not view the AAC or MWC to be in a class above the others in the G5. If that were the case, they would have their own path to the access bowl. So, in my opinion the focus of the thread should be to find the best among the G5 programs from the central US to the Atlantic, regardless of G5 conference affiliation.

In truth, the thread should be about trying to identify which programs will be among the best by 2022-23, when the next CFP contract is signed. Some that look good right now, may not look so good in 5 years. For example, 5 years ago ECU, Rice, Utah State, and Bowling Green all won 10 games or more, but in the last 2 seasons none of those teams have produced a winning record. I think if you are going to explore this topic adequately, it is important to track which programs trend up in key areas (wins, budgets, facility improvements, coaching salaries, and fan support) and which programs are trending down. Things change fast in the G5. Some programs that look good today might not be turning heads when the new deal gets signed.

(07-31-2018 04:40 PM)Side Show Joe Wrote:  I do not view the AAC or MWC to be in a class above the others in the G5. If that were the case, they would have their own path to the access bowl. So, in my opinion the focus of the thread should be to find the best among the G5 programs from the central US to the Atlantic, regardless of G5 conference affiliation.

But you didn't start the thread.....

That's more of a hijacking the thread to push an agenda.

(07-31-2018 04:40 PM)Side Show Joe Wrote:  I do not view the AAC or MWC to be in a class above the others in the G5. If that were the case, they would have their own path to the access bowl. So, in my opinion the focus of the thread should be to find the best among the G5 programs from the central US to the Atlantic, regardless of G5 conference affiliation.

Heck from one of the MWC own boards.... Seems to think we exceed them.

https://www.mwcconnection.com/2018/7/25/...conference

I will grant you any one team can rise above (Western Michigan crashed the party on 2016) but you will find it very hard form anyone outside of those conferences to say that they are on par with the MWC or the AAC.

But again this wasn't a measuring contest I simply pointed out that the point of this discussion was those conferences the OP listed was based on an accepted consensus among CFB fans both in and out of the "G5"

If you really want to get into a tit for tat start a thread on the topic and I for one would be more than willing to engage in proving that theory to be invalid.

(07-31-2018 04:45 PM)GO Coogs GO!!! Wrote:  

(07-31-2018 04:40 PM)Side Show Joe Wrote:  I do not view the AAC or MWC to be in a class above the others in the G5. If that were the case, they would have their own path to the access bowl. So, in my opinion the focus of the thread should be to find the best among the G5 programs from the central US to the Atlantic, regardless of G5 conference affiliation.

But you didn't start the thread.....

That's more of a hijacking the thread to push an agenda.

I believe the thread in it's original form is trying to push an agenda. The AAC and the MWC are in fact in the same class as the other G5 conferences, and based on that fact, posters should consider modifying their responses. Of course it is their choice.

(07-31-2018 04:53 PM)Side Show Joe Wrote:  I believe the thread in it's original form is trying to push an agenda. The AAC and the MWC are in fact in the same class as the other G5 conferences, and based on that fact, posters should consider modifying their responses. Of course it is their choice.

Maybe..... but there was a question and you tried to shift it to what "you" think should be the discussion.

There are no "classes" anyway. G5... P5.... are made up "classifications" we are all FBS schools.

Again if you would like to discuss who is better start a thread of your own.

If you would like to discuss who among those conferences would be good fits that would be an interesting conversation.

(07-31-2018 11:29 AM)TrueBlueDrew Wrote:  If I had to pick the top 4 schools from each conference in football AND basketball since realignment ended (2013ish), it would probably look like:

The MAC:
Western Michigan
Toledo
Ohio
Akron

CUSA:
MTSU
Marshall
Southern Miss
La Tech

The SBC:
Troy
ULL
Georgia St
Georgia Southern

Replace Southern with App. App has 3 bowl wins, 2 conference championships and hasn't had a losing record since moving up to FBS. Regarding basketball neither App nor GaSo have been outstanding (Although admittedly, Georgia Southern is better than App in the sport), and between the two only Georgia Southern has made any post season tournament since joining the Sun Belt. (CBI, and they lost in the first round).

(07-31-2018 04:53 PM)Side Show Joe Wrote:  

(07-31-2018 04:45 PM)GO Coogs GO!!! Wrote:  

(07-31-2018 04:40 PM)Side Show Joe Wrote:  I do not view the AAC or MWC to be in a class above the others in the G5. If that were the case, they would have their own path to the access bowl. So, in my opinion the focus of the thread should be to find the best among the G5 programs from the central US to the Atlantic, regardless of G5 conference affiliation.

But you didn't start the thread.....

That's more of a hijacking the thread to push an agenda.

I believe the thread in it's original form is trying to push an agenda. The AAC and the MWC are in fact in the same class as the other G5 conferences, and based on that fact, posters should consider modifying their responses. Of course it is their choice.

Hogwash. There is no school in the MAC, CUSA or SBC who would help either the AAC or the MWC. And there is nobody in the MWC or AAC who are going to move down voluntarily to any of those three conferences.

And schools can move back and forth among the MAC, CUSA and SBC and it won't help any of them. They will all still be the FBS bottom feeders.

(07-31-2018 04:56 PM)GO Coogs GO!!! Wrote:  

(07-31-2018 04:53 PM)Side Show Joe Wrote:  I believe the thread in it's original form is trying to push an agenda. The AAC and the MWC are in fact in the same class as the other G5 conferences, and based on that fact, posters should consider modifying their responses. Of course it is their choice.

Maybe..... but there was a question and you tried to shift it to what "you" think should be the discussion.

There are no "classes" anyway. G5... P5.... are made up "classifications" we are all FBS schools.

Again if you would like to discuss who is better start a thread of your own.

If you would like to discuss who among those conferences would be good fits that would be an interesting conversation.

You didn't even start this thread. If the OP doesn't like my input, he could let me know.

P5 and G5 conferences have different paths to the post-season, and the P5 have autonomy. So, there are certainly different classes within the FBS, and the AAC like C-USA, MWC, MAC, and the Sun Belt are in the lesser.

The title of the thread is "The Best of the Rest...", and all of the G5 conferences are "the Rest".

I could start another topic, but it would be very similar to this one.

(07-31-2018 10:44 AM)CenterSquarEd Wrote:  Well, if you want to sort them by total athletic budget as a measure of potential for success (using 2016 data), you might want to look at them like this:

Old Dominion University $41,855,635
Rice University $39,125,169
Miami University-Oxford $35,903,047
Florida International University $35,297,643
Texas State University $35,235,858
University at Buffalo $33,575,860
University of North Texas $33,018,941
Ohio University-Main Campus $32,621,410
Western Michigan University $32,568,703
University of Akron Main Campus $32,312,689
Eastern Michigan University $32,311,248
Central Michigan University $31,792,125
University of North Carolina at Charlotte $31,086,388
Middle Tennessee State University $30,528,498
Marshall University $29,367,140
Western Kentucky University $29,177,882
The University of Texas at El Paso $29,100,654
University of Toledo $29,001,171
Coastal Carolina University $28,936,464
University of Alabama at Birmingham $28,840,003
Troy University $28,571,770
Kent State University at Kent $28,535,475
The University of Texas at San Antonio $27,826,471
Ball State University $27,410,832
Georgia State University $27,366,614
University of Louisiana at Lafayette $26,541,072
Florida Atlantic University $26,135,496
Appalachian State University $25,795,349
Northern Illinois University $24,561,563
University of South Alabama $24,059,763
Bowling Green State University-Main Campus $23,753,594
New Mexico State University-Main Campus $22,448,424 (FBS independent, but was in the Sun Belt at the time)
Louisiana Tech University $22,422,298
University of Southern Mississippi $22,230,837
Georgia Southern University $20,921,958
University of Idaho $20,642,478 (reclassified to FCS, but was in the Sun Belt at the time)
Arkansas State University-Main Campus $17,786,342
University of Louisiana at Monroe $14,242,574

Your numbers are off. The most recently reported athletic budget for North Texas was over $36 million.

http://sports.usatoday.com/ncaa/finances/