Other than the obvious adds like ECU and Memphis, the only other school I would welcome with open arms to the SB is Army. Loved having them in the CUSA. The SB needs eyeballs. The Navy/Army game every year draws more eyeballs than about half of all SB games on linear tv.

If Army joined the AAC, maybe even with Air Force that conference is stronger than the SB. We need to push for Army and with the playoff they should be interested in joining a conference again.

I remember the AAC giving Army an open invite, and they turned it down.

The academies like having their yearly match ups as OOC.

We MAY be able to get them on board for that very reason. it might be tough on basketball, would the league attempt a football only invite for a western representative as well? Otherwise, you have 15 full time members in all other sports.

It seems like after years of a revolving door, Sun Belt wishes to have all sports members...

Who would the west add be? Or go big and invite Liberty...that would all but surely lock in the Sun Belt as a top G5 league.

(12-09-2022 12:44 PM)rileylives Wrote:  I remember the AAC giving Army an open invite, and they turned it down.

The academies like having their yearly match ups as OOC.

We MAY be able to get them on board for that very reason. it might be tough on basketball, would the league attempt a football only invite for a western representative as well? Otherwise, you have 15 full time members in all other sports.

It seems like after years of a revolving door, Sun Belt wishes to have all sports members...

Who would the west add be? Or go big and invite Liberty...that would all but surely lock in the Sun Belt as a top G5 league.

Liberty and Army seem to go hand in hand...pun intended.

If expansion happens once more in the near future, and the Sun Belt wished to grow to 16...

Top ideal candidates (highly unlikely)
- East Carolina
- Memphis
- Army

Top available candidates (would likely agree)
- WKU
- Liberty

Candidates where we pinch our nose
- MTSU
- La Tech

Not gonna happen for them ever
- Jackson State
- Missouri State
- FIU

Apocalypse happens
- UWF

Unless the AAC gets absolutely gutted, I think we're looking at a pool of WKU and Liberty, otherwise, IDK if there's a consensus beyond that.

I'll take a hard pass on Liberty. No way and no how.

The only thing we “need” is to focus on being the best 14-team SBC we can be. The rest will take care of itself when the opportunity presents. USM, Marshall, and ODU weren’t chased down. We came knocking on the door because we wanted to be a part of what the 10-team SBC had built.

(12-09-2022 01:45 PM)THUNDERStruck73 Wrote:  I'll take a hard pass on Liberty. No way and no how.

I get it...it's been debated ad nauseum.

I happen to think they're gonna be a thorn in our side football wise. I'm only looking at this from the football angle.

Just goes to show there's no clear cut answers. If the AAC gets gutted, maybe East Carolina comes on board...I would welcome WKU as the second option.

For now I agree we stay at 14. However, did anyone see the last realignment going down the way it did?

(12-09-2022 01:53 PM)rileylives Wrote:  

(12-09-2022 01:45 PM)THUNDERStruck73 Wrote:  I'll take a hard pass on Liberty. No way and no how.

I get it...it's been debated ad nauseum.

I happen to think they're gonna be a thorn in our side football wise. I'm only looking at this from the football angle.

Just goes to show there's no clear cut answers. If the AAC gets gutted, maybe East Carolina comes on board...I would welcome WKU as the second option.

For now I agree we stay at 14. However, did anyone see the last realignment going down the way it did?

If any conference looked at Liberty solely from that angle, they wouldn't be in CUSA. SBC and the AAC would've/could've already grabbed them.

(12-09-2022 01:53 PM)rileylives Wrote:  

(12-09-2022 01:45 PM)THUNDERStruck73 Wrote:  I'll take a hard pass on Liberty. No way and no how.

I get it...it's been debated ad nauseum.

I happen to think they're gonna be a thorn in our side football wise. I'm only looking at this from the football angle.

Just goes to show there's no clear cut answers.

If the AAC gets gutted, maybe East Carolina comes on board...

However, did anyone see the last realignment going down the way it did?

B1. Agree

B2. Absolutely with open arms. I'm sure those FAU/ECU, CLT/ECU, and UNT/ECU games are going to be titanic struggles. They'll be lucky to draw 15000 fans for those games.

B3. Other than UCF, Houston, BYU, and Cincy going to the B12, no. I knew we were shopping, but my source was pretty tight lipped about where, though. When it was pretty much a done deal but not signed, he/she let me in on the secret.

No to Liberty. That is not a peer institution.

(12-09-2022 02:06 PM)THUNDERStruck73 Wrote:  

(12-09-2022 01:53 PM)rileylives Wrote:  

(12-09-2022 01:45 PM)THUNDERStruck73 Wrote:  I'll take a hard pass on Liberty. No way and no how.

I get it...it's been debated ad nauseum.

I happen to think they're gonna be a thorn in our side football wise. I'm only looking at this from the football angle.

Just goes to show there's no clear cut answers.

If the AAC gets gutted, maybe East Carolina comes on board...

However, did anyone see the last realignment going down the way it did?

B1. Agree

B2. Absolutely with open arms. I'm sure those FAU/ECU, CLT/ECU, and UNT/ECU games are going to be titanic struggles. They'll be lucky to draw 15000 fans for those games.

B3. Other than UCF, Houston, BYU, and Cincy going to the B12, no. I knew we were shopping, but my source was pretty tight lipped about where, though. When it was pretty much a done deal but not signed, he/she let me in on the secret.

No, i mean in terms of who ended up where, who got added after...

Not a single soul could predict what eventually went down.

6 to the AAC
4 to the Sun Belt
CUSA would survive and add...

(12-09-2022 12:32 PM)everyone Wrote:  Other than the obvious adds like ECU and Memphis, the only other school I would welcome with open arms to the SB is Army. Loved having them in the CUSA. The SB needs eyeballs. The Navy/Army game every year draws more eyeballs than about half of all SB games on linear tv.

If Army joined the AAC, maybe even with Air Force that conference is stronger than the SB. We need to push for Army and with the playoff they should be interested in joining a conference again.

CUSA tried it. It failed. Please, no.

(12-09-2022 02:12 PM)rileylives Wrote:  

(12-09-2022 02:06 PM)THUNDERStruck73 Wrote:  

(12-09-2022 01:53 PM)rileylives Wrote:  

(12-09-2022 01:45 PM)THUNDERStruck73 Wrote:  I'll take a hard pass on Liberty. No way and no how.

I get it...it's been debated ad nauseum.

I happen to think they're gonna be a thorn in our side football wise. I'm only looking at this from the football angle.

Just goes to show there's no clear cut answers.

If the AAC gets gutted, maybe East Carolina comes on board...

However, did anyone see the last realignment going down the way it did?

B1. Agree

B2. Absolutely with open arms. I'm sure those FAU/ECU, CLT/ECU, and UNT/ECU games are going to be titanic struggles. They'll be lucky to draw 15000 fans for those games.

B3. Other than UCF, Houston, BYU, and Cincy going to the B12, no. I knew we were shopping, but my source was pretty tight lipped about where, though. When it was pretty much a done deal but not signed, he/she let me in on the secret.

No, i mean in terms of who ended up where, who got added after...

Not a single soul could predict what eventually went down.

6 to the AAC
4 to the Sun Belt
CUSA would survive and add...

The only one I was sure about was USM to the SBC, because that was going to happen even without the OU/Texas ripple effect. The question, as I was told, was would one or three more be added to the SBC to balance. Honestly I thought it would be close allies USM and Marshall leaving CUSA together to make the SBC a 12-team football league, but I'm very happy that ODU and JMU made us 14 teams.

On a side note, rumor is that Navy is only dressing out 12 tomorrow....



They figured the rest of the team could dress themselves. #GoArmy

At the end of the day we know who we are and why we hate each other. You can’t choose your family and expect things to work out. History footprint and peer universities should continue to drive growth. ECU and Army would be solid adds.

(12-09-2022 02:42 PM)Oldyeller Wrote:  At the end of the day we know who we are and why we hate each other. You can’t choose your family and expect things to work out. History footprint and peer universities should continue to drive growth. ECU and Army would be solid adds.

Who in the SBC has a significant history with Army and considers them a peer university, and on what map is it in the Sun Belt footprint?

(12-09-2022 02:49 PM)HarborPointe Wrote:  

(12-09-2022 02:42 PM)Oldyeller Wrote:  At the end of the day we know who we are and why we hate each other. You can’t choose your family and expect things to work out. History footprint and peer universities should continue to drive growth. ECU and Army would be solid adds.

Who in the SBC has a significant history with Army and considers them a peer university, and on what map is it in the Sun Belt footprint?

I said it should be what drives growth. Army would be a great get.

I think Army is just too far out of the geographic footprint. Going to 16 I think the options would have to do all three- increase the tv payout, be inside the geographic footprint, be consistently good. Army fits 1.5 of those as they have had some really terrible teams a lot of years and also a few really good teams. If for some reason we were at 13 and needed one more ya, but there's no room right now.

WKU, and Army yes liberty no.

Tho I don’t mind leaving WKU in Cusa for a couple more years as punishment

The candidate where we'd have to pinch our nose the hardest but then would still projectile vomit anyway is listed under top available