(09-19-2016 12:03 PM)moehler Wrote: I think, at the moment both App and GS are happy being in the SBC, but the writing is on the wall, the G5 conferences aren't going to make their money on a tv deal, instead, the thinking is, we got to go old school, make our money on close rivals filling our stadiums, and save money on travel costs. I don't think it will happen anytime soon, but got to believe their already holding informal talks.
Amen. This is what I have been preaching all along. Outside of Mississippi State and other in-state schools, the biggest visiting fan bases that we have hosted have been UL-L and Troy. Hell, we were in a monsoon the other night with a delayed start time and those damn Troy fans (many of whom were senior citizens) sat in the rain and cheered their team to victory.
The writing is on the wall. Once all TV contracts are negotiated, we will ALL be in the same boat. Essentially, we already are. 200K for TV is crap. That is negated by one sell-out crowd due to playing a regional rival. Our non-conference scheduling is indicative that we want to play in MS, LA, AL, for as many games as possible.
I am under no delusions. C-USA no longer has financial or on-field separation from the Sunbelt. Let's do ourselves a favor and do something similar to this:
Western-based
Texas State
Rice
North Texas
UTSA
UTEP
Arkansas State
Louisiana Tech
UL-L
UL-M
South Alabama
Southern Miss
UAB
Eastern-based
Georgia State
Georgia Southern
Florida International
Florida Atlantic
ODU
Charlotte
Appy State
Western Kentucky
Marshall
Middle Tennessee
Coastal Carolina
I feel that some of the teams in this group would be heading to the MWC and maybe some to the AAC. This would make for two roughly 10-team conferences. If you miss your rivalries with one or two teams (we, for example, would hate to lose Marshall... but nobody else) you can schedule them home/home.
Both of these hypothetical leagues would be just as good as what we have now competitively and we would have much bigger home crowds and much better local interest in the games. That, my friends, is what makes college football great. I personally would rather play USA than Charlotte, not because Charlotte is a bad school, but I don't know a damn soul who went to school there. Southern Miss vs. South Alabama means that I get to rib the USA alumni that I work with all week. That is what makes rivalries.
Do you know what other evidence there is that this kind of talk is happening behind the scenes? Well, Southern Miss, for example, has played or is scheduled to play every team in their hypothetical grouping above in recent or upcoming years. Do you think that it is a coincidence that we are doing home/homes with schools that we would have never considered doing so with just a few short years ago? It is a sign of things to come. It is the new reality.
Swallow your pride everybody. This is what is best for G5 teams. Butts in seats on Saturday is better than Tuesday and Friday night TV games, especially when you are not getting paid for them. ESPN 3 would happily "televise" our Saturday games. The atmosphere would be better, as would the bottom lines due to ticket sales and reduced travel costs.