RE: Campbell leaving Big South to join CAA
Monmouth was a good add in terms of FB and MBB. Stony Brook was a good add in terms of MBB. NC A&T was a good add in terms of FB but a terrible add in terms of MBB. Hampton and Campbell were terrible adds in terms of FB and MBB.
While this may be ascribing far too much foresight and planning and leans into conspiracy theory territory, the adds of Hampton, NC A&T, and now Campbell could conceivably have been in the interest of crippling the MEAC so that the bloated CAA could acquire their autobid and realign into 2 conferences.
Howard is a linchpin whose departure would indeed make the MEAC unviable. By adding Howard's biggest rival in Hampton and a fellow HBCU in NC A&T, the CAA makes itself more appealing to Howard. And by drawing members from the Big South, the CAA puts pressure on the Big South to restock from the MEAC, thus precipitating the MEAC's collapse and removing some of the members that are less desirable adds for the CAA.
Ultimately, perhaps the result of such a strategy succeeding might be like so:
CAA North (Yankee Conference)
Full (6): Albany, Delaware, Maine, Monmouth, New Hampshire, Stony Brook
NFB (4): Drexel, Hofstra, Northeastern, Vermont
FB-only (2): Rhode Island, Villanova
CAA South (CAA)
Full (7): Campbell, Elon, Hampton, Howard, NC A&T, Towson, William & Mary
NFB (3): Charleston, High Point, UNC Wilmington
FB-only (1): Richmond
America East
Full (5): Bryant, LIU, Merrimack, Sacred Heart, Wagner
NFB (4): Binghamton, NJIT, UMass Lowell, UMBC
FB-only (1): Robert Morris
Big South
NFB (11): Charleston Southern, Gardner-Webb, Longwood, NC Central, Norfolk State, Presbyterian, Radford, SC State, UNC Asheville, USC Upstate, Winthrop
NEC
Full (5): CCSU, Delaware State, Morgan State, St. Francis-PA, Stonehill
NFB (5): Coppin State, FDU, Le Moyne, St. Francis-NY, UMES
FB-only (1): Duquesne
OVC
Full (5): Eastern Illinois, Lindenwood, Southeast Missouri, Tennessee Tech, Tennessee-Martin
NFB (4): Little Rock, Morehead State, SIU Edwardsville, Southern Indiana
FB-only (5): Charleston Southern, Gardner-Webb, NC Central, Norfolk State, SC State
(Tennessee State to ASUN)
Granted, a long shot, but it was fun to work out.
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