WKU isn’t coming back to the Belt. Why would they at this point?

CUSA is paying them more than they would make jumping ship to the Belt. So why would they take a pay cut, when finances are already tight?

Added to the payouts is the issue of 10 million dollars being paid just to leave CUSA. I think most WKU fans would prefer to re-join the Sunbelt, but I don’t believe from a financial perspective it makes any sense.

And if we are being honest, CUSA in present form is a much better basketball conference than the SunBelt presently is.

Well...enjoy playing every game in October on week nights.

We are on the O-H-I-O train now pal!

Well that's good to know.
It makes Ohio and Liberty (who has plenty of $$ and wants to come) more appealing and maybe one of those TX schools (Tarleton?).

WKU would be interested for the same reason Marshall, ODU, Southern Miss, and La Tech were, but I’ve also noticed that the legacy programs in the conference hold grudges. I don’t think any school who has left the conference since it started sponsoring football will be welcomed back unless there are no other options.

IIRC, WKU left in a much classier way than the others. MTSU was a different story. MTSU and WKU were really the only ones we cared about. MTSU was pissed off at being left out of a bowl game I think. At any rate, I would not mind a return of WKU but would be livid if MTSU returned which I do not think is even under consideration from either party. Ultimately, I am not sure it even matters who joins. Just a different seat in the same boat.

(10-14-2026 10:31 AM)EigenEagle Wrote:  Well...enjoy playing every game in October on week nights.

The worst. November in the mid west is one thing but October is awful.

Middle isnt coming either, not that many are advocating for it here, we've been terrible in football for awhile. More money and much better basketball in CUSA. As far as MT not leaving classy, in what way did we not? All we did was pay the conference more money to leave a year ealier along with FAU. We were absolutely screwd out of a bowl game, and so was Western their last year in the Sun Belt I believe.

Oregon State isn’t coming either

I thought I’d go ahead and add that since this thread was started to say useless stuff

Southern Miss, Marshall, ODU, and La Tech weren't coming either. Just saying.

I do feel its harder to convince WKU because they are a more basketball first school, so the benefit of not playing Wednesday Night football is minimal. We'd need a school who could show clearly it saves on travel, would prefer more Saturday football games, and fits in to the league better in other sports. There are schools like that who exist in CUSA, but I don't know they fit an East add. That doesn't mean we couldn't convince WKU though. No one really knows what CUSA schools are thinking at the moment. They are still traveling to Miami and Las Cruces every season.

(10-14-2026 11:16 AM)MT FAN Wrote:  Middle isnt coming either, not that many are advocating for it here, we've been terrible in football for awhile. More money and much better basketball in CUSA. As far as MT not leaving classy, in what way did we not? All we did was pay the conference more money to leave a year ealier along with FAU. We were absolutely screwd out of a bowl game, and so was Western their last year in the Sun Belt I believe.

You guys weren't screwed by the Sun Belt. You were screwed by a certain school in Ruston, LA who turned down a bowl invite in order to avoid playing a football game against Monroe. The changes that followed behind that shifted where the SBC teams went and it came down to you or WKU for Detroit, and it went to WKU. I would also point out that all you had to do was beat us in the conference title game to clinch a spot, and you kind of lost 45-0, so yeah.

Now we did screw WKU the next year, but by that time the league was full scorched earth at the departing schools.

Fortunately, the decision makers at every single school involved have now changed.

(10-14-2026 10:39 AM)TrueBlueDrew Wrote:  WKU would be interested for the same reason Marshall, ODU, Southern Miss, and La Tech were, but I’ve also noticed that the legacy programs in the conference hold grudges. I don’t think any school who has left the conference since it started sponsoring football will be welcomed back unless there are no other options.

Nobody, and I mean nobody, was a worse partner during their time in the Sun Belt than Louisiana Tech but the teams in the west went to bat for them to invite them back.
No one at the longer-established Sun Belt programs would have a problem with WKU.

(10-14-2026 11:43 AM)chiefsfan Wrote:  

(10-14-2026 11:16 AM)MT FAN Wrote:  Middle isnt coming either, not that many are advocating for it here, we've been terrible in football for awhile. More money and much better basketball in CUSA. As far as MT not leaving classy, in what way did we not? All we did was pay the conference more money to leave a year ealier along with FAU. We were absolutely screwd out of a bowl game, and so was Western their last year in the Sun Belt I believe.

You guys weren't screwed by the Sun Belt. You were screwed by a certain school in Ruston, LA who turned down a bowl invite in order to avoid playing a football game against Monroe. The changes that followed behind that shifted where the SBC teams went and it came down to you or WKU for Detroit, and it went to WKU. I would also point out that all you had to do was beat us in the conference title game to clinch a spot, and you kind of lost 45-0, so yeah.

Now we did screw WKU the next year, but by that time the league was full scorched earth at the departing schools.

Fortunately, the decision makers at every single school involved have now changed.

I mean Troy has the same Chancellor but he's on his way out and I don't think he would hold a grudge. In fact we've played H&H with MTSU (and another series in the future) and WKU since they left so it seems our admin is cool with them

(10-14-2026 10:37 AM)FreeBirdJohnnyReb Wrote:  Well that's good to know.
It makes Ohio and Liberty (who has plenty of $$ and wants to come) more appealing and maybe one of those TX schools (Tarleton?).

How do you know Liberty wants to come?

Maybe people don't realize it, but WKU's current distribution from CUSA is higher than what they would receive from the SunBelt. Not only that, WKU would have to pay 10 million to exit CUSA. So logically, what sense does it make for WKU to fork over that much money to receive less distributions than they currently receive? I think a majority of fans would prefer to return to the SunBelt. I know I personally would prefer it, but does our administration feel the same way? Can a booster be convinced its the right move, while also taking funds away from NIL?

Something that shouldn't go unnoticed about WKU is that they have a perennial Top 25 volleyball team. When you take into account their mens basketball and football, I don't think from a competitive standpoint (possibly outside of Liberty) any school that would bring more to the Conference.

You are dreaming if you think any program from either the SunBelt or CUSA can make any significant noise in the CFB but you can rest assured that having a strong basketball conference where having a few teams who can make some national noise is not the worst investment a conference can make. Right now the SunBelt has 3 teams ranked in the Kenpom top 200, CUSA has 8.

(10-14-2026 10:26 AM)lexingtontopper Wrote:  I think most WKU fans would prefer to re-join the Sunbelt, but I don’t believe from a financial perspective it makes any sense.

All y'all gotta do is follow the new playbook and bring some new corporate sponsors to the Sun Belt.

(10-14-2026 12:44 PM)OsageJ Wrote:  

(10-14-2026 10:37 AM)FreeBirdJohnnyReb Wrote:  Well that's good to know.
It makes Ohio and Liberty (who has plenty of $$ and wants to come) more appealing and maybe one of those TX schools (Tarleton?).

How do you know Liberty wants to come?

They want to, they’ve just been taught that it’s a sin

(10-14-2026 01:34 PM)lexingtontopper Wrote:  Maybe people don't realize it, but WKU's current distribution from CUSA is higher than what they would receive from the SunBelt. Not only that, WKU would have to pay 10 million to exit CUSA. So logically, what sense does it make for WKU to fork over that much money to receive less distributions than they currently receive? I think a majority of fans would prefer to return to the SunBelt. I know I personally would prefer it, but does our administration feel the same way? Can a booster be convinced its the right move, while also taking funds away from NIL?

Something that shouldn't go unnoticed about WKU is that they have a perennial Top 25 volleyball team. When you take into account their mens basketball and football, I don't think from a competitive standpoint (possibly outside of Liberty) any school that would bring more to the Conference.

You are dreaming if you think any program from either the SunBelt or CUSA can make any significant noise in the CFB but you can rest assured that having a strong basketball conference where having a few teams who can make some national noise is not the worst investment a conference can make. Right now the SunBelt has 3 teams ranked in the Kenpom top 200, CUSA has 8.

Yeah....stay over there where the money is... *dances like a penecostal*

(10-14-2026 01:34 PM)lexingtontopper Wrote:  Maybe people don't realize it, but WKU's current distribution from CUSA is higher than what they would receive from the SunBelt. Not only that, WKU would have to pay 10 million to exit CUSA. So logically, what sense does it make for WKU to fork over that much money to receive less distributions than they currently receive? I think a majority of fans would prefer to return to the SunBelt. I know I personally would prefer it, but does our administration feel the same way? Can a booster be convinced its the right move, while also taking funds away from NIL?

Something that shouldn't go unnoticed about WKU is that they have a perennial Top 25 volleyball team. When you take into account their mens basketball and football, I don't think from a competitive standpoint (possibly outside of Liberty) any school that would bring more to the Conference.

You are dreaming if you think any program from either the SunBelt or CUSA can make any significant noise in the CFB but you can rest assured that having a strong basketball conference where having a few teams who can make some national noise is not the worst investment a conference can make. Right now the SunBelt has 3 teams ranked in the Kenpom top 200, CUSA has 8.

You're good man. Ohio looks like a better fit.

(10-14-2026 11:43 AM)chiefsfan Wrote:  You guys weren't screwed by the Sun Belt. You were screwed by a bowl committee who wasn't willing to wait a little longer for an answer.

FIFY

The I-Bowl could have had what was apparently everybody's dream bowl match-up of Tech vs. ULM in 2012. They could have had that. And their big risk that they avoided by insisting on an answer immediately is that in the absolute worst possible case, they could have ended up with just another MAC team on the other side (one with a slightly worse record/resume). So rather than wait and see on Tech-ULM and maybe lose out on Ohio-ULM for WMU-ULM, they went ahead and locked in on Ohio-ULM. Which was a great success.

And they taught mean ole Tech a big ole lesson about where the power lies between bowls and teams. And blackballed us forever. Until they needed us. And then really needed us. And then needed us again.