Cross-posting from C-USA Realignment board as it's related to the initial conversation

New Mexico State has announced their scheduling practice going forward (once they presumably un-do games).

This makes a lot of sense for the Aggies as UTEP becomes a league game. They should be able to now balance six home / six away if they can strike the balance properly with UNM / G5 opponent rotating home and away. Even better if they can strike the balance with UNM / UTEP rotating home and away still with this new arrangement.

@ Power 5
vs FCS opponent
vs/at New Mexico
vs/at G5 opponent

====

“With the 2022 season being our last as an FBS Independent, our scheduling goals for future seasons will change,” new head coach Jerry Kill stated. “It is our plan to schedule just a single Power Five program, one FCS opponent and one group of five team for our non-conference schedule. It is also important for us our program and our state to continue scheduling our rivalry game with New Mexico on an annual basis.”

https://fbschedules.com/new-mexico-state...-schedule/

(01-23-2022 02:46 PM)GreenFreakUAB Wrote:  ...generally speaking, C-USA might allow a team to 'count' one of their scheduled games as a 'conference game', although not against a conference team.

Sounds weird, but it's happened - my Blazers were in this situation SOMEhow back in 2000 - either we were still 'transitioning' to a full DIV.I slate, or there were an odd # of C-USA teams at the time, or SOMEthing...

...anyway, we were one short in terms of scheduled conference opponents. So C-USA picked two of our OOC games, and let us designate which one would be the 'conference' game...

...the two choices were LSU on the road, OR Kansas (who was 'fair-to-middlin' in those days) at home. Well, DUH - Kansas was the designated 'conference' game we chose.

SO, what do WE do? Go to Baton Rouge and BEAT LSU in Saban's first season, then turn around and LOSE to Kansas at Legion Field... THAT is the Watson Brown Era at UAB in a NUTSHELL, y'all...

They could well do that on a transitional basis. Or they could simply have an unbalanced schedule like the SEC used to have where schools might play anywhere from 4 to 7 games (for example in 1968 LSU played 4 games, UF, Vandy, MSU played 5, 5 schools played 6 and Kentucky played 7-LSU played as many SWC schools as SEC plus indies FSU, Miami and Tulane).

(01-24-2022 02:32 PM)TexasTerror Wrote:  “With the 2022 season being our last as an FBS Independent, our scheduling goals for future seasons will change,” new head coach Jerry Kill stated. “It is our plan to schedule just a single Power Five program, one FCS opponent and one group of five team for our non-conference schedule. It is also important for us our program and our state to continue scheduling our rivalry game with New Mexico on an annual basis.”

https://fbschedules.com/new-mexico-state...-schedule/

Based on that, it shouldn't be too hard to figure out which previously scheduled 2023 games NMSU will drop or reschedule for a later season:

UMass (drop or reschedule)
at San Diego State (drop or reschedule)
Air Force (keep, b/c it's a home game)
at Hawaii (might keep, b/c it would permit NMSU to play 13 games, but likely drop or reschedule)
UTEP (becomes a conference game)
at Louisiana (drop or reschedule)
at Northwestern (drop or reschedule, b/c Auburn pays more)
at Auburn (keep, $$$)
Liberty (becomes a conference game)
at New Mexico (keep)

And Liberty found time to add to future schedules, in addition to their ongoing trimming -

https://fbschedules.com/ball-state-liber...ll-series/

I was looking at the WAC standings after CSU joined.

CSU had been in the Skyline conference with CU, DU, Wyoming, Utah, USU, and BYU, and later UNM and Montana. CU had left to join the Big 6 to become the Big 7, and DU had dropped football.

Utah, BYU, Wyoming, and UNM, dumped Utah State, CSU, and Montana and added Arizona State and Arizona to form the WAC 1.0.

CSU and UTEP joined in 1968, but it was almost a decade before CSU played a full conference schedule.

From 1968-1976, they played 3, 4, 4, 5, 5, 6, 6, 6, 6 games. Only in 1977 did they play 7 games. Arizona and Arizona State left for PAC 10 the next year.

Apparently a game contract was a game contract at the time. Maybe they were handshake deals between honorable men.

(01-24-2022 05:12 PM)Wedge Wrote:  

(01-24-2022 02:32 PM)TexasTerror Wrote:  “With the 2022 season being our last as an FBS Independent, our scheduling goals for future seasons will change,” new head coach Jerry Kill stated. “It is our plan to schedule just a single Power Five program, one FCS opponent and one group of five team for our non-conference schedule. It is also important for us our program and our state to continue scheduling our rivalry game with New Mexico on an annual basis.”

https://fbschedules.com/new-mexico-state...-schedule/

Based on that, it shouldn't be too hard to figure out which previously scheduled 2023 games NMSU will drop or reschedule for a later season:

UMass (drop or reschedule)
at San Diego State (drop or reschedule)
Air Force (keep, b/c it's a home game)
at Hawaii (might keep, b/c it would permit NMSU to play 13 games, but likely drop or reschedule)
UTEP (becomes a conference game)
at Louisiana (drop or reschedule)
at Northwestern (drop or reschedule, b/c Auburn pays more)
at Auburn (keep, $$$)
Liberty (becomes a conference game)
at New Mexico (keep)

I do wonder if Hawaii signs contracts that allow a reduced buy-out for reasons of joining a conference. The game in Hawaii is "free" in the sense that NMSU (or BYU or Liberty) don't need to drop the game to comply with NCAA maximums.

According to FBSchedules, BYU & Boise have halted their contract agreement and the article showcases how it is that BYU proactively had an "out clause" should it get into a conference...

https://fbschedules.com/boise-state-byu-...-in-boise/

This below tweet is referenced too

(01-26-2022 11:36 AM)Crayton Wrote:  

(01-24-2022 05:12 PM)Wedge Wrote:  

(01-24-2022 02:32 PM)TexasTerror Wrote:  “With the 2022 season being our last as an FBS Independent, our scheduling goals for future seasons will change,” new head coach Jerry Kill stated. “It is our plan to schedule just a single Power Five program, one FCS opponent and one group of five team for our non-conference schedule. It is also important for us our program and our state to continue scheduling our rivalry game with New Mexico on an annual basis.”

https://fbschedules.com/new-mexico-state...-schedule/

Based on that, it shouldn't be too hard to figure out which previously scheduled 2023 games NMSU will drop or reschedule for a later season:

UMass (drop or reschedule)
at San Diego State (drop or reschedule)
Air Force (keep, b/c it's a home game)
at Hawaii (might keep, b/c it would permit NMSU to play 13 games, but likely drop or reschedule)
UTEP (becomes a conference game)
at Louisiana (drop or reschedule)
at Northwestern (drop or reschedule, b/c Auburn pays more)
at Auburn (keep, $$$)
Liberty (becomes a conference game)
at New Mexico (keep)

I do wonder if Hawaii signs contracts that allow a reduced buy-out for reasons of joining a conference. The game in Hawaii is "free" in the sense that NMSU (or BYU or Liberty) don't need to drop the game to comply with NCAA maximums.

It goes back to the reason the extra game isn't as attractive to potential Hawaii opponents as it was when the normal regular season was only 11 games: Most coaches don't want their team to play 13 regular season games. Playing 13 means that the team either has to play in week zero just to get one off week during the season, or otherwise they have to play 13 games in 13 weeks.

(01-26-2022 01:47 PM)TexasTerror Wrote:  According to FBSchedules, BYU & Boise have halted their contract agreement and the article showcases how it is that BYU proactively had an "out clause" should it get into a conference...

https://fbschedules.com/boise-state-byu-...-in-boise/

This below tweet is referenced too

Thank you for the information. I have updated the original list.

Liberty has signed a home/home with Old Dominion for 2025 and 2028, giving them two more games over the limit.

(02-01-2022 08:32 PM)AssKickingChicken Wrote:  Liberty has signed a home/home with Old Dominion for 2025 and 2028, giving them two more games over the limit.

That means they have off loaded some games that have not yet been released. Likely the other school is holding it until they have the replacement game contract in hand.

Good point. Missouri dropped MTSU several months ago and it just became a story after MTSU signed with JMU.

Stugray2 - I have appreciated your posts over the years. But you have no idea what the situation in Lynchburg is right now. You are completely off base on the motivations and the budget. If anything our finances are actually stronger today than when Junior was sent packing. We have plenty of issues that we still need to clean up from the fallout. But finance is nowhere close to the top of the list. Our revenue remains exceptionally strong.

(01-26-2022 01:47 PM)TexasTerror Wrote:  According to FBSchedules, BYU & Boise have halted their contract agreement and the article showcases how it is that BYU proactively had an "out clause" should it get into a conference...

https://fbschedules.com/boise-state-byu-...-in-boise/

This below tweet is referenced too

I suspected that the Boise series would end. Doesn’t make much sense to keep it from the BYU perspective but it worked well when they were independent.

I imagine BYU’s future schedules are going to look like this:

Utah (H&H)
Utah St (H&H)
FCS buy game (likely Weber St, Utah Tech, & S Utah on rotation)

Add a G5 buy game to the list if the Big 12 does 8 conference games (which I think they should).

(02-02-2022 02:04 PM)Fighting Muskie Wrote:  

(01-26-2022 01:47 PM)TexasTerror Wrote:  According to FBSchedules, BYU & Boise have halted their contract agreement and the article showcases how it is that BYU proactively had an "out clause" should it get into a conference...

https://fbschedules.com/boise-state-byu-...-in-boise/

This below tweet is referenced too

I suspected that the Boise series would end. Doesn’t make much sense to keep it from the BYU perspective but it worked well when they were independent.

I imagine BYU’s future schedules are going to look like this:

Utah (H&H)
Utah St (H&H)
FCS buy game (likely Weber St, Utah Tech, & S Utah on rotation)

Add a G5 buy game to the list if the Big 12 does 8 conference games (which I think they should).

BYU has not played Utah consistently. My guess would be alternating years between Utah and Utah St and have 2 open slots or Utah annually and regularly scheduling Utah St but not annually.

(02-02-2022 02:25 PM)BePcr07 Wrote:  BYU has not played Utah consistently. My guess would be alternating years between Utah and Utah St and have 2 open slots or Utah annually and regularly scheduling Utah St but not annually.

Utah's first season in the Pac-12 was fall 2011. Starting with that season, Utah-BYU has been played in 8 of 11 seasons.

They may not play the Holy War game every single year going forward, but it seems likely that it will be played more often than not.

(02-02-2022 02:25 PM)BePcr07 Wrote:  

(02-02-2022 02:04 PM)Fighting Muskie Wrote:  

(01-26-2022 01:47 PM)TexasTerror Wrote:  According to FBSchedules, BYU & Boise have halted their contract agreement and the article showcases how it is that BYU proactively had an "out clause" should it get into a conference...

https://fbschedules.com/boise-state-byu-...-in-boise/

This below tweet is referenced too

I suspected that the Boise series would end. Doesn’t make much sense to keep it from the BYU perspective but it worked well when they were independent.

I imagine BYU’s future schedules are going to look like this:

Utah (H&H)
Utah St (H&H)
FCS buy game (likely Weber St, Utah Tech, & S Utah on rotation)

Add a G5 buy game to the list if the Big 12 does 8 conference games (which I think they should).

BYU has not played Utah consistently. My guess would be alternating years between Utah and Utah St and have 2 open slots or Utah annually and regularly scheduling Utah St but not annually.

That’s been on Utah, not BYU. Utah was able to get some series (Michigan) against some big P5s and chose to dump the Coogs to make room. If it were up to BYU, that game stays in place.

The ball state and old dominion games that liberty added were prior to joining c-usa. I have a feeling that ball st series will never happen.

OP updated for information about BYU’s changes.

BYU has canceled a 2025 game with Minnesota, who has replaced the Cougars with Cal.

This gets BYU down to four OOC games in 2025, but one is at Hawaii. They host Hawaii in 2024, so if they flip those games, it eliminates more inventory.