(10-14-2021 01:16 PM)Duke Dawg Wrote:  

(10-14-2021 08:34 AM)b0ndsj0ns Wrote:  

(10-14-2021 07:12 AM)Bull_In_Exile Wrote:  

(10-13-2021 11:06 PM)bill dazzle Wrote:  shizzle787's assessment seems very solid. However, the "ODU to the Sun Belt" element made me take pause.

Buffalo is an interesting option for the AAC (assuming UB would be interested).

UB's "cone of influence" goes to the city's south east. A huge number of our alumni are in the NYC to DC corridor. Depending on who else is added UB would be interested.

I don't think if you're adding the three other schools mentioned it would appeal to UB but if it were Buffalo / Marshall / App State / UAB then I think UB is interested.

I'm starting to become more and more convinced the AAC has to find the group of schools who have the ability to get their budget in line with the AAC and who have the commitment to go all in and aren't worried about travel or costs and are willing to spend beyond their means if necessary to succeed at the highest level. Not saying this as an insult to Buffalo, but not add schools who are like "well we could be interested if you add enough schools to make this comfortable for us". Who are those schools though? I don't know.

J
M
U


We've spent the money to build a 25,000+ seat stadium, that we've already outgrown.... with the skeleton and bones and plans already in place to finish the other side and take it over 40,000
we just spent $100m on a brand new state of the art basketball arena
we commit to other sports like softball that, along with Louisiana, are the only two non P5 programs that are year after year legitimate national players and rubbing arms with the big dogs
we are the 4th all-time winningest program in women's basketball, the 3rd most popular collegiate sport.
we have a student body that is over 21,000+ now (mostly on-campus undergrads) that has strong alumni tentacles all over DC (30,000 alum in the DMV), Richmond, Virginia Beach and across the mid atlantic and nation

if that doesn't spell "committment" to athletics, i dont' know what does.

but yet again, many on here want to get hung up on a 2-year label that has 1 letter different than their own and not think about what's best for the next 20+ years in their league

Inviting an FCS member is a public relations land mine that the AAC can avoid which is why they presumably will. Beyond that JMU is a weak institutional fit and two hours from the nearest major airport. Other than UConn schools in the East transitioning from 1AA/FCS end up in the MAC, CUSA or Sun Belt. If JMU moves to FBS which I hope happens it’s going to be CUSA or SBC.