(05-09-2022 02:16 PM)Gemofthehills Wrote:  Being afraid of FCS teams. Should have added App and JMU to strengthen their hold in the Mid Atlantic market. Possibly should have added a few others not in big markets.
Several conferences have missed on good schools using the too many in one market excuse. Most G5 schools have very few sidewalk fans and all bring their own followers and steal very few from others.

Not being afraid enough of FCS teams. ODU and UNCC were two of the most divisive elements and ended up adding nothing in football. And the flood of southern FCS teams really spread the talent around thinner. Southern FCS schools moving up included WKU in 2009, UTSA, Texas St. and USA in 2012, Georgia St. in 2013, ODU, Georgia Southern and App St. in 2014, UNCC in 2015, Coastal Carolina in 2017 and Liberty in 2018. That's 11 schools in a decade added to the 21 southern G5 schools that existed in 2008.

The BIG mistake was not killing off the Sun Belt by adding the successful football programs in addition to the markets. ULL and Arkansas St. should have been added instead of ODU and UNCC. Then CUSA would have been competing just with the AAC for recruits and publicity, not with 2 other G5 conferences. Adding those 2 and WKU in 2013 gets them to 14 and leaves the Sun Belt with nonfootball members UTA and UALR, football members ULM and Troy and new former FCS schools Georgia State and South Alabama. They also added Texas St. in 2013 who was only a couple years out of FCS. That's only 5 football schools and Georgia St. was in their transition year. ODU, UNCC, App St. and Georgia Southern weren't ready in 2013. If they added Troy instead of UTSA, the Sun Belt would have been left with 2 continuing football and 5 total continuing members.