(this space reserved for future deep thoughts)

Some are missing the point. MWC has shown no interest in NMSU or UTEP. No conference not buy out money. CUSA would have two years to get back to FBS level. CUSA is still a FBS conference.This is a great time for WAC or ASUN to move up without have to have permission to create a new conference. No way these three schools give up their CFP conference payout.

I could see
NMSU, Liberty and U Mass joining all sports with U Conn football only.
U Mass and U Conn trying to establish a better rivalry playing each other in other sports besides football.
Just two call ups would be needed then and a travel partner for FIU maybe.
So Jackson ST and Lamar all sports.

FIU
UTEP
LA Tech
Lamar
JSU
U Mass
Liberty
NMSU

U Conn football only FGCU olympic sports member for example.

Eight game football round robin schedule allowing a championship game. Its not bad for travel partners and less reams to share the CFP money.

(10-30-2021 12:15 PM)msm96wolf Wrote:  Some are missing the point. MWC has shown no interest in NMSU or UTEP. No conference not buy out money. CUSA would have two years to get back to FBS level. CUSA is still a FBS conference.This is a great time for WAC or ASUN to move up without have to have permission to create a new conference. No way these three schools give up their CFP conference payout.

Not going to be their choice. Unless they get 5 more teams, they are done as football conference, and likely as a conference period. No reason for FIU and UTEP to play basketball together without football.

If CUSA goes down to three they will dissolve, as 11 of 14 will not want to pay exit fee.

UTEP might well send Olympics to the WAC, FIU similarly to the ASUN with both remaining FBS Independents. Not clear what Louisiana Tech will do. FBS Independents will grow to 8, all very different situations and no desire to be with the others:

Army (Patriot), UConn (Big East), UMass (A-10), Liberty (ASUN), FIU (possibly ASUN), Louisiana Tech (?), UTEP (possibly WAC), NMSU (WAC)

(10-30-2021 03:08 PM)Stugray2 Wrote:  If CUSA goes down to three they will dissolve, as 11 of 14 will not want to pay exit fee.

UTEP might well send Olympics to the WAC, FIU similarly to the ASUN with both remaining FBS Independents. Not clear what Louisiana Tech will do. FBS Independents will grow to 8, all very different situations and no desire to be with the others:

Army (Patriot), UConn (Big East), UMass (A-10), Liberty (ASUN), FIU (possibly ASUN), Louisiana Tech (?), UTEP (possibly WAC), NMSU (WAC)

If only those 11 could vote. They don’t get a say in how the conference does business anymore.

(10-30-2021 03:15 PM)MWC Tex Wrote:  

(10-30-2021 03:08 PM)Stugray2 Wrote:  If CUSA goes down to three they will dissolve, as 11 of 14 will not want to pay exit fee.

UTEP might well send Olympics to the WAC, FIU similarly to the ASUN with both remaining FBS Independents. Not clear what Louisiana Tech will do. FBS Independents will grow to 8, all very different situations and no desire to be with the others:

Army (Patriot), UConn (Big East), UMass (A-10), Liberty (ASUN), FIU (possibly ASUN), Louisiana Tech (?), UTEP (possibly WAC), NMSU (WAC)

If only those 11 could vote. They don’t get a say in how the conference does business anymore.

They are still partners. What they don't get to vote in are expansion candidates. Dissolving is general partnership business.

And Conferences are basically partnerships. Equity partners are full rights until the day of departure.

Also they don't vote on future conference membership out of courtesy -- it's very rare for anyone to actually write a ByLaw specifying non-voting status upon announcement of leaving. You are more like a lame duck. Technically they do not lose their right to vote, but it's considered bad form to involve yourself in such matters. So nobody does it.

(10-30-2021 10:20 AM)goofus Wrote:  IF CUSA gets down to 3, the other G5 should just finish CUSA off by each conference taking 1 more team

UTEP. --> MWC
FIU. ---> AAC
LT. ---> SBC

At that point CUSA can vote to dissolve after 2023 and the G5 becomes the G4

This is exactly my preference

(10-30-2021 03:25 PM)Erictelevision Wrote:  

(10-30-2021 10:20 AM)goofus Wrote:  IF CUSA gets down to 3, the other G5 should just finish CUSA off by each conference taking 1 more team

UTEP. --> MWC
FIU. ---> AAC
LT. ---> SBC

At that point CUSA can vote to dissolve after 2023 and the G5 becomes the G4

This is exactly my preference

More likely:

UTEP. --> WAC/Indy
FIU. ---> ASUN/Indy
LT. ---> Southland/Indy

Which is why those three schools will try very hard to keep CUSA going as a D1 conference, even if it’s no longer an FBS conference.

(10-30-2021 11:20 AM)PaulDel2 Wrote:  

(10-30-2021 10:58 AM)Ohio Poly Wrote:  cusa should stay together just long enough to collect exit fees, then disband and go independent so they can schedule closer to themselves rather than playing far flung conference mates every year.

You do realize that no one "pays" exit fees. It is done by adjustments to conference distributions.

When West Virginia left the Big East, the Big 12 gave them a loan as part of the settlement. And I remember back in 2012, the first part of every Big East exit was FedExing a $2.5M check to the conference office as the downpayment on their exit fees, the rest payable on a schedule laid out in the bylaws). (Everyone ended up negotiating their exit with a bespoke deal, so who knows what happened).

As long as CUSA can cobble together 7 Division I schools, and for two years after that (waiver), they'll be collecting exit fees, starting with withheld distributions, and after that either checks from the departing schools, or dunning letters if the departing schools drag their feet on paying.

If I'm a departing school, and CUSA looks like it might not make it, I might very well drag my feet on those payments.

Chicago State still needs a home--remember, they've been given their notice from the WAC.

The apparent fact that even CUSA isn't interested is telling.

(10-30-2021 03:57 PM)DFW HOYA Wrote:  Chicago State still needs a home--remember, they've been given their notice from the WAC.

The apparent fact that even CUSA isn't interested is telling.

Nobody wants Chicago State.

(10-30-2021 03:57 PM)DFW HOYA Wrote:  Chicago State still needs a home--remember, they've been given their notice from the WAC.

The apparent fact that even CUSA isn't interested is telling.

CUSA probably expects to do better than Chicago STate. They can offer a very valuable thing, FBS status and FBS conference membership.

Plan A is to rebuild as an FBS football conference.
Middle Tennessee and Western Kentucky aren't gone yet.
Does adding New Mexico State convince them to jump to the MAC?
Is the MAC *really* interested in MT and WKU.
What FCS upgrades make sense. JAcksonville State seems obvious.
Do you take strong programs like NDSU and Montana, at the cost of being even more far-flung? Or do you stay in the Greater Confederacy footprint and look at options like Missouri State, the Texas Southland-to-WAC schools, McNeese, the ASUN strivers.

If that doesn't work out, UTA and UALR and Chicago State are probably still around.

(10-30-2021 09:19 AM)CoastalVANDAL Wrote:  I would try a travel partner strategy for expansion.

NMSU for UTEP perfect travel partners close full members covers two states.

Find a FCS call up close enough to La Tech for full membership.

FIU you probably need to find an olympic only partner unless FAMU wants FBS.

EKU and JSU would be my next travel partners

Then I offer NDSU and SDSU full membership best combo of basketball in football that fits travel partner criteria .
My next best option Montana and Montana St.

Once I got to eight then I add U Conn and U Mass football only.

And no non-football or football-only members, please.

Especially those football-only schools in New England or those non-football schools from the Slum Belch.

(10-30-2021 03:57 PM)DFW HOYA Wrote:  Chicago State still needs a home--remember, they've been given their notice from the WAC.

The apparent fact that even CUSA isn't interested is telling.

Chicago State does nothing for them right now. Even then, I am not sure they would accept them even if it meant shutting down. CUSA has a chance to still be a respectable basketball conference. Once you add Chicago State, forget about it.

I couldn't care less about the Sun Belt, but if you're going to insist on using childish nicknames -- every single time you reference them -- come up with something less completely barren of creativity than "Suck Belt".

(10-30-2021 03:22 PM)Stugray2 Wrote:  

(10-30-2021 03:15 PM)MWC Tex Wrote:  

(10-30-2021 03:08 PM)Stugray2 Wrote:  If CUSA goes down to three they will dissolve, as 11 of 14 will not want to pay exit fee.

UTEP might well send Olympics to the WAC, FIU similarly to the ASUN with both remaining FBS Independents. Not clear what Louisiana Tech will do. FBS Independents will grow to 8, all very different situations and no desire to be with the others:

Army (Patriot), UConn (Big East), UMass (A-10), Liberty (ASUN), FIU (possibly ASUN), Louisiana Tech (?), UTEP (possibly WAC), NMSU (WAC)

If only those 11 could vote. They don’t get a say in how the conference does business anymore.

They are still partners. What they don't get to vote in are expansion candidates. Dissolving is general partnership business.

And Conferences are basically partnerships. Equity partners are full rights until the day of departure.

Also they don't vote on future conference membership out of courtesy -- it's very rare for anyone to actually write a ByLaw specifying non-voting status upon announcement of leaving. You are more like a lame duck. Technically they do not lose their right to vote, but it's considered bad form to involve yourself in such matters. So nobody does it.

You sure about that? Anything in writing?

(10-30-2021 11:17 AM)DoubleRSU Wrote:  

(10-30-2021 10:27 AM)esayem Wrote:  Why would the three choose to dissolve with the exit fees coming in and an auto-bid still on the table? That just doesn’t make any sense.

I really don’t understand why NMSU hasn’t been invited already.

Can’t have a 3 team conference. If you can’t get 5 more schools to join, you don’t have a conference. Has a conference ever expanded with more teams than they already have?

An SBC fan can clarify but around 2013 they were heavily raided by CUSA after CUSA was heavily raided by the Big East/AAC. I believe the SBC was down to 4 or so and called up some very good fcs schools and took a transitioning Texas St from the WAC. So CUSA is not exactly setting precedent just yet. If it gets down to 1 school and still rebuilds then wow.

Also, Big East football was down to 5 I believe and took 7 from CUSA when it became the AAC.

(10-30-2021 09:19 AM)CoastalVANDAL Wrote:  I would try a travel partner strategy for expansion.

NMSU for UTEP perfect travel partners close full members covers two states.

Find a FCS call up close enough to La Tech for full membership.

FIU you probably need to find an olympic only partner unless FAMU wants FBS.

EKU and JSU would be my next travel partners

Then I offer NDSU and SDSU full membership best combo of basketball in football that fits travel partner criteria .
My next best option Montana and Montana St

Once I got to eight then I add U Conn and U Mass football only.

Unless something changed, word around Marshall was that EKU turned CUSA down a few days ago.

(10-30-2021 05:54 PM)MUHERD76 Wrote:  

(10-30-2021 09:19 AM)CoastalVANDAL Wrote:  I would try a travel partner strategy for expansion.

NMSU for UTEP perfect travel partners close full members covers two states.

Find a FCS call up close enough to La Tech for full membership.

FIU you probably need to find an olympic only partner unless FAMU wants FBS.

EKU and JSU would be my next travel partners

Then I offer NDSU and SDSU full membership best combo of basketball in football that fits travel partner criteria .
My next best option Montana and Montana St

Once I got to eight then I add U Conn and U Mass football only.

Unless something changed, word around Marshall was that EKU turned CUSA down a few days ago.

Why? Were they not ready? This would likely be their last shot unless the B1G went to 16 in 15 yrs to start another trigger like this.