https://twitter.com/fcs_stats/status/168...E0_xipAVQw

Big South might be SOL

About to post this. Apparently was announced yesterday

https://www.bryantbulldogs.com/sports/fb...0809it8xo5

Somewhat out of the blue, but it makes sense in that it gives the CAA an even number of FB members. This doesn't affect the Big South, since their remaining FB programs are already in the OVC.

I posted this on the AE board, but this is really, really interesting.

CAA Football is, obviously, an independent entity from the CAA proper. But, the CAA schools have a plurality of the football voting bloc. CAA Football, after the initial creation brought in "outsiders," has not previously added any members that were not full CAA members. Is this a sign of CAA/America East detente? The CAA is helping AE by providing a home to its one football playing member that isn't in CAA Football, and the CAA is now not pursuing expansion at AE's expense? Or, now that CAAF is at 16, is it a sign that any future CAA proper expansion will come from within the football league (Albany?)?

Probably the pods will be something like this:

NEW ENGLAND: Maine, New Hampshire, Bryant, Rhode Island
METRO: Stony Brook, Albany, Monmouth, Villanova
MID ATLANTIC: Delaware, Towson, William & Mary, Richmond
SOUTH: Elon, Campbell, NC A&T, Hampton

This still separates Villanova and Delaware, but unless there was a magic school located between Philadelphia and Washington DC, that was probably inevitable.

(08-10-2023 09:25 AM)ccd494 Wrote:  I posted this on the AE board, but this is really, really interesting.

CAA Football is, obviously, an independent entity from the CAA proper. But, the CAA schools have a plurality of the football voting bloc. CAA Football, after the initial creation brought in "outsiders," has not previously added any members that were not full CAA members. Is this a sign of CAA/America East detente? The CAA is helping AE by providing a home to its one football playing member that isn't in CAA Football, and the CAA is now not pursuing expansion at AE's expense? Or, now that CAAF is at 16, is it a sign that any future CAA proper expansion will come from within the football league (Albany?)?

Probably the pods will be something like this:

NEW ENGLAND: Maine, New Hampshire, Bryant, Rhode Island
METRO: Stony Brook, Albany, Monmouth, Villanova
MID ATLANTIC: Delaware, Towson, William & Mary, Richmond
SOUTH: Elon, Campbell, NC A&T, Hampton

This still separates Villanova and Delaware, but unless there was a magic school located between Philadelphia and Washington DC, that was probably inevitable.

That or a fourth NC school

CAA official release:

https://caasports.com/news/2023/8/9/caa-...-2024.aspx

Unreal that Bryant now has top level FCS football.

CAA
Southern
MVC
UAC
Big Sky

That is like the P5 of FCS.

That was nice of them to throw Bryant a lifeline and get them out of the OVC+Big South alliance

Probably will stick with 3+5 scheduling format without the hard pods since it's hard to get Delaware and Villanova together that way

I presume the Big South schools will more or less be permanent affiliates of the OVC in football, unless if they decide to hook up with the ASUN again.

A 16 member FCS conference? The CAA ought to sponsor football and let the others play under the Big South banner.

I remember when CAA fans criticized the Big Sky for being so large (14 teams)

Maybe if the Pac absorbs the MWC, the MWC could sell their NCAAT autobid to the CAA, which could then split into two conferences.

(08-10-2023 10:46 AM)chargeradio Wrote:  I presume the Big South schools will more or less be permanent affiliates of the OVC in football, unless if they decide to hook up with the ASUN again.

Yeah it's really just 2 Big South Schools at this point. Robert Morris is Horizon league

(08-10-2023 12:37 PM)solohawks Wrote:  

(08-10-2023 10:46 AM)chargeradio Wrote:  I presume the Big South schools will more or less be permanent affiliates of the OVC in football, unless if they decide to hook up with the ASUN again.

Yeah it's really just 2 Big South Schools at this point. Robert Morris is Horizon league

I wonder if the MVFC will take Roebert Morris in. Youngstown State is in the Horizon League with Robert Morris. It might make sense.

(08-10-2023 12:48 PM)andybible1995 Wrote:  

(08-10-2023 12:37 PM)solohawks Wrote:  

(08-10-2023 10:46 AM)chargeradio Wrote:  I presume the Big South schools will more or less be permanent affiliates of the OVC in football, unless if they decide to hook up with the ASUN again.

Yeah it's really just 2 Big South Schools at this point. Robert Morris is Horizon league

I wonder if the MVFC will take Roebert Morris in. Youngstown State is in the Horizon League with Robert Morris. It might make sense.

No.

I feel like Bryant will be the recipient of a lot of best downs. The CAA is a pretty tough FCS league.

(08-10-2023 11:36 AM)AssKickingChicken Wrote:  A 16 member FCS conference? The CAA ought to sponsor football and let the others play under the Big South banner.

If the 8 southern most schools played as "The Big South" wouldn't both that group and the CAAF get autobids to the FCS playoffs? Besides having a deep bench in the face of potential FBS call-ups, what is the advantage to having an FCS league with that many schools?

The autobid piece doesn't matter. It's a multi-bid league. Any team that is good enough to win its division is going to get a bid. Do there need to be 16 teams? Absolutely not. Is it going to meaningfully change playoff access? Not really.

If Delaware leaves for FBS? That would not matter if Villanova be with them anymore. Who would they grab next? Delaware State? North Carolina Central? Robert Morris? Gardner-Webb?

(08-10-2023 10:05 AM)Garden_KC Wrote:  Unreal that Bryant now has top level FCS football.

CAA
Southern
MVC
UAC
Big Sky

That is like the P5 of FCS.

Now do the bottom five conferences of FCS