[Sly Fox]

--Samford and SoCon? - SoCon officials, including commissioner John Iamarino, were in Birmingham, Ala., on Thursday visiting the campus of Samford University in what could be a prelude to an invitation to Samford to leave the Ohio Valley and join the SoCon. Samford would provide a 12th basketball team and a ninth football team, relieving scheduling problems in both sports. Samford would become the fifth private school in the league, joining Furman, Wofford, Elon and Davidson. We can only surmise that this means the SoCon prefers Samford over another potential member, Coastal Carolina of the Big South.

http://www.charleston.net/assets/webPag ... =1/19/2007

[LUconn]

...........

[Libertine]

I don't think this is unexpected even by the Coastal people. There's some who think that the SoCon will have a second round of expansion around 2010 and CCU will get the invite then.
Personally, I think that Coastal making the playoffs and the rest of the Big South becoming competitive has actually hurt Coastal's chances of getting into the SoCon by themselves.[/i]

[Sly Fox]

I agree, Lib. Obviously this ultimately benefits both LU and the Big South to keep them around.

[Sly Fox]

There is some resistance down in Alabama:

Mike Perrin: Inside State Colleges



Samford should shy away from SoCon's advances

Tuesday, January 16, 2007

The wooing of Samford University athletics officially begins Thursday.

The question is how easily can Samford be swayed? Can the prospect of entering that exclusive Southern Conference club be spurned?

Don't get all giddy, Samford. Just say no.

A group of Southern Conference officials, including Commissioner John Iamarino, will visit the Samford campus to talk with President Andrew Westmoreland and others involved in athletics decision-making.

Samford and SoCon folks say the visit is preliminary work where each can feel out the other about a possible marriage down the road. It's fairly apparent, though, that if the Southern Conference weren't serious about plucking Samford away from the Ohio Valley this group wouldn't be stopping by.

Samford Athletics Director Bob Roller says the SoCon initiated this flirtation and no invitation is assured. Last year, the OVC did the same with Tennessee-Chattanooga.

UTC decided to stay put and word around both leagues was the Southern Conference made assurances it would try to find a new member close to Chattanooga to serve as a travel partner. Samford should do what's best for Samford - not what makes Chattanooga and the Southern Conference feel better.

The SoCon had its chance to invite Samford before the Bulldogs joined the OVC.

Roller could barely get a call-back then, although it was before Iamarino was with the league.

The financial commitment to get into the Spartanburg, S.C., based conference is substantial. Even with four other private schools in the SoCon, Samford's athletics budget would be closer to the bottom than the top.

There's no way to predict what Sullivan and his staff will do in the short-term, but it's not going out on a limb to say for the next couple of years the Bulldogs have a better shot at the playoffs going through the Ohio Valley.

Jimmy Tillette and women's coach Mike Morris are close to breaking into the NCAA basketball tournaments as well.

Iamarino and Roller agree that there are two main points that make the SoCon attractive. The Southern Conference has an awesome tradition, built by being the fifth-oldest athletic league in Division I. All the schools currently in the Southeastern Conference, except Arkansas, were once members of the SoCon.

Secondly, those four private schools in the Southern Conference - Elon, Furman, Wofford and Davidson, plus state-supported The Citadel that operates much like a private school - are closer in their academic mission to Samford.

Point of pride:

Samford is on an island as the only private school in the OVC. In some ways, mostly in recruiting, this is a disadvantage. However, the tougher academic requirements should also be a point of pride for Samford and the league.

OVC Commissioner Jon Steinbrecher said after Samford evaluates what it hears from the SoCon, he will counter with what his league can do. One action item on the agenda should be making changes in football and basketball scheduling to accommodate the OVC's two Alabama members.

Rivals Samford and Jacksonville State should always end their football seasons with their version of the Iron Bowl. The basketball schedule adopted for next season has Samford finishing at Eastern Illinois - the farthest outpost from Alabama - on Saturday night with the tournament opening the following Tuesday. Definitely not ideal.

The OVC should get aggressive in adding a member or two, too, like East Tennessee State if it brings back football and West Georgia if it jumps from DivisionII.

Down the road, if Samford wants to try the SoCon, maybe there will be better reasons than status.

News staff writer Mike Perrin covers state colleges. Write him at mperrin@bhamnews.com.

http://www.al.com/sports/birminghamnews ... thispage=1

[Cider Jim]

Any chance of getting Samford to join the Big South? Isn't another Alabama school--Birmingham Southern--also in our conference as an associate member? They would seem to be a closer "traveling partner" than UTC.

[A.G.]

Birmingham Southern is dropping all sports to D-III, and will no longer be a member at all. Besides, why would any school ever leave the OVC for the big south. That would be nuts.

[ATrain]

Not entirely, if Birmingham-Southern were staying and Samford wanted an easier road to the playoffs, the Big South could make sense for them. They'd be the 6th school, which would probably get us an auto-bid in 2 years. They'd also have a close travel partner and natural rival in Birmingham-Southern. However, with the Panthers stepping down, basically there's no sense in them joining us.

[Cider Jim]

why would any school ever leave the OVC for the big south. That would be nuts.

Well, VMI left the Southern Conference to join the Big South.

I bet if Longwood had a football team, the Big South would welcome them with open arms.

[Sly Fox]

Samford has been suggested as a possible Big South expansion target probably for a decade in a possible bid to bring Jacksonville State along with them. But that ship has sailed a long time ago.

Despite the columnist's opposition and the apparent lack of enthusiasm by SoCon fans, this appears to be all but a done deal.

[ATrain]

Yeah, if Longwood had football I think they'd be welcomed in...but they don't even have volleyball. However, they do have Rugby and Field Hockey

[bigsmooth]

anything to keep the big south intact right now is a good move.