Anything and everything about Liberty Flames football. Your comments on games, recruiting and the direction of the program as we move into new era.

Moderators: jcmanson, Sly Fox, BuryYourDuke, Class of 20Something

#627979
I don’t think it was as big a step up at the time, but even after LU was gone, the BEC continued its downward trend. So the step looks bigger now.

What is difficult for the ASUN now is convincing recruits who could take another ASUN program to the next level that it can be done with a juggernaut like LU in the conference. Maybe not all rising tides raise boats? Some sink?
#627980
olldflame wrote: June 26th, 2021, 6:46 pm
JK37 wrote: June 26th, 2021, 4:10 pm
olldflame wrote: June 26th, 2021, 1:40 pm

Selling athletes on "the LU experience and culture" is what our coaches (in all sports) need to be doing every day, starting with their first recruiting contact. I think they all are (to various extent and with various degrees of success). Ian needs to have Ritchie McKay facilitate an in-service on this for all of his peers. Carey Green and his staff need to sit in the front row.
You don’t think the WBB staff sells the LU experience and culture?
I think they try. It appears that not all of the players are buying.
I’m still trying to understand this…

Are you saying that student-athletes are coming into the program who don’t buy into the LU experience and culture, or…

Are you saying there is talent out there who should be bought into the culture but are choosing not to attend LU?
#627986
If you weren't so enamored with your road trips to Florida you would realize that the ASUN is really not much of a step up.
[/quote]

The addition of Jacksonville State, Central Arkansas and Eastern Kentucky strengthens the ASUN, even farther beyond the BSC.

Jacksonville, Atlanta, Ft Myers and Nashville, are better than Farmville, Radford, Buies Creek and Boiling Springs.
#627990
ballcoach15 wrote: June 27th, 2021, 1:44 pm If you weren't so enamored with your road trips to Florida you would realize that the ASUN is really not much of a step up.
The addition of Jacksonville State, Central Arkansas and Eastern Kentucky strengthens the ASUN, even farther beyond the BSC.

Jacksonville, Atlanta, Ft Myers and Nashville, are better than Farmville, Radford, Buies Creek and Boiling Springs.
[/quote]

They are also a lot farther away. Not everyone is in a position to travel 1500 miles round trip for road games on a regular basis. We needed to leave the BSC primarily because we had "outstayed our welcome" with schools who were frustrated about being dominated by a school with far superior resources. It's starting to happen in the ASUN now. I give it 3 to 6 more years and we will be in the same situation again.
Ill flame, LUOrange liked this
#627991
That may or may not happen. But if it does, we move on. I will say this though, classier group of schools this time round with the ASUN. Never trusted the small-time mentality of the "big" south charter members. We stayed there far too long. Any decent school that ever joined didn't stay very long. That should tell you something right there.
ballcoach15, phoenix liked this
#627992
paradox wrote: June 27th, 2021, 5:31 pm That may or may not happen. But if it does, we move on. I will say this though, classier group of schools this time round with the ASUN. Never trusted the small-time mentality of the "big" south charter members. We stayed there far too long. Any decent school that ever joined didn't stay very long. That should tell you something right there.
I guess by that definition, Liberty is not "decent". We were a member for 27 years. Coastal was for 31. Winthrop is now at 38. The only really solid schools that fit your scenario would be UNCG and Davidson. Both left for the Southern (which is exactly what Liberty would have done in a heartbeat given the opportunity). None of the others were any great loss.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not a fan of the BSC, and that goes double for their commissioner, but I said when we left that although it needed to happen, the ASUN was not the huge step up some were making it out to be. I haven't changed my mind on that one.
LUOrange liked this
#627995
olldflame wrote: June 27th, 2021, 4:53 pm We needed to leave the BSC primarily because we had "outstayed our welcome" with schools who were frustrated about being dominated by a school with far superior resources. It's starting to happen in the ASUN now. I give it 3 to 6 more years and we will be in the same situation again.
We are already there. The frustration with our resources is evident everywhere you look around the ASUN. It may not be overt at the moment, but it is evident at all of the schools before the three football schools arrived. We have essentially become a road block to an auto bid in nearly every sport for the other ASUN schools.
LUOrange liked this
#628001
Sly Fox wrote: June 27th, 2021, 10:07 pm
olldflame wrote: June 27th, 2021, 4:53 pm We needed to leave the BSC primarily because we had "outstayed our welcome" with schools who were frustrated about being dominated by a school with far superior resources. It's starting to happen in the ASUN now. I give it 3 to 6 more years and we will be in the same situation again.
We are already there. The frustration with our resources is evident everywhere you look around the ASUN. It may not be overt at the moment, but it is evident at all of the schools before the three football schools arrived. We have essentially become a road block to an auto bid in nearly every sport for the other ASUN schools.
Unfortunately this will be a problem in any conference we join short of the AAC. Unless we start winning games in the NCAA tourney and bringing fat checks to the rest of the conference, schools will get more and more upset with the current arrangement.
#628008
This is exactly the point, we anticipate the BSC treatment. But the ASUN is different. They don't have this core network of teams that have been washing each other's hands since the early 80s.

Someone told me when we finally left in 2018 that something like 29 of the 33 tourney championships went to these four or five core schools. We got three of those, approximately every 10 years. Crazy. Maybe it's all legit. Still not comfortable with it though. And I'll always believe that we should've won our first year in...and that was an ominous sign.

An outsider does not come in and dominate that tiny little conference. We couldn't do it. Tried forever, though. Towson looked dominant...they didn't stay long. Same with Greensboro.
#628017
I don’t quite understand. So y’all are saying in the BSC all the schools worked together to share titles and keep liberty from winning. However the ASUN schools are not against Liberty yet. But the ASUN schools will soon work against Liberty because we are so dominant and have better resources that seem unfair?

I am a current LU student so not old enough to know all the history. Thanks! GoFlames 🔥
#628018
Opinions vary. But I think we landed in a good spot with the ASUN. The bad stuff is in the rear view mirror. Some think that the ASUN will turn sour on us like the BSC. I just think they expect it because they're used to it...we stayed in the BSC for far too long. Bad place to be. Good 'ol boys network. Glad it's over.
Liberty_2023 liked this
#628023
LU's football, baseball, softball and basketball facilities are far better than anyone's in ASUN.
At beginning of softball season, I was told the 4 Florida schools got together and told ASUN conference they did not have enough money to come to Lynchburg for games. ASUN bowed down to them and put softball tournament at Kennesaw State. I expect to see more move s like this in the future, in all sports.
When ASUN divided into 2 divisions , Liberty was placed in same division as Florida schools, it appears. I guess they found some travel money.
LUOrange liked this
#628028
Regardless,

kids will do what they think is best for them. Money? Future options? Current status?
We had a great WBB and football player leave. And, others. Not everyone will be happy where they are at. After-all, much of the collegiate experience is about finding yourself. The chance of leaving is always there.
I can only speak for football but it certainly appears we have the proper staff in place to put young athletes in a position to succeed much more so than other schools. That alone should keep many here. If the student feels our culture we are good but not everyone will.
I am not sure there is a way to "fix" the portal problem other than to be genuine and allow grace for a student athlete to find their place in this world.
LUOrange, Baybird, PAmedic liked this
#628030
CCWMichael wrote: June 28th, 2021, 8:04 pm If the student feels our culture we are good but not everyone will.
I am not sure there is a way to "fix" the portal problem other than to be genuine and allow grace for a student athlete to find their place in this world.
This is the best way this has been put here. Not every kid we recruit will be a fit for Liberty. If they choose to leave because of that then we should thank them for their time and encourage them wherever they go.
#628035
Until the P5s get close to filling up, the G5s & Indies typically have less commitments. Complicated the situation is the fact that this year's class didn't have the access to unofficials due to the pandemic. As a result, this summer was the first time most have had any ability to get a feel for what they are being offered. We have offered a bunch of big fish that likely will not be headed our way. So then we start opening up additional offers.

I suspect we will get another group of commitments in August and then a few as they come off their official visits in the fall.

With the super seniors situation, it is unclear exactly how many scholarships we have to offer right now.
ballcoach15, LUOrange liked this
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