[TH Spangler]

UTEP, Rice and UTSA to the MWC?

The rumor was that UTEP was approached by MWC to join along with Utah St. UTEP choose to stay in CUSA with Texas connections (Houston, SMU, Rice, Tulsa) opening the door for San Jose St. to join. Rumor primarily from MWC Board from people presumably in the know. The realignment thing was very much a fluid situation and turned several different ways in hours it seemed like. When SMU, Houston and later Tulsa bolted, UTEP was left holding the bag

Second rumor has been that UTEP received offer to join and would accept in 2015 once all the money from the CUSA exodus was divided up. CUSA schools that jumped to AAC were able to pay their exit fees in payments. Those payments are due at the end of this year apparently. Remaining CUSA schools are getting a rather healthy windfall from bowl games, ncaa credits, exit fees etc. UTEP would presumably use this windfall to pay entrance into MWC.

Rumor 3 has been that not only will UTEP join MWC but that Rice and UTSA will join along with them. There was verified meeting between MWC commish and those 3 schools along with N. Texas I guess about 2 years ago. Its a long held belief that MWC wants the exposure in Texas.

If JMU passes on the Sun Belt maybe they are waiting for the next CUSA shake up?

[Chris Lang]

The funny thing is that the Mountain West only exists because the 16-team WAC got too bloated with schools in Texas, thus necessitating the split back in the 90s. History repeating, etc.

[JakeP50]

Hopefully this doesn't restart the whole realignment process all over again. The MWC and C-USA are big enough to start the domino effect like Nebraska to the B1G did.

[JakeP50]

Hopefully it does. That would be the best thing that could happen to us. We could find ourselves in a much better situation. I'd much rather be in a league with ODU, Charlotte, and JMU than Louisiana-Lafayette, Georgia State, and Troy.

C-USA would be 100x better than the Sun Belt, probably not as many uneducated haters who put LU in the same vein as Westboro. With the Catholic schools that were members before they joined the old Big East they might be a little more open-minded to working with a religious university.
I was just worried about this starting more shakeup in the power conferences, that was hard enough to follow the last time it happened.

[Humble_Opinion]

Any shakeup at the top at this point would mean our phone ringing pretty quickly and I tend to think it might be more than just the SBC calling... If you're in favor of LU moving to what was formerly known as the FBS, then you support further realignment.

[JakeP50]

Any shakeup at the top at this point would mean our phone ringing pretty quickly and I tend to think it might be more than just the SBC calling.

American? C-USA? MAC? or one of the power conferences?

[SumItUp]

I'm excited about the potential opportunity in the Sun Belt. I like the schools. Football and Baseball are good in the SB. If it is the only option, it would be a good one. I'm not against options, but the Sun Belt would be a great move.

[Humble_Opinion]

Any shakeup at the top at this point would mean our phone ringing pretty quickly and I tend to think it might be more than just the SBC calling.

American? C-USA? MAC? or one of the power conferences?

C-USA and maybe the MAC. But mainly the C-USA.

I'm excited about the potential opportunity in the Sun Belt. I like the schools. Football and Baseball are good in the SB. If it is the only option, it would be a good one. I'm not against options, but the Sun Belt would be a great move.

Athletically speaking, I agree with you. Conference alignment has a lot to do with Academics though, and from that vantage point the SBC move would be okay. C-USA would be better.

[LUaddict]

SBC is our only option at this point., unless there is a catastrophic shakeup in realignment, like it is rumored to be, none of the other G5 want nothing to do with us. They want nothing to do with us for many reasons that have been discussed as nauseum, Plain and Simple.

I know the posters are on SBC board are not the decision makers, I'm hope JR is doing a good job at seeing the pluses LU has to offer. The way it's going on that board, they seem to obviously dislike us. Some of them have an axe to grind, some don't, some have welcomed us graciously, and some have not. I know it's natural to want to defend yourself and your beliefs, when you feel attacked, but some things being said by fellow LU posters in attempting to defend yourself is only antagonizing them even more. We have one some of them over, either because some have settled down with their agenda or others have accepted that we are not going away until a decision is made on a invitation. We can't win them over with some of the rhetoric being used by other LU posters or because they just plain don't like LU and for what it stands for.

I know it's a message board, but if your being attacked, try to make us sounds like fit into that silly caricature they paint us to be. If you share your personal religious/political perspective, they will dislike you. If they attack you and you retaliate, they will also dislike you. We're screwed with them no matter what. Your're all adult men and women, take it easy. Go ahead and judge me because of my rhetoric, I just felt like I had to say it.

[Sly Fox]

These rumors have been out there for at least a year. UTEP to the MWC has made too much sense for far too long to not eventually happen. The word here in Texas was the exit & entry fees made it cost prohibitive for a school that is not exactly flush with cash. UTEP moving with UTSA and/or North Texas were openly discussed during the last round before the latter two joined C-USA. Rice is the new development. I have a hard time seeing them interested in heading back to the MWC. They are rumored to be near the top of the AAC expansion target list. And the Owls have already experienced being in a far-flung western league that none of their alumni give a rip about. I see them sticking in C-USA before making the leap. UTEP & UTSA makes much more sense even though they are 550 miles apart. The Roadrunners have no real connections with any schools other than Texas State of the Sun Belt. And the UT System is essentially the Austin campus and then everybody else a distant afterthought.

[jlread]

Is this a valid source??

http://www.hustlebelt.com/2014/4/2/5539 ... on-options


it's also pretty much locked in as the Sun Belt's newest member. A source close to the Flames' athletic director tells me the deal is pretty much done between the two parties, meaning Liberty could be off the market very soon.

[Purple Haize]

Is this a valid source??

http://www.hustlebelt.com/2014/4/2/5539 ... on-options


it's also pretty much locked in as the Sun Belt's newest member. A source close to the Flames' athletic director tells me the deal is pretty much done between the two parties, meaning Liberty could be off the market very soon.

Your rants make me think this could help you

[youtube]

[/youtube]

[LUaddict]

Is this a valid source??

http://www.hustlebelt.com/2014/4/2/5539 ... on-options


it's also pretty much locked in as the Sun Belt's newest member. A source close to the Flames' athletic director tells me the deal is pretty much done between the two parties, meaning Liberty could be off the market very soon.

Does anyone know if there is any truth to it, are we finally invited? I also saw that Jake Shellenberger is following the Sun Belt Insider on twitter, the insider asked him to inbox him when he got the tweet. Is he the AD insider that might have tipped off the public? Who knows, I hope we are invited, not trying to get my hopes up, but I'm a lil excited if it's true. Feels true with all the articles that have been mentioning us, all the flight JR has been making, the silence from JMU (snubbed SBC), and other smoke we have seen.

[LUaddict]

Is this a valid source??

http://www.hustlebelt.com/2014/4/2/5539 ... on-options


it's also pretty much locked in as the Sun Belt's newest member. A source close to the Flames' athletic director tells me the deal is pretty much done between the two parties, meaning Liberty could be off the market very soon.

Does anyone know if there is any truth to it, are we finally invited? , I hope we are invited, not trying to get my hopes up, but I'm a lil excited if it's true. Feels true with all the articles that have been mentioning us, all the flights JR has been making, the silence from JMU (snubbed SBC), and other smoke we have seen.

[jlread]

Is this a valid source??

http://www.hustlebelt.com/2014/4/2/5539 ... on-options


it's also pretty much locked in as the Sun Belt's newest member. A source close to the Flames' athletic director tells me the deal is pretty much done between the two parties, meaning Liberty could be off the market very soon.

Your rants make me think this could help you

Topic closed.... No more dutchiezzz. :/

[jcmanson]

Everyone calm down. The world will keep spinning if we get invited. The world will also keep spinning if we don't. Everything will be ok.

[Purple Haize]

Everyone calm down. The world will keep spinning if we get invited. The world will also keep spinning if we don't. Everything will be ok.

Oh, I thought it was spinning from last night.....

[VAGolf]

http://tinyurl.com/y8ufsnp

Sun Belt presidents held an impromptu meeting at 3am Thursday and voted to accept Liberty University.

[ATrain]

Everyone calm down. The world will keep spinning if we get invited. The world will also keep spinning if we don't. Everything will be ok.

Oh, I thought it was spinning from last night.....

No, the sun goes around the earth...if this were the age of Galileo, you'd both be prosecuted by the all-knowing Church for heresy.

[JakeP50]

REALLY!? VA REALLY!?

[Purple Haize]

Everyone calm down. The world will keep spinning if we get invited. The world will also keep spinning if we don't. Everything will be ok.

Oh, I thought it was spinning from last night.....

No, the sun goes around the earth...if this were the age of Galileo, you'd both be prosecuted by the all-knowing Church for heresy.

Whew... I thought it was the mojito's

[Purple Haize]

REALLY!? VA REALLY!?

Didn't you check out the link?

[JakeP50]

REALLY!? VA REALLY!?

Didn't you check out the link?

I'm not usually suspicious of a tinyurl link. It seemed legit

[thepostman]

You should b suspicious of everything.

[flamesfilmguy]

I knew it was coming. and I didn't care. clicked and listened to the whole thing. That song is awesome.