[Kricket]

There are still a lot of dominoes that are about ready to fall still. Probably a few teams leave the ACC, they steal from the Big East, then C-USA, down to the Sun Belt. The Sun Belt better be proactive in getting it's numbers up to stay alive. I'd say they'd be smart to get to 14 members to prepare for the next wave.

Agreed. if we miss the train this offseason, it could be a long while.

[flamesfilmguy]

If Benson doesn't want to have a legacy of the worst Commish in the history of football conferences(yes even worse than KK) that writes death sentences for his employers, He will invite at LEAST 4 teams. my educated and humble guesses:

1-APP
2-Liberty
3-GASouth/Jax State
4-Lamar/Sam Houston.
5-JMU(if Lamar or Sam Houston don't pan out)

[MCJohansen]

What are the requirements for creating a new conference? I say we just team up with all the eligible teams from Div 1 AA and call it the Outcast conference.

[logic]

If we miss the train at this point, I have no clue what it's going to take...

I was getting ready to post something similar and did not know how to word it. I'm in agreement with you.

I pray this is not the case, but if so, it just goes to show how much we are truly hated in the far left echelons of higher education. The fact that we're doing well financially may be a boon to Benson, but his presidents might find it repulsive.

[BJWilliams]

All the teams would have to be invited to a I-A conference, and pay the requisite exit fee before they could create a new conference (and then I think there is some additional petitioning to the NCAA involved)

[lynchburgwildcats]

If we miss the train at this point, I have no clue what it's going to take...

There is still a whole ton of crap that is going to go on. This conference realignment mess isn't ending anytime soon. Would not be shocked to see one or two current BCS leagues to dissolve, or at least turn into a mid-major league if they still stick around like the Big East is doing. Would not be shocked to see a whole new league form at some point. Obviously can not attest to what league LU could be in, I can't even predict with accuracy what the BCA league schools will be doing a week from now...

[ALAFlamesFan]

Just keep building superior facilities and hiring solid coaches that win games and we will get picked up by someone. Oh, and lets not pretend we haven't shot ourselves in the foot PR wise over the years. All the ridicule isn't completely unwarranted. Folks just need to look past that to who we are now and more importantly where we are headed. #sleepinggiant

[SumItUp]

Look for the next wave of movement to be teams moving from CUSA to the MWC. This will open the door for NMSU & Western Kentucky to officially move to CUSA.

The Sun Belt Conference will continue to be the FCS transition conference.

Arkansas State
Louisiana
Troy
Louisiana-Monroe
South Alabama (new football program)
Georgia State (new football program)
Texas State (transitioning from FCS)

I'm predicting that we will be in the Sun Belt Conference the end of the year along with Appalachian State & Georgia Southern. Other possible additions include Sam Houston State, Lamar, Jacksonville State & James Madison. If James Madison decides to go FBS, however, I think it is more likely they end up in CUSA or the MAC.

[SumItUp]

Just keep building superior facilities and hiring solid coaches that win games and we will get picked up by someone. Oh, and lets not pretend we haven't shot ourselves in the foot PR wise over the years. All the ridicule isn't completely unwarranted. Folks just need to look past that to who we are now and more importantly where we are headed. #sleepinggiant

agreed

[Liberty22]

Saw on the other boards that the guy from FAU tweeting all the info claims Benson himself said the top 4 sun belt teams on his radar were the four posted by SumItUp. All I know is if more teams get called up and we are not one of them, I am gonna be mad as hell

[lynchburgwildcats]

I think the most intriguing part of all this is to see which current BCS league turns into ashes or dissolves next. The crumbling of the Big East into Conference USA 2.0 is the first major conference domino to fall. Big East in a couple years will be nothing more than a mid major conference. Will be a good one for basketball, but overall a mid major conference.

I'm going with the ACC. You don't really see folks trying to bounce from the Big Ten, Pac 12, or SEC. The Big XII seems to be stable at the moment, I've heard nothing recently about teams wanting to leave there, but it would definitely be the second least stable after the ACC. The ACC may survive, but it's looking like it could turn into the defacto "basketball only" league. Sort of how the Big East has been in recent years but even wors at football. I just can't see the football powers staying in that league as long as they are getting a subpar TV contract relative to the other BCS leagues. ACC may get a sweet tv deal for their basketball, but it would be nothing compared to what they could get as a high caliber football conference.

[Purple Haize]

If we miss the train at this point, I have no clue what it's going to take...

Just throwing this out here. But maybe it isn't actually Gods will that we go FBS. Just sayin

[jbock13]

I'm not sure I get the outrage. We all know we're hated by pointy head public college presidents. So why would they vote in a (gasp... evangelical!) Christian school that's way outside the geographical zone?

I would love to go FBS. But I just don't see it happening. But until then, let's continue to build, and hopefully dominate at our level. It'll get someone's attention eventually.

I'm not saying it can happen. I just don't think it's time yet. But number one, may we never compromise what we believe in just to find acceptance in so-called progressive enlightened academia.

[ALAFlamesFan]

Anyone seen our PR folks recently? Or CSA? Maybe we should all retweet the recent NYT article

[Purple Haize]

Anyone seen our PR folks recently? Or CSA? Maybe we should all retweet the recent NYT article

Sly has been around

[SuperJon]

If we miss the train at this point, I have no clue what it's going to take...

I was getting ready to post something similar and did not know how to word it. I'm in agreement with you.

I've stayed quiet on this for most of the conversation. In my opinion, we're years away from getting in. We are in one of the bottom four conferences in Division I. We haven't won a conference championship in a sport that matters in, what, three years? We haven't been to the postseason in a sport that matters since 2004. We continually stick our foot in our mouths and say controversial, politically incorrect things and are proud of it.

Other than pretty facilities and an unlimited budget, what do we bring to a league?

[Purple Haize]

SJ which goes back to my point...

[ALAFlamesFan]

If we miss the train at this point, I have no clue what it's going to take...

I was getting ready to post something similar and did not know how to word it. I'm in agreement with you.

I've stayed quiet on this for most of the conversation. In my opinion, we're years away from getting in. We are in one of the bottom four conferences in Division I. We haven't won a conference championship in a sport that matters in, what, three years? We haven't been to the postseason in a sport that matters since 2004. We continually stick our foot in our mouths and say controversial, politically incorrect things and are proud of it.

Other than pretty facilities and an unlimited budget, what do we bring to a league?

Potentially lots of eyeballs especially if you can get the online students to engage at even a fraction of the level on campus students would. Not that that overcomes the baggage...

[ballah09]

If we miss the train at this point, I have no clue what it's going to take...

I was getting ready to post something similar and did not know how to word it. I'm in agreement with you.

I've stayed quiet on this for most of the conversation. In my opinion, we're years away from getting in. We are in one of the bottom four conferences in Division I. We haven't won a conference championship in a sport that matters in, what, three years? We haven't been to the postseason in a sport that matters since 2004. We continually stick our foot in our mouths and say controversial, politically incorrect things and are proud of it.

Other than pretty facilities and an unlimited budget, what do we bring to a league?

this.

if Liberty gets left behind you can thank their politics. not because they are evangelical. I posted links way back that BYU and Baylor aren't any different in what they teach/social views compared to Liberty.

I just hope one day Liberty realize they can still be evangelical w/o the politics.

[logic]

The SBC fans certainly don't care for us. It would be an epic failure to miss this round of expansion.

[rogers3]

Politics or not, from a higher ed perspective:

Grand Canyon, for profit, traded on NASDAQ, large online presence is less attractive than a non-profit school with similar profile but a much larger audience. I agree about the stupid political statements, though, and hate to see the law school look more like a political apparatus than a law school (from the public's point of view). The fact the Stony Brook was willing to align with us in a conference, even if it is for expediency sake, shows that their are more important things to a school than politics and educational quality. Heck, Stony Brook has a better academic reputation than any school in the Sun Belt or C-USA.

[Purple Haize]

The SBC fans certainly don't care for us. It would be an epic failure to miss this round of expansion.

Or a sign its not Gods will......

[Liberty22]

The SBC fans certainly don't care for us. It would be an epic failure to miss this round of expansion.

Or a sign its not Gods will......

No the world will hate Christ followers because they first hated Him, I don't see their anger as a sign that this is not His will. We will know when we know, unless we never get in. In that case we will know it is not His will..

[bluedevilflame]

If we miss the train at this point, I have no clue what it's going to take...

I was getting ready to post something similar and did not know how to word it. I'm in agreement with you.

I've stayed quiet on this for most of the conversation. In my opinion, we're years away from getting in. We are in one of the bottom four conferences in Division I. We haven't won a conference championship in a sport that matters in, what, three years? We haven't been to the postseason in a sport that matters since 2004. We continually stick our foot in our mouths and say controversial, politically incorrect things and are proud of it.

Other than pretty facilities and an unlimited budget, what do we bring to a league?

Been thinking that ever since we started this process. We want to be BYU and ND, but do you ever see them being laughed at in the news for some ridiculous non sense someone has spouted off? We need to stick to our mission and stick our noses out of everything else.

[LUconn]

What do we bring to a league besides money and facilities?

1st, you cannot understate the money. It's pretty important.
The commitment of that money to sports and how willing we are to pump it in. This has nothing to do with our academics or politics or religion. Presidents may have a distaste for all of ours but their love for money is far greater.