(05-05-2012 08:17 AM)arkstfan Wrote:  A possible reason to drag out expansion is logistical.

If App and GaSouth are the teams and all follow the GaSt timeline the likely East division is those three, FAU, Troy and USA.

The three transitioning schools would count as FBS opponents for the other Sun Belt members but transition teams I don't believe can count other transition team as FBS opponents. Without going to the Manual, I'm not sure if that is specifically in the Manual or whether it came from a policy determination letter by the NCAA.

Each of them would need five home games. Four have to be countable home games vs FBS and one can be an FCS game. In 2013 division mates Troy USA and FAU could count them toward their four FBS but GaSt, GaSouth, App would have to count home games against each other as FCS.

In an 8 game schedule you'd normally play 5 division games and three crossover. So everyone gets four home games. The problem is of those four home games each transition team would get either one or two games they'd have to count as an FCS. They would then have to find either one or two FBS non-conference home games for 2013.

To make it work, unless one or more of the three were to find a willing home non-conference opponent, you would have to scrap divisions in 2013 and hand build a schedule that either did not have Ga.St, GaSouth, App playing each other or only featured a team that had secured a home game against a non-conference FBS hosting one of the other two.

That would also preclude playing a championship game in 2013.