Southern Conference targets VMI, ETSU, Mercer
During a conference call Thursday that lasted about 20 minutes, the Southern Conference made major progress toward adding new members to replace the departing College of Charleston, Appalachian State and Georgia Southern.
Commissioner John Iamarino was upbeat during a post-meeting phone interview. He said the presidents and chancellors selected three schools for campus visits.
According to sources familiar with the SoCon's membership search, those three schools are Virginia Military Institute, Mercer and East Tennessee State.
VMI (1924-2003) and ETSU (1978-2005) are former full members of the SoCon, and VMI remains an associate member in wrestling. The Keydets already play football, while ETSU is restarting its program -- dropping the sport was why it had to leave the league -- and Mercer is bringing football back after a 70-year break.
Mercer, which will play in the nonscholarship Pioneer League this fall, is coached by former Furman player and coach Bobby Lamb.
No invitations will be issued during the visits, Iamarino said. The visits, which will last half a day, will take place before the SoCon's annual spring meetings at the end of the month in Hilton Head, S.C.
"It's part of the process to consider whether or not to take the next step, which would be to issue a formal invitation," the commissioner said of the visits
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