(12-20-2022 11:03 AM)rileylives Wrote:  WKU needs to break the bond they have with MTSU.

I could see WKU in the Sun Belt, IDK about MTSU.

WKU is a lot like Southern Miss and Marshall. They do a lot with less, not in a "market," and have good Football and Basketball.

MTSU wants to replace Memphis in the American. Yawn. If WKU wants to join the 'Belt, I'm actually OK with that. WKU would have to play MTSU non-conference, but MTSU is so infatuated with the American conference, I doubt that they would be willing to do that with WKU until they are in the American. Funny thing is that East Carolina, one of the American's powerhouses, wants out of the American and into the Belt. Hmmm.

(12-23-2022 01:10 AM)DawgNBama Wrote:  

(12-20-2022 11:03 AM)rileylives Wrote:  WKU needs to break the bond they have with MTSU.

I could see WKU in the Sun Belt, IDK about MTSU.

WKU is a lot like Southern Miss and Marshall. They do a lot with less, not in a "market," and have good Football and Basketball.

MTSU wants to replace Memphis in the American. Yawn. If WKU wants to join the 'Belt, I'm actually OK with that. WKU would have to play MTSU non-conference, but MTSU is so infatuated with the American conference, I doubt that they would be willing to do that with WKU until they are in the American. Funny thing is that East Carolina, one of the American's powerhouses, wants out of the American and into the Belt. Hmmm.

I don't think East Carolina would think about the Sun Belt unless the ESPN contract were tore up, and that could definitely happen if they had to dumpster dive for programs like MTSU.

The AAC have already done enough dumpster diving with some of the programs they took on, so they're on shaky ground.

East Carolina and WKU for 16 team Sun Belt would be pretty nice. But I don't know if the Sun Belt Western block would want WKU with how the last round of realignment went down.

We oughta snag South Florida and Memphis, f ECU, they were shady as hell prior to exiting CUSA. They are the reason for some of those pathetic adds we had, knowing they were gone.

(12-23-2022 01:03 PM)rileylives Wrote:  

(12-23-2022 01:10 AM)DawgNBama Wrote:  

(12-20-2022 11:03 AM)rileylives Wrote:  WKU needs to break the bond they have with MTSU.

I could see WKU in the Sun Belt, IDK about MTSU.

WKU is a lot like Southern Miss and Marshall. They do a lot with less, not in a "market," and have good Football and Basketball.

MTSU wants to replace Memphis in the American. Yawn. If WKU wants to join the 'Belt, I'm actually OK with that. WKU would have to play MTSU non-conference, but MTSU is so infatuated with the American conference, I doubt that they would be willing to do that with WKU until they are in the American. Funny thing is that East Carolina, one of the American's powerhouses, wants out of the American and into the Belt. Hmmm.

I don't think East Carolina would think about the Sun Belt unless the ESPN contract were tore up, and that could definitely happen if they had to dumpster dive for programs like MTSU.

The AAC have already done enough dumpster diving with some of the programs they took on, so they're on shaky ground.

East Carolina and WKU for 16 team Sun Belt would be pretty nice. But I don't know if the Sun Belt Western block would want WKU with how the last round of realignment went down.

I'll save you some time wondering. We don't. Maybe if it came down to them or latech we would consider WKU but that's about it.

Even though it probably worked out for the best, I think our admins having a difference of opinion on the MAC move has likely ended any allegiance we have to each other. WKU would leave MTSU behind, MTSU would do the same to us.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

So much for the cup

We DON'T need to expand. 14 teams is perfect. The regional rivalries are perfect.

Never WKU. Never MTSU. Never LaTech.

(12-23-2022 07:11 PM)TrojansOneandAll Wrote:  We DON'T need to expand. 14 teams is perfect. The regional rivalries are perfect.

Never WKU. Never MTSU. Never LaTech.

Never any teams that creates a smaller slice of pie. We only want the ones that create a bigger total pie. ECU and/or Memphis could create a larger overall payout.

Mostly programs that we can't get are the only ones we should be willing to expand for. Anyone that would jump on board and benefit, immediately, isn't going to add to the total.

(12-23-2022 04:12 PM)IslandHerd1 Wrote:  We oughta snag South Florida and Memphis, f ECU, they were shady as hell prior to exiting CUSA. They are the reason for some of those pathetic adds we had, knowing they were gone.

They didn't know they were gone anymore than CUSA teams knew we were gone last year, till we were. When WVU and TCU threw out lifelines to leave immediately and Louisville announced they were leaving the following year, plus Boise and San Diego retracted, the Big East had to act fast. They grabbed Navy, ECU, Tulane, and Tulsa very last minute. Till that moment those three were as stuck in CUSA 3.0 as we were. What were they going to say, no? They were joining a BCS league with huge money payouts. But after Louisville left, too, there was no bigtime anchor to hold it together and the basketball schools left, too. They became the AAC and they lost a ton of revenue over what they were making and were not considered for autonomy in the new playoff system.

Funny thing is I told UCF fans that they would never play a down in the conference with WVU. They crapped all over me and a week later WVU announced they were breaking their contract and leaving. I didn't know anything other than WVU's arrogance would write checks they didn't have to keep from playing in that mess. And they did find a way to get out after all the legal stuff. Never played a down with them. I guess they finally get to play in that conference with West Virginia. I expect UCF will beat them most years. Definitely a root for the sinkhole game.

(12-23-2022 08:18 PM)MUther Wrote:  

(12-23-2022 04:12 PM)IslandHerd1 Wrote:  We oughta snag South Florida and Memphis, f ECU, they were shady as hell prior to exiting CUSA. They are the reason for some of those pathetic adds we had, knowing they were gone.

They didn't know they were gone anymore than CUSA teams knew we were gone last year, till we were. When WVU and TCU threw out lifelines to leave immediately and Louisville announced they were leaving the following year, plus Boise and San Diego retracted, the Big East had to act fast. They grabbed Navy, ECU, Tulane, and Tulsa very last minute. Till that moment those three were as stuck in CUSA 3.0 as we were. What were they going to say, no? They were joining a BCS league with huge money payouts. But after Louisville left, too, there was no bigtime anchor to hold it together and the basketball schools left, too. They became the AAC and they lost a ton of revenue over what they were making and were not considered for autonomy in the new playoff system.

Funny thing is I told UCF fans that they would never play a down in the conference with WVU. They crapped all over me and a week later WVU announced they were breaking their contract and leaving. I didn't know anything other than WVU's arrogance would write checks they didn't have to keep from playing in that mess. And they did find a way to get out after all the legal stuff. Never played a down with them. I guess they finally get to play in that conference with West Virginia. I expect UCF will beat them most years. Definitely a root for the sinkhole game.

Looking back on it all, the AAC was built on baits and switches.

“Come join the Big East!” they said. Then UL, WVU, and all the basketball schools immediately leave.

“We’ve got a BCS AQ bid!” they said. Then it was gone after only one year.

“Boise State’s coming!” they said. Boise‘s still in the MWC to this day.

“We’re getting $7 million a year!” New schools end up getting $2M (still infinitely better than hanging out in CUSA, to be fair).

I just really don’t see us expending to 16, but if we do or if we lost a couple programs to another conference, I’d imagine WKU and ECU would be next on our list of Adds.

WKU probably will be but I doubt ECU will ever be here.

(12-24-2022 12:27 PM)OsageJ Wrote:  WKU probably will be but I doubt ECU will ever be here.

Depends on how they feel after marinating a few seasons in a conference with Charlotte and FAU. If the Sun Belt stays on the path and especially if the AAC loses Memphis, SMU, or someone else to the P5, the Sun Belt might be an attractive landing spot for ECU at that point. Only time will tell.

(12-24-2022 01:53 PM)TrueBlueDrew Wrote:  

(12-24-2022 12:27 PM)OsageJ Wrote:  WKU probably will be but I doubt ECU will ever be here.

Depends on how they feel after marinating a few seasons in a conference with Charlotte and FAU. If the Sun Belt stays on the path and especially if the AAC loses Memphis, SMU, or someone else to the P5, the Sun Belt might be an attractive landing spot for ECU at that point. Only time will tell.

When the ratings drop the money drops. I guarantee viewership is decimated watching Tulsa vs FAU compared to Tulsa vs UCF, for example. That could change, but 10 years in CUSA they didn't change. I doubt it starts now. There's maybe 2-3 schools left in AAC that will spark extra interest for the incoming schools' fans. And that depends on proximity and if they're having a good year.

We're a whole conference of regional rivalries. We have fan interest built in to our schedules. They don't have that. And worse, the AAC new schools are unwelcomed and the remaining schools feel slighted so they won't even benefit from the novelty of a basically new conference. The SBC greeted peers in and those peers were grateful for the opportunity. That creates harmony outside of game environments.

I think what really eats at all of them is that we're ALL happy. We're going to do our thing and we're going to succeed in the end and we're going to do it with smiles on our faces instead of putting down everyone we envy or have contempt for.

(12-23-2022 04:31 PM)freshtop Wrote:  Even though it probably worked out for the best, I think our admins having a difference of opinion on the MAC move has likely ended any allegiance we have to each other. WKU would leave MTSU behind, MTSU would do the same to us.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

That's funny, because the word on the street is that WKU told the MAC "no", even without MT. Go ask your AD

I think Middle's resistance to the MAC was part financial (exit fees from the leaving 9 schools and the MAC's GOR ask) and hopeful (Memphis gets the nod to the P5 and MTSU slides seamlessly into their AAC slot.

I think you can't replace Cincy, UCF, and Houston with 12 schools. The pool of quality additions has just gotten smaller. You can see it in the trickle-down that has affected CUSA. It simply doesn't generate the eyeballs unless those added schools carry (or make a dent in) their market (which none of the additions do).

Pretty sure the core members of the AAC are not going to be happy with the additions in the long run, and I think their TV deal is going to be affected, and not in a good way.

(12-25-2022 01:10 AM)KAjunRaider Wrote:  

(12-23-2022 04:31 PM)freshtop Wrote:  Even though it probably worked out for the best, I think our admins having a difference of opinion on the MAC move has likely ended any allegiance we have to each other. WKU would leave MTSU behind, MTSU would do the same to us.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

That's funny, because the word on the street is that WKU told the MAC "no", even without MT. Go ask your AD

I think you need to find a new street, because the one you're at is feeding you garbage.


Todd Stewart, Western Kentucky AD, November 13th, 2021:

“If we had been invited to join the MAC, we would have said yes. If we’re invited to join the MAC down the line, then I think the answer to that would probably be yes, because if it makes sense today, then I think it’s safe to assume it would make sense down the line,” Stewart said.


https://www.bgdailynews.com/sports/wku/c...9d68e.html

(12-23-2022 06:42 PM)Johns1124 Wrote:  So much for the cup

5-2 won’t cut it?

Really need CCU to step it up.

(12-27-2022 03:34 PM)Johns1124 Wrote:  Really need CCU to step it up.

I won’t hold my breath