MeanGreen61

From this photo gallery. http://www.creativeanimation.com/Gallery/album04

Ask The Commissioner http://www.sunbeltsports.org/ViewArticle.d...CRIBER_CONTENT=

Wishful thinking

Player arrested for pointing toy gun at officer July 31, 2006 KNOXVILLE (WATE/AP) -- Two Tennessee redshirt freshmen football players were stopped by police on Interstate 40 near Cookeville after allegedly waving a gun at an off-duty officer. One of them, Marsalous Johnson, was charged with aggravated assault. Johnson, a defensive back from Smyrna, and Rico McCoy, a linebacker from Washington, D.C., were pulled over about 10:30 Sunday night. Putnam County Sheriff's deputy Michael Hoover reported that he was driving his personal vehicle when Johnson's car pulled up beside his. Hoover said the driver appeared to be upset at his speed and waved what looked like a gun. Johnson denied pointing a gun at Hoover, but officers later found a black plastic Uzi under a passenger seat in his car. He was released from jail on a $10,000 bond. He's scheduled to go to court on September 6. Coach Phillip Fulmer spoke with 6 News Monday about the arrest. "We're looking into it, trying to find out all the details. We're taking it very seriously. I know our team right now is not looking for any distractions on what we're trying to do. I won't comment any further until we get through the investigation." Johnson was a red shirt freshman in 2005. He was expected to play cornerback this fall. According to the Vols roster, in high school Johnson grabbed six interceptions as a junior defensive back and was a three-year starter at cornerback. He was also described as a speedster on track team, running a personal-best and school-record 10.4 in 100M, 21.8 in the 200M and 50.0 in the 400M. The Vols preceded last year's 5-6 record with eight players being arrested from January 2005 to July 2005. Practice for the upcoming season begins Friday.

Tech DB stabbed in nightclub brawl Anthony Hines expected to be released from hospital later this week 03:02 PM CDT on Monday, July 31, 2006 By KEITH WHITMIRE / The Dallas Morning News Texas Tech football player Anthony Hines was stabbed during a fight at a Lubbock nightclub early Saturday morning. Hines said he was “just a little sore” when reached at his hospital room Monday after having surgery to repair a punctured colon. Hines, a sophomore defensive back from Denison, said he was trying to play peacemaker when he was stabbed. “Me and my friends went to a club called Heat and pretty much some dudes just didn’t like us,” Hines said. “I guess that night they decided to fight us. I wasn’t fighting anybody at all. I was trying to get everybody to back up [saying] ‘Come on, let’s go.’” Hines said his attacker had hidden the knife when he assaulted him. “I didn’t know he stabbed me until about 10 seconds later,” Hines said. “I looked down and I was bleeding.” Texas Tech coach Mike Leach said he is still gathering information about the incident and could not make a determination as to whether Hines or others would face disciplinary action. Leach confirmed that other players were involved, including freshman linebacker Dewayne Baziel from Galveston, who received stitches for an eye injury. “I think there was just kind of a massive brawl,” Leach said. “There was a frat party and then this brawl broke out and somebody had a knife. “The unfortunate thing about it is, I would like our team and our players to do a better job of selecting where they go. With that said, there’s no justification for criminal behavior.” Leach said he wasn’t familiar with Club Heat, where the incident took place. He said players are warned to avoid certain nightspots in Lubbock. “After this deal, this place is one of them,” Leach said. Hines’ mother, Chantel Hines, said her son expects to be released from University Medical Center in a couple of days. Hines is a backup strong safety who played mostly on special teams last season. Texas Tech players report for preseason workouts Sunday. The first practice is Monday and the season opener is Sept. 2 against SMU. How soon Hines could return to practice, and under what conditions, remains to be determined. Leach said he is still waiting for the legal process to play out before determining any disciplinary action for offensive lineman Gabe Hall, who was cited for driving while intoxicated in June. “We have to look into it thoroughly,” Leach said. “I have two concerns here. One is team and player welfare, and the second would be to determine if there was any misbehavior on our part that we need to address.”

Interesting sidenote. Notre Dame quarterback transfers & picks WKU over TCU. Hmmm. Eligible immediately but using a redshirt year. Wolke transferring to Western Kentucky By STEVE HEATH sheath@dnj.com Family and football are two very important things to David Wolke, and ultimately, the reasons he chose Western Kentucky over Texas Christian Sunday. The former Smyrna star quarterback, who played behind Notre Dame Heisman trophy candidate Brady Quinn for two years before deciding to transfer last month, said the "family atmosphere and the program's coaching staff" were the main reasons he chose the I-AA school in Bowling Green, Ky., over the I-A defending champions of the Mountain West Conference. Wolke, though immediately eligible at Western Kentucky, will use his redshirt season this year and have two more seasons of eligibility remaining. He had requested a redshirt season to get a master's degree. FULL ARTICLE http://www.dnj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?A.../607310321/1006

Texas State seems to be running in neutral reluctant to make a committment to move to 1A. Per conference rules, WKU is automatically accepted if they move to 1A because of their current membership in all other sports.

0'4-'05 info shows 18,485 enrollment, $35,000,000 stadium renovation/expansion underway and with a $14,650,000 athletic budget.

http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=113064 Good news for BCS heavyweights: The Sun Belt likely will expand to nine teams in 2007, which would give the BCS boys yet another rent-a-win opponent. The league wants a ninth team--likely I-AA Western Kentucky, which is contemplating a move to I-A--for scheduling purposes (four home games, four road games). . . . From a thread on the WKU board: "Actually, things are getting underway in September and to be finalized October 3rd, one way or another. Now you have a specific date to look forward to." True or false ? Time will tell.

http://www.jonesborosun.com/story.php?ID=22912 Second bowl in Sun Belt's future (SBC notes) BY MATTHEW V. ROBERSON SUN STAFF WRITER While the Sun Belt Conference isn’t actively pursuing a second bowl game, the idea has definitely been tossed around and the hope of adding one should eventually become a reality. SBC Commissioner Wright Waters said the league wasn’t in a position to obtain a second bowl just yet with it still in its fledgling stages. The Sun Belt is in just its sixth year as a football league and has only one bowl tie. “We’re not at a point where there is, in my mind, demand for that yet,” Waters said, noting that the league currently pays close to $500,000 for its tie with the New Orleans Bowl and would have to shell out a similar amount for a second bowl for the league. In the past five years, only two teams have ended the season bowl eligible along with the conference’s regular-season champion. Last year, Louisiana-Lafayette finished 6-5 but did not go to a bowl, while in 2004 Troy went 7-5 and played in the Silicon Valley Football Classic. “There are a lot of factors that are in there,” Waters added. “Will we at some time have a second bowl? Sure. It’s not that difficult.” This year’s postseason schedule includes 32 bowl games, meaning 64 teams will have to be eligible to fill those slots. The NCAA projects that between 64 and 67 teams all playing a 12-game schedule will meet that criteria. Waters hopes that a Sun Belt team other than the champion will be one of those teams. “Nobody wants a second bowl commitment for our conference more than I do,” he said. Closing in on 400 wins It would take one of the finest seasons in Arkansas State history, but the Indians are closing in on a milestone for victories by the football program. ASU has 391 victories in its history dating back to 1921, although the school did not field a team during the 1942, 1943 or 1944 seasons because of World War II. The Indians have an overall record of 391-416-37 for a winning percentage of .486. Arkansas State needs nine victories to secure its 400th win as a program. When the Indians surpass the 400-victory plateau, they will become the fifth Sun Belt school to have accomplished the mark. For the record, Middle Tennessee State is the Sun Belt’s all-time winningest school with 492 victories, while Louisiana-Lafayette is next with 457 followed by North Texas at 456 and Troy with 446. More bowl talk Currently, the Sun Belt Conference’s only tie to a bowl is the New Orleans Bowl with the regular-season champion facing a representative from Conference USA. While the Sun Belt is a southern-based league that includes three teams from Louisiana, one from Alabama and two from Florida, Waters does not see the league joining up with an already established bowl game such as the Liberty Bowl or Mobile Bowl. “I think we would probably have to start one, create one,” Waters said. “The ones that are out there are pretty well obligated. I do think there are a couple of leagues that are over-extended. You saw that this year, and it may be in a couple of years that you may have some bowls that are looking for a sure thing.” Superdome coming back After Hurricane Katrina forced the New Orleans Bowl to change venues for the first time in its 5-year history, the game will return to its familiar field this season. Used as a shelter for thousands, the Superdome incurred devastating Category 3 winds and driving rain that caused roof damage and an immense strain on the building’s electrical and plumbing systems. But since the Aug. 11 storm last year, crews have been working at a feverish pace to restore the dome and have it ready for the 2006 season. The dome serves as home to the New Orleans Saints. The Saints are scheduled to open their schedule in the Superdome in mid-September and numerous other events will follow, including the 2006 New Orleans Bowl. “I’m glad we’re not playing in it today,” Waters said. “But there are so many events scheduled. The Saints are going to be playing in it in September and the Bayou Classic will be in it November. The high school all-stars are committed to be back here near the first of December, so we’re comfortable it will be ready to go.” The Hyatt hotel, which adjoins the Superdome, will not be open and is not scheduled to re-open until 2008, while there are no plans currently for the shopping mall that connects the Hyatt and Superdome to re-open at all. Last year’s New Orleans Bowl was played at Cajun Field in Lafayette, La., as Southern Mississippi dealt Arkansas State a 31-19 defeat.

Big East popularity slipping with bowl execs ? http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/si_blogs/...owled-over.html

http://www.collegefootballpoll.com/bowl_games.html

COLLEGE FOOTBALL | UM VS. FIU Beginning of a beautiful rivalry? UM and FIU coaches say their two-game series at the Orange Bowl, starting Oct. 14, is a win-win for their teams and in South Florida. BY PETE PELEGRIN ppelegrin@MiamiHerald.com AL DIAZ/MIAMI HERALD STAFF READY TO PLAY: Hurricanes coach Larry Coker discuses his upcoming game against the Golden Panthers in the fall. When they take to the Orange Bowl field Oct. 14 to mark the beginning of what they hope is a lasting, crosstown rivalry, the University of Miami and Florida International will be adversaries. But on Thursday morning at Bernie Kosar's Steakhouse in South Miami, the two schools and their coaches worked in concert to promote the first of their two games. ''I think this is going to be a great football game,'' said Hurricanes coach Larry Coker, whose team will host the Golden Panthers again in 2007. ``It will be a great series for both schools and great for the city. Selfishly, it gives us a seventh home game, and it's going to be a home game for Florida International fans. ``It's only going to get bigger and better.'' The Golden Panthers had to maneuver this year's schedule and their 2007 slate to get a chance to play the Hurricanes. FIU athletic director Rick Mello moved the Middle Tennessee game, which originally was scheduled for October, to the opener Aug. 31. Mello also had to reschedule Kansas in 2007 and 2008 to get the two-game set with Miami. Mello would have done just about anything to play UM. ''I would have moved all 11 games this season if I had to, just to play Miami,'' joked Mello, whose athletic department will receive $150,000 from Miami for the game. Said FIU coach Don Strock: ``The local exposure and national exposure of two universities playing in the hometown was going to happen sooner or later. I'm glad it happened sooner.'' Both schools would like the series to continue beyond the 2007 game, but that will depend on a few factors. ''You play two years, and you see how it works out,'' UM athletic director Paul Dee said. ``You see what kind of crowds we draw. I think, potentially, on a regular but maybe not annual basis, the series will continue. Over time, the community would like to see this series played.'' UM and FIU collaborated to dub their Oct. 14 meeting, ''Salute to Florida High School Football Day.'' The programs plan to send invitations to various Florida high school football teams to attend the game for free. FULL ARTICLE INCLUDING MIAMI & FUI NOTES http://www.bradenton.com/mld/bradenton/spo...mi/15139775.htm

http://www.idahostatesman.com/apps/pbcs.dl.../607270376/1037 Commish: WAC is stable, expansion isn't necessary Idaho Statesman The Idaho Statesman | Edition Date: 07-27-2006 WAC commissioner Karl Benson said nine member schools for the conference are better than 10 — at least for now. At his annual breakfast address before the media as a part of the conference's football preview, Benson said expansion is not on the horizon for the WAC. "I think we're entering, finally, a period of stability," Benson said Wednesday at the Red Lion Hotel in Downtown Boise. "I think that's a positive. We don't anticipate that there is anything looming out there." A nine-team league is considered the perfect amount for football because that number yields a schedule where each team can play every other team in the conference and have an equal number of home and away games. But nine is a logistical nightmare for scheduling in sports such as basketball and volleyball, where teams play each other twice during the season. "Nine has been a challenge and 10 would probably be a better number," Benson said. "We understand there are advantages and disadvantages of both." Two non-football playing schools — Denver and Utah Valley State — are the schools most commonly mentioned for adding a non-football school to the conference. "We are not in any type of expansion mode," Benson sad. "We're aware of our surroundings and aware of what's out there." Benson also said he isn't sure how long the period of stability will last. He pointed out that since 1990 only two conferences — the Pac-10 and Ivy League — haven't had membership changes. He said he wouldn't be surprised, should expansion arise in the future, if the new school came from the Big Sky Conference. Current WAC schools Boise State, Idaho and Nevada all are former Big Sky members. "People out there are asking 'What's the next Big Sky school capable of moving?' " Benson said. "It's very speculative and we all want to talk. Do I expect that somewhere down the road there is a next Big Sky member who is ready to make the move? I think the answer is probably yes."

Maybe womens football?

http://www.dnj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?A.../607270320/1006 Coaches anticipate Belt tightening By ADAM SPARKS sparks@dnj.com —Adam Sparks, 278-5167 If anything definitive came out of the 2005 Sun Belt football season it's that no team is exempt from a league race. And so is the feel heading into this season, where all eight conference members can plot some path to the conference championship. "I think every year is going to be different, but I also think the norm, at least at this time of the year, is that every team has reason to believe they can win the conference championship," said North Texas coach Darrell Dickey, whose squad won the league's first four titles (2001-04). "But that was actually the way teams felt when we were winning it every year, too. Even in the years that we were 7-0, we weren't beating people 65-0." Among the Mean Green's 26-game conference winning streak over four years, 15 contests were won by 10 points or less. But those near misses merely served as a tease to the rest of the league's teams until last season when North Texas fell to last place in the Sun Belt and more than half of the conference slugged it out for the title. "In the last week of the season, five of our eight teams had an influence on the conference championship," said Sun Belt commissioner Wright Waters. "That was the most exposure our league had gotten." Ultimately, three teams tied for the 2005 Sun Belt championship, three more teams tied for fourth and another couple were knotted at the bottom. Arkansas State represented the league in the New Orleans Bowl, but that was only after an exhaustive study of tie-breaker rules and bowl selection by-laws. Amid the muddle, a new hope arose for the league's contenders this season. "Well, it's a good thing," said Arkansas State coach Steve Roberts. "Anybody would rather play for the title in those last couple of weeks than already be out of the race." To see how much parity is perceived in the Sun Belt, look no further than the coaches' preseason poll — where the eight first-place votes were split between four teams. Louisiana-Lafayette is the consensus No. 1 pick for preseason publications, but it only received three votes for the top spot in the coaches' poll. That's a far cry from the consecutive years that North Texas hogged the predictable poll. A veteran of the Southeastern Conference and Atlantic Coast Conference, MTSU coach Rick Stockstill said the uncertainty adds to the energy of the league. "It creates excitement and fan interest throughout the year. I know in the ACC, when Florida State got in it, they dominated it for 10-11 years and that was always a given. Florida State was No. 1, and the whole question was, 'Who's going to be No. 2?'" Stockstill said. "It's good for the league because we've all got a chance. I don't think you can look at the SEC and say that everybody has a chance to win it." Troy coach Larry Blakeney agrees. "It's a tight league and as far as preseason picks, I think you could've drawn them out of a hat and been just as close as the prognosticators — and that includes myself. Anybody can beat anybody else anywhere on any given day, and that's just not true in other leagues," Blakeney said. Furthermore, Florida International coach Don Strock thinks the different styles of play also add to the league's weekly unpredictability. "All the teams are very competitive. We have our hands full with every Sun Belt Conference team we play," Strock said. "But it also comes down to the different kinds of teams from North Texas' power running game to the spread offense at Louisiana-Monroe to the unknown now at Middle Tennessee with a new coaching staff there. "A lot of teams have different approaches and a lot of ups and downs from year to year. That means there's balance and that's good for any league."

http://www.scrippsnews.com/node/10241 WAC still stuck in the middle of nowhere College Football | Sports By MATT JAMES The poor Western Athletic Conference. Nobody wants to be here. This is Nicaragua. A third-world country. Second fiddle. First loser. No, not Boise. Boise is nice, in the sense that you'll probably never witness a drive-by shooting, or become a pawn in a bank-heist-gone-wrong while trying to deposit money during your lunch break. If you're here for WAC media day in July (as Fresno State coach Pat Hill and wide receiver Joe Fernandez are), and not trying to win a football game in October, it's lovely. The WAC, however ... well, the WAC is still an ugly stepsister. As much as the BCS is pretending to be fixing the problem, the WAC is still irrelevant on a national scale. And any time you have a conference with three potential Top 25 teams - Boise State, Fresno State and Nevada - and it's irrelevant, then something's wrong with college football. Oh, everyone will put on their big grins today. The coaches will talk up the conference, but how many of them would be here if they had their choice? Hal Mumme is at New Mexico State because he was run out of Kentucky a few years ago. Mike Price went from punch line to the WAC after his little strip club incident, then his team, UTEP, got out of the WAC. Dan Hawkins left Boise State for Colorado last year, which is leaving one of the most stable programs in the country for a nuclear reactor. If you're coaching here, you're either on your way up or on your last chance. Dennis Erickson, the newest WAC coach and biggest name, has said he wanted to come back to Idaho, where he started his coaching career. Ah-ha! A coach who wanted to be here. But was it the sentiment, or the fact that the 49ers are paying him a seven-figure salary to coach anywhere besides San Francisco? If the BCS didn't render the WAC irrelevant, then it sure didn't help. Fresno State doesn't get in a better bowl game by winning the WAC. There's no grand prize money, no automatic bid, no reason for fans to even care about a WAC title, other than the ones who like to complain that coach Hill hasn't won one yet. To which you should reply, "So what?" Hill is one of the few WAC coaches who could be at a BCS conference school and chooses to stay. He wants to play at the highest level, too. It's natural. So he took the whole program to the highest level. In truth, Fresno State football isn't even part of the WAC anymore. Hill is trading conference titles to play tough nonconference games and a chance to compete nationally. The Bulldogs could play four Louisiana-Monroes, maybe go undefeated, and be the best darn team the MPC Computers Bowl ever saw. That's not to try to sell Hill's philosophy. It's just the only choice the BCS leaves. Try to move up in the BCS rankings or play for nothing. Many BCS conference schools are playing Louisiana-Monroe to become bowl eligible. Fresno State has to play Oregon and LSU to become bowl eligible. Now, you might ask, why not find a happy medium? Couldn't they go undefeated and play a decent schedule and make a BCS bowl? None of those decent schools want to play Fresno State. They're trying to become bowl eligible themselves. Getting blown out by a WAC team is not what they're looking for. They don't have to make a BCS bowl to collect BCS money. The conference does it for them. In an answer to the problem, the BCS has added a fifth game this year, and dangled a treat in front of the ugly-duckling conferences: Conference USA, the Mid-American, the Mountain West, the Sun Belt and the WAC. Instead of having to make the top six in the final BCS standings to get an automatic bid - as only Utah has been able to accomplish from a non-BCS conference - a champ from one of the lesser conferences has to finish in the top 12. Or, if it finishes ahead of one of the BCS conference champs and is in the top 16, it gets an automatic bid and the multimillion-dollar prize that goes along with it. Last year, under these rules, TCU would have made a BCS bowl at No. 14, because Florida State won the ACC and finished No. 22. "We've got a better chance now," Hill says. In 2004, Utah, Boise State and Louisville (which was in a non-BCS conference at the time) all finished in the top 10. But it was Michigan at No. 13 and Pittsburgh at No. 21 who got BCS bids by winning their conferences. So even under this year's new rules, Boise State and Louisville would have been left out because Utah would have taken the conferences-that-don't-count bid. Never mind that WAC teams have to travel farther and play on weird nights of the week to get a little TV exposure. It will still probably take a perfect season for Fresno State to make a BCS bowl. And at the end of it, no one will care whether or not they won a WAC title.

More NT fans expected Shawn Edwards Issue date: 7/27/06 Section: SPORTS Football season is approaching and this year NT plans to draw a larger crowd than previous years. Fouts Field holds around 30,000 fans, yet the majority of home games are nowhere near capacity. There have always been excuses for why attendance is low: that NT is a commuter school, that the Sun Belt is too small of a conference or that NT is more of an arts and music school. "We appreciate the ones that do come and just hope we can continue to get people interested," said head coach Darrell Dickey. The Sun Belt is a smaller conference, although there had been talk of moving into Conference USA a few years back. The Mean Green will see a C-USA team and area rival in its first home game against SMU. NT only plays one nationally ranked team this season in Texas and, other than SMU, most students do not recognize the other opponents. In a poll taken July 19 by the Daily, students were asked if they had no plans on attending a football game, plans to attend one game or plans on seeing several games. Twenty-five percent had no intention of seeing a game, 40 percent plan to see at least one game and 35 percent plan to see more than one. Jaime Adams, director of promotions at NT, expects there to be a lot of excitement for the upcoming season. "There will be a variety of new and exciting items that will bring students to the games this year," Adams said. "We will have live entertainment, food and giveaways. The Friday Night at Clark Park Pep Rally will take place the Friday night before every home game outside of Homecoming, which will stay with the tradition of the bonfire."

Tuesday, July 25, 2006 Going Bowling At Tuesday's Sun Belt Conference media day, commissioner Wright Waters said he was excited about the future of the league and hopes to see it grow. One part of that, Waters said, would be the addition of a second bowl tie-in for the league. Currently, the Sun Belt Conference is only guaranteed one bowl bid a year, sending its champion to the New Orleans Bowl. In addition, only once in the five-year history of the league has a Sun Belt team received an at-large bowl bid. In 2004, Troy went 7-5 and earned a bid to the Silicon Valley Bowl. Before the league can involve itself in serious talks with a bowl, though, it needs to be able to guarantee that bowl will have a team every year. "We've got to have assurance that we will have a second team that is bowl eligible every year," Waters said. "Then we will know that it is time to get a second team on board." To be bowl eligible, a team must win six games if it plays a 12-game schedule and seven games if it plays a 13-game schedule. In five years, the Sun Belt has had two bowl eligible teams three times. It's never had three bowl eligible teams in the same season. North Texas is the only team in league history to have reached the magic number of six wins multiple years since joining the league. Three teams -- ULM, Florida Atlantic, and Florida International -- have never been bowl eligible. Part of the problem has been scheduling. After playing three or four "money games" on the road against big conference opponents, it's difficult for teams to get enough wins in league play to reach bowl eligibility. This year, for example, only three teams -- ULL, North Texas, and Middle Tennessee State -- have more than one nonconference game in their home stadium. "We've got to get to the point where we scheduling to get as many bowl eligible teams as we can," Waters said. http://www.thenewsstar.com/news/blogs/blog...ng-bowling.html

Idaho Statesman article. http://www.idahostatesman.com/apps/pbcs.dl.../607250403/1038

More From The Press-Register Conference to add ninth team? Wednesday, July 26, 2006 NEW ORLEANS -- Troy University head coach Larry Blakeney mentioned at the Sun Belt Conference football media days gathering this week that he hoped the league would bring another team into the conference, giving it nine Division I-A-playing teams, which would give each team eight league games per year. Commissioner Wright Waters admitted nine would be "the perfect number for scheduling," allowing four home and four road games each season. Some within the conference believe the reality of a nine-team Sun Belt football roster may happen soon -- and the search won't have to take place outside the conference. Western Kentucky, already a Sun Belt member but playing a I-AA schedule, is believed to be considering a move up to I-A membership. FULL ARTICLE http://www.al.com/sports/mobileregister/in...7120.xml&coll=3

Playing for pay hurts Sun Belt By Marcus Nelson Palm Beach Post Staff Writer Wednesday, July 26, 2006 NEW ORLEANS - There's a reason Sun Belt Conference teams don't play many games in December - just look at who they're playing in September. That's when Sun Belt schools often are overmatched on the road against out-of-conference heavyweights for the big payouts. Money may help athletic departments balance the books, but it isn't helping teams in the conference become bowl-eligible, and that concerns Sun Belt Commissioner Wright Waters. "We've got to get to a point where we are scheduling to get as many teams bowl eligible as we can," Waters said Tuesday at the Sun Belt Media Days. However, that's easy for Waters to say - he isn't in charge of an athletic department budget and isn't dependent on the large paydays that Division I-A bottom feeders need from football game guarantees. For example, Florida Atlantic will receive $600,000 this season for playing at South Carolina. Louisiana-Lafayette was paid $500,000 last season for going to Texas and taking a 60-3 defeat. In the Sun Belt, playing money games may be a way of life, but Waters would like to see teams strike a balance and start winning some non-conference games. Florida Atlantic's non-conference schedule this season isn't exactly what Waters has in mind as a model for improving the league's winning percentage. The Owls will net $1.8 million by playing road games at Clemson, Kansas State, Oklahoma State and South Carolina to start the season. "What we've talked about is getting your schedule where you can compete and teach winning," Waters said. "The other is to schedule up and play them anytime, any place, anywhere. It worked for Florida State and Southern Mississippi and it very well may work for FAU, but there is some risk involved." But the Owls need the money and also need to play top teams to get better, according to FAU coach Howard Schnellenberger. "We're not always going to play four games like that, but we are now," Schnellenberger said. "This is a long-range thing, and if we get better in those games, it will help us in the Sun Belt Conference. It's part of the building process." Louisiana-Monroe also has a tough non-conference schedule, which includes games at Kansas, Alabama, Arkansas and Kentucky. "You have to make sure the bank account is in good shape, but you want a balance," Louisiana-Monroe Athletic Director Bobby Staub said. "We're doing four and that's one more than I'd like to. I'd like to get it down to two guarantees a year." Troy isn't too far behind FAU this season, playing successive road games at Florida State, Georgia Tech and Nebraska. But Trojans coach Larry Blakeney knows playing these games benefits his program, including the time the Trojans defeated No. 17 Missouri 24-14 in 2004. "You get better by playing them and you can't shock the world if you don't play them," Blakeney said. And players don't seem to mind facing teams in tough environments. "When we found out we were playing South Carolina I thought it was pretty cool, but then I saw we were playing Clemson and Kansas State," said FAU offensive lineman Nello Faulk. "It will be tough, but I just want to play top teams in those big-time environments. That's what college football is all about."

CajunBlog by Dan McDonald Cajuns aren¹t only Sun Belters facing football challenges Dan McDonald dmcdonald@theadvertiser.com The Ragin' Cajun football squad plays two games this season against teams that played in bowl games last year, and also faces an LSU team that finished the 2005 season ranked sixth in the AP poll and fifth in the USA Today coaches poll. It's a tough task, but it's not one that¹s unique in the Sun Belt Conference. In fact, it's something that every one of the eight league teams faces this season. Every Sun Belt team has at least two non-conference games against teams that made the bowl lineup last year, and half of them -- Florida International, Middle Tennessee, North Texas and Troy -- play three returning bowl teams among their five non-league games. Each Sun Belt team also plays a squad that was in the season-ending polls last year. North Texas meets No. 1 Texas, UL Monroe faces Alabama (eighth), Arkansas State plays Auburn (14th) and Florida Atlantic meets Clemson (21st). FIU, Middle and Troy play two returning ranked teams each -- FIU against Alabama and Miami, Middle against Louisville and Oklahoma and Troy against Florida State and Nebraska. Play that caliber of competition, and the record will suffer. Sun Belt teams went 6-27 outside the conference last year, and only one broke even outside the league. FIU finished 2-2 in its non-conference games, but both wins came over Division I-AA clubs. Originally published July 24, 2006

Article from the MUTS board. Sun Belt seeks some patience League working on improving its 16-141 non-conference mark Wednesday, July 26, 2006 By Ted Lewis In 2001, when Middle Tennessee helped inaugurate Sun Belt Conference football with a 31-28 opening-game victory against Vanderbilt, the happiest man in America was commissioner Wright Waters. "I'm sitting there with my feet on my desk thinking, 'This is going to be easy,' " he said. Turns out it hasn't been. Going into the conference's sixth season, Sun Belt teams are 16-141 against Division I-A teams from other conferences. That includes a 1-26 mark last season when the Sun Belt's lone victory was, you guessed it, Middle Tennessee against Vanderbilt. The average margin of defeat was 29.1 points. While much of the poor record can be attributed to Sun Belt teams having to play non-return road games against schools from the six BCS guaranteed conferences to help balance the ledgers, the Sun Belt is 12-45 against schools from Conference USA, the Western Athletic Conference, the Mid-American Conference and the Mountain West plus Army and Navy. But Waters is pleading for patience rather than ridicule. "Don't forget we're still in our infancy, and some of our schools have only been Division I-A for a short time," he said Tuesday at the wrap up of Sun Belt Media Days. "Our recruiting is getting better, and the quality of our coaching is getting better." Waters' thinking is smarter scheduling will help as well. While conceding that non-return games are a financial fact of life for his schools, he would like to see them limited to no more than two. Waters said the schools that have made it to the New Orleans Bowl -- North Texas and Arkansas State, have more-winnable non-conference slates. The Mean Green hosts SMU followed by trips to Tulsa and Akron and also has a home game late in the season against Louisiana Tech. Arkansas State has Army at home and road games at SMU and Memphis. "If we want real credibility in this conference, we've got compete against the Tulsas and Louisiana Techs and every now and then pop up and beat somebody like Northern Illinois did when they beat Alabama," said North Texas coach Darryl Dickey, whose teams won four of the first five Sun Belt titles. STAYING PUT: The Sun Belt recently signed a seven-year lease extension with the Pan American Life Building, but there was a time last year in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina that the conference strongly considered relocating. Uncertain conditions in New Orleans led to contact from undisclosed cities in Tennessee and Alabama inviting the Sun Belt to move. In the end, with strong encouragement from the league's three Louisiana schools (UNO, UL-Monroe and UL-Lafayette), the decision was made to remain in New Orleans. STILL LOOKING: Katrina has created an atmosphere conducive to outside corporations looking to lend assistance in rebuilding the community, but thus far, it hasn't helped land a new title sponsor for the New Orleans Bowl. Wyndham Hotels, which lent its name to the 2004 game, dropped out last year when the bowl was relocated to Lafayette. FLYING OFF THE SHELVES: With Louisiana-Monroe's having to abandon its longtime nickname of Indians for Warhawks thanks to NCAA-mandated restrictions on the use of Native American mascots could have been divisive, it's proven to be a financial boon. "Our bookstore and our off-campus outlets tell us they can't keep Warhawks merchandise on the shelves," ULM athletic director Bobby Staub said. Meanwhile, fellow Sun Belt member Arkansas State is sticking with Indians -- for now. "It's a decision our board of trustees ultimately will have to make," ASU coach Steve Roberts said. "But right now, there are a lot of things going on in the court system that will affect that."

Top 5s 1) The five games that will shape the Sun Belt race (in order) Sept. 30, Middle Tennessee at North Texas A few years ago these were the two Sun Belt powerhouses. Under new head coach Rick Stockstill, Middle Tennessee is hoping for a big win early in the conference race to get in the hunt. Oct. 7, FIU at North Texas With the way the conference schedule shapes up, a win over the Mean Green might mean all FIU has to do is hold serve at home to win the Sun Belt title. Nov. 11, North Texas at UL Lafayette If the Mean Green plans on reestablishing its dominance in the Sun Belt, this is the game it has to win. Nov. 18, UL Lafayette at FIU Florida Atlantic has a ridiculously favorable schedule to end the year with four straight home games. This one against the Ragin' Cajuns will be the toughest of the bunch. Nov. 25, Arkansas State at UL Lafayette The Indians won a 39-36 battle last year that turned out to be the difference in the race to get to the New Orleans Bowl. If things go according to plan, it'll be the league's best offense (ULL) vs. the league's best defense (ASU). 2) Five non-conference games that Sun Belt opponents had better take very, very seriously 1. Oklahoma State at Arkansas State, Sept. 9 Oklahoma State didn't exactly have its way with the Indians last year in a 20-10 win. Now Mike Gundy's group has to go do Jonesboro. 2. UL Lafayette at Houston, Oct. 7 Sandwich game. The Cougars face Miami the week before dealing with ULL's tough running attack and Southern Miss the week after. 3. SMU at North Texas, Sept. 9 If things go right for both teams, this might be a preview of the New Orleans Bowl. The Mustang run defense will have to prove it can handle Jamario Thomas. 4. MTSU at South Carolina, Nov. 18 The last time the Blue Raiders played an SEC team, they beat Vanderbilt 17-15. South Carolina has to go to Florida the game before and to Clemson the game after. 5. Troy at UAB, Sept. 30 The showdown of lesser-known Alabama programs went to UAB last year 27-7. Troy will need this win coming off road games at Florida State, Georgia Tech and Nebraska. 3) Five best Sun Belt pro prospects 1. Arkansas State LB Josh Williams, Jr. Williams had a fantastic first season leading the team in tackles and was the nation's best freshman tackler with 110 stops, but he was kicked off the team last season for "conduct detrimental to the team." He was allowed back on the team as a walk-on this year, and he has been a terror in the weight room looking to get hi NFL caliber career back on track. He's up to 255 pounds and if all goes as planned should be the Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year. He'll add a nasty element to the run defense that was missing last year. 2. UL Monroe FS Kevin Payne, Sr. - 87 tackles, 4 TFL, 2 interceptions, 1 broken up pass The former running back has grown into a whale of a defensive back. He got over a broken arm to use his speed and 6-1, 212-pound size to become the team's leading tackler. Now that he knows what he's doing, he should take the next step up and become a more dangerous all-around playmaker. 3. UL Monroe CB Chaz Williams, Jr. - 46 tackles, 5 interceptions, 5 broken up passes Williams is a next-level corner prospect, and he plays like it. There's not a better tackling corner in the conference, and few more physical when going after the ball. He's a playmaker when the ball is in his hands returning his five picks for 138 yards, but he likely won't see the ball come his way too often with teams sure to stay away from him. 4. North Texas OG Dylan Lineberry, Sr. Easily the team's best offensive lineman and one of the best in the conference, the 310-pound senior is a crushing run blocker with way too much strength for most of the smaller Sun Belt linemen to handle. He'll be the one the team runs behind. 5. FIU TE Samuel Smith, Sr. - 35 catches, 3.2 yds, 8.6 ypc, 1 TD Smith earned second-team All-Sun Belt honors as one of the league's best blocking tight ends with great hands. He finished third on the team in receiving despite missing the final three games with a knee injury. He had an eight-catch, 98-yard day against North Texas and should be an even better go-to target as one of the key veterans in the attack. 4. Five biggest Sun belt shoes to fill 1. Arkansas State RB Reggie Arnold for Antonio Warren Arnold has way too much potential to keep off the field. He's the biggest back in the mix at 217 pounds, and he's also the fastest with warp sub 4.4 speed. He was named the starter coming out of spring ball, but he'll have to battle to keep the spot this summer. 2. UL Monroe QB Kinsmon Lancaster for Steven Jyles The former high school receiver saw a little bit of time last year as a backup, and now he has to show he can be an all-around playmaker like Steven Jyles was. Lancaster isn't all that big, but he's a terrific runner with a bigger arm than Jyles. With great potential, he's a good player to build around for the future, but the offense will have to live through his mistakes. 3. UL Monroe DE Travis Eickman for Brandon Guillory While only 6-3 and 205 pounds, he's a speed rusher who needs to grow into a solid run stopper. He's a strong competitor who has to quickly become a difference maker to help out the Warhawk front line. 4. Troy LB Josh Maxwell for Bernard Davis A part-time starter in the middle, it'll be up to the 204-pound junior to take over for heart-and-soul defender Davis on the weakside. He has cornerback athleticism and should be one of the team's leading tacklers. 5. Middle Tennessee DT Jonathan Presley for Jeff Littlejohn Presley saw a little bit of time as a true freshman and now needs to handle the job on the inside. He's only 240 pounds, but he should be far quicker than most linemen he'll go up against. At his size, he'll have to rotate with the bigger Brandon Perry. 5) Five Sun Belt breakout players 1. Middle Tennessee WR Bobby Williams, Soph. - 22 catches, 303 yds, 13.8 ypc, 1 TD Is he the team's new receiving star? Does he have what it takes to be the number one target and be reliable enough to handle the workload after being suspended from spring ball? He finished fourth on the team in receiving as a true freshman turning into a surprisingly steady target from the start. He's 6-3 with the athleticism to be a big-play star. 2. Troy DE Chris Bradwell, Jr. Is he the team's new defensive star? The former starter at Florida State is 6-5 and 280 pounds with tremendous pass rushing skills. He spent last year at NE Mississippi CC where he made 70 tackles and 10 TFL. 3. Arkansas State RB Reggie Arnold 4. FIU RB Julian Reams, Soph. - 87 carries, 322 yds, 3.7 ypc, 1 catch, 2 yds The high school track star has the speed to become a top star in a 208-pound frame. He has as much talent as anyone on the roster and showed good potential as the featured back over the first three games. He got dinged up and wasn't quite right the rest of the way. 5. Troy QB Omar Haugabook, Jr. The JUCO transfer got the job almost by default. He threw for over 5,000 yards and 40 touchdowns last year for Dodge City Community College and should be an immediate upgrade for the passing attack. While not all that big at 6-1 and 200 pounds, he has a live arm.