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Idaho and NMSU are best served by the Big Sky conference, and i can't think of a single reason Ohio would leave the MAC. in my opinion, a footprint in Florida is worth perserving, as both programs have recently built new stadiums and made financial committments to their programs. in a perfect world, i would trade ULM for La.Tech,add UTSA and Tex.State to create a Western division with regional rivals, and probably add UTA to balance UALR.of course in a really perfect world we would get SMU's open slot in CUSA.by the end of January we should have a better picture of our and the Belts future.

t.v.money. the chancellor of LSU said in jest,that when its all said and done there will be 2 conferences;ESPN and Fox Sports.those words may be more accurate that they were intended to be. thats why i think UNT,UTSA,and F_U have a better chance to get into an expanded CUSA than La.Tech.now its all about t.v. markets. some schools are in major and mid-major conferences that could not get in today because of their small population base.[and then there is Boise, an exception to my statement]however, in general i feel accurate in my statement. just an old man's opinion.

i read the article and admit it could get interesting for the BELT.as of today, the Big East needs to add 1 more football only school to get to 12 teams. front runners are Temple and ECU. i think AFA is staying in MWC despite Navy's eventual move to Big East. MWC now has 8 football teams, has applied for AQ status,and they should know status by 1/15/2012, the date MWC/CUSA meet to decide on merger. if MWC gets AQ status, merger is off, and they can just add SJSU and USU to get back to 10 football teams which will kill the WAC. if they fail to obtain AQ status, then the merged "Continental Conference" will have 17 football schools. the ECU president says the magic number is 18 football teams [as he is trying to leave for Big East].if so then the BELT would indeed be vulnerable, as the merged conference has no presence in Florida,DFW,or San Antonio [don't sell UTSA short].if a few teams are plucked from the WAC or BELT, then the remainder will consolidate. i don't see anyone interested in Idaho or NMST,and they probably will have to drop down.best case for UNT is MWC gets AQ status,merger fails, and CUSA adds 3 to get back to 12.even better if ECU moves and CUSA adds 4. and yes, it is a little scary.

the price of poker just went upn the Belt. Successful head coaches will expect that kind of money.

google "Big East Expansion"

Navy just announced they are moving football to Big East, but because of existing t.v. contracts it might take them to 2018 to get there.by my count when smoke clears that gives them 8 schools for all sports, and 3 football only, leaving 1 football only slot to reach desired goal of 12. come on E.C.U.!

we talk about how the lack of a baseball program could hurt other conference opportunities for North Texas. with the loss of SMU,Houston, and UCF, 7 of remaining 9 CUSA schools offer baseball,with Tulsa and UTEP being the exceptions[sMU dropped their program in mid 60's]. with the loss of Boise and SDSU, the MWV is down to 5 schools, only 3 of which play baseball. they will pick up 2 more baseball teams when Fresno and Nevada/Reno join. Hawaii is joining for football only, and putting baseball and all their other sports in Big West. this will leave MWC with 8 schools and 5 baseball programs.[9 schools and 5 programs if UTEP moves to MWV].my question:is having a baseball program necessary to move up to CUSA or MWC, or is it just a peace of our athletic puzzle that would be nice to have.just asking, as i have no personal opinion.

i missed the banquet, and have no inside information other than we are not sitting on our butts, and did not mean to imply i knew otherwise.Hawaii is in MWC football only,with all other sports in Big West. merger is up in air because ECU has outside chance as football only member in Big East since Navy is unavailable before 2014.in addition, MWC has applied for AQ status on its own, which also puts merger on hold until they get an answer.still a lot of moving parts. and yes,i certainly agree that there is a lot of lobbying for entrance into MWC and CUSA as either stand alone conferences or as a merged one. i would guess,and it is just a guess, that UNT,UTSA, and La.Tech are competeing for a western slot in CUSA should UTEP move to MWC.

The Belt has been good for UNT. we just seem to think we have out grown it. whether we have or not will be decided in the marketplace as other conference oppenings become available. regarding W.K. sitting at home with a 7&5 record, it again proves that while you can schedule a 1aa team, you can't get pounded by them. that was a bad loss which kept them from a bowl. T.C.U.'s loss to S.M.U. was a bad loss which kept them from a BCS bowl. these things happen. the Belt has 1/3rd of its teams in bowls, which isn't all bad.

i was at an informal social function last week that had Dan Smith, Rick Villarreal, and Lane Rawlings in attendance.i can assure you that " island eagle " hit the nail on the head.

W.V.,Pitt,and Syracuse in Big East thru 2012,Navy not moving to Big East,Hawaii to MWC football only,UTEP from CUSA to MWC. leaves 9 in MWC, 8 in CUSA,for same total of 17 for football, 16 all other. kicker is that Big East will still need 2 more football programs to get to stated goal of 12,and ECU is in the mix along with Temple. MWV/CUSA merger will happen but all players not yet identified. i still think UNT and F_U could be considered as soon as CUSA gets final head count of members going forward.

or Florida. their stated goal is 18 football programs. looks like Navy is staying put and ECU has a decent shot at Big East, which needs 2 more football only members. that would put CUSA/MWC at 16.until dust settles in Big East,CUSA/MWC won't have an accurate existing membership headcount.

MWC has 8 schools, as AFA is not leaving.CUSA has 9, for a combined total of 17 football members.

AFA officially told Big East today that they are staying in MWC. if UTEP does move from CUSA to MWC, that would give the MWC 9 football programs and CUSA only 8, leaving a spot open.in addition, while the Big East presently has 8 football programs, they will be losing Pitt,Syracuse,and WV in next 2 years.the addition of SMU,Houston,UCF,Boise,and SDSU for 2013 will only get them to 10 football programs. with their stated goal of 12 schools and West/East divions, they still are 2 programs short. Navy is having 2nd thoughts, but both Temple and ECU are waiting in the wings. problem with Temple is Nova is dead set against their inclusion as they want Philly all to themselves. bottom line is that CUSA needs one program now, and perhaps another later if ECU is invited to Big East.bottom line, we still have hope for inclusion into a merged CUSA/MWV,which i refer to as "The Continental Conference".

no one in th MWC wants Idaho,NMSU,LA. Tech,UTSA, or TX.ST. they might consider SJSU and Utah ST., but this merger is certainly not about saving WAC football programs.

The Belt will never force ULM out. we needed them as much as they needed us when the Belt added football.best suggestion i read was posted on Sunbelt Fan Forum, and the suggestion was to bring La. Tech,Tx. ST.,UTSA, and NMSU for all sports and UTSA for basketball and all other sports to balance UALR. you would have 14 schools for all sports,plus 2 for basketball and all other sports and could easily create East/West Divisions. However, i still think we will end up in CUSA, as i can't believe the newly merged MWC/CUSA t.v. partner would not want a presence in DFW,San Antonio, or the state of Florida.just an old man's opinion.

we joined because it was the only ship available when we moved back up to division 1a. we left when the Big West dropped football and moved to the Belt which was adding football.i am not aware of problems between Big West and Boise as they moved to the WAC. when the smoke cleared the Big West was a non football California conference with the exception of Hawaii. Boise will either be able to put all other sports in Big Sky or WAC.AFC will probably put all other sports in WAC since MVC is not interested, if indeed they decide to move to Big East, which is not a given. in AFC doesn't move, Navy won't either, opening the door for ECU and Temple for football only.Big East expansion is still a work in process.

they also expect AFA and Navy to join for football only after the 1st of year, with ECU as back up. when the smoke clears,CUSA will be down to 9 members for sure, and maybe 8. MWC will be down to 8 members for sure, and maybe 7. i like our position.

all it proves is that its ok to schedule a 1aa opponent like Indiana State, but you can't lose to them by 3 touchdowns and expect a bowl bid.W.K. is not Michigan, plus they had lowest home attendance average in the Belt,which means they might not travel well.

SDSU hopes to put their's in the Big West, thereby spanning the nation. Boise was looking at Big Sky.AFA wanted the Missouri Valley, but were rebuffed, and are still looking for a place to land.

east coast newspapers reporting that SMU,Houston,UCF[all sports],Boise[football only], and SDSU[football only] will join Big East by years end, and AFC and Navy[both football only] will make move in January, with ECU as backup. i know we have heard this for months, and i will believe it when it actually happens.Big East is dead set against letting WV out early, so this continues to be a messy divorce.

LSU has 4 home out of conference games scheduled for 2012. UNT,Washington,Idaho,and Towson. i'm not positive, but i think they will have to drop one in order to accomadate the addition of TA&M.

fyi fyi,i used the d___k word instead of the p___s word a few years ago,which must of thicked off someone named Richard, and have been on "warn status" ever since. just saying.

in 1998, Darrell Dickey's first season, we played OU,TT,Arizona State, TA&M,Houston, and Kansas. we have come a long way in scheduling since then, and are down to about 2 per year.an underfunded program such as ours will always schedule a few games "up" in order to pay the bills. this may change somewhat when student fees begin to accumulate, but i doubt it. however, we should approach the point in next few years under coach MAC that CUSA,WAC,MAC, and MWC games are realistic opportunities for a win.

hard to believe that Dunbar set rushing record in a program that won only 10 games during his playing career, 5 of which were this year.