Southern Miss Joins the Sun Belt

[El Paso Eagle]

9 minutes ago, Wag Tag said:

La Monroe is blocking them!!!

When it comes to Louisiana Monroe I'm not sure why they're still even in FBS. Makes no sense with a $15 million budget. There cannot be a commitment to athletics at that school at the FBS level. No one in the sunbelt may say it but you know they would love to swap Louisiana Tech for ULM.

[Mean Green 93-98]

5 minutes ago, El Paso Eagle said:

When it comes to Louisiana Monroe I'm not sure why they're still even in FBS. Makes no sense with a $15 million budget. There cannot be a commitment to athletics at that school at the FBS level. No one in the sunbelt may say it but you know they would love to swap Louisiana Tech for ULM.

I think LaLa would join ULM in happily watching LaTech boil in a karma stew.

[Danish43]

2 hours ago, akriesman said:

I don't see how CUSA stays alive now.   Adding three teams that are interested is going to be tough.  Now, Liberty does not seem interested either.

I thank our lucky stars we are not one of the 5 teams that may be left without a conference.   And, going back to the Sun Belt would not have been seen as an advancement either.

It is a real shame what has happened to La Tech, WKU, MT, UTEP and FIU.   All of those schools are deserving of a decent G5 (or G4?) conference.

We are blessed today.

CUSA could add Incarnate Word, Abilene Christian, or Houston Baptist if the others don't work out.

[untbowler]

2 hours ago, Wag Tag said:

ACU, Lamar, Sam Houston, SFA? Are ones that come to mind. Would help with Utep and NMS. Can they afford it? Bless Wren and Dr Smack down, we are very fortunate. GMG 

The four listed will not be leaving WAC, none of them are ready for FBS either.

[El Paso Eagle]

19 minutes ago, untbowler said:

The four listed will not be leaving WAC, none of them are ready for FBS either.

Seems a lot of people are throwing around the ideas of all of these FCS schools moving up. Do they realize it cost a lot more money to run a FBC program (unless your ULM)? DO these schools even want to move up?

[Arkstfan]

The new TV signed over the summer bumped Sun Belt TV to $1.2 to $1.4 million. 
 

When the league expressed reservations about going to 14, which created risk Marshall would back out and WKU would become #12, ESPN juiced the pot to $2 million per to get the matter resolved. 
 

That should help the ULM budget as will finally winning some games. 

[outoftown]

6 hours ago, Arkstfan said:

The new TV signed over the summer bumped Sun Belt TV to $1.2 to $1.4 million. 
 

When the league expressed reservations about going to 14, which created risk Marshall would back out and WKU would become #12, ESPN juiced the pot to $2 million per to get the matter resolved. 
 

That should help the ULM budget as will finally winning some games. 

So Sun Belt schools now make 2 million per team a year? Even after expansion?

[akriesman]

4 hours ago, outoftown said:

So Sun Belt schools now make 2 million per team a year? Even after expansion?

I would like to know this also ArkStFan.  Is this definitive ?    

[meangreen11]

@arkstatefan1

[UNTexas]

17 hours ago, El Paso Eagle said:

The only thing I will say for CUSA is that many people thought the Sun Belt would die in 2013 when UNT, FAU, FIU, WKU, and MTSU left (at that time CUSA was down to 5 teams). I think they have to have a change at commissioner and not panic and add teams. The problem is how do they address UTEP? Even if you add NMSU there is a big gap in their footprint. 

I don’t see how UTEP stays in CUSA. 

[techdawg88]

15 minutes ago, UNTexas said:

I don’t see how UTEP stays in CUSA. 

they have nowhere else to go

 

[TreeFiddy]

The Sunbelt seems like a good mix of teams with similar missions much like the Mac.  I see those two leagues as very similar and likely produce some nice teams from time to time when someone catches lightening in a bottle.  Happy for the belt.  Our time there allowed UNT to grow and move up, similar (to a lesser degree as CUSA). 

I hope we take advantage of our time in the AAC because I am convinced the Big 12 is on a slow boat ride to a P4 and will become part of the G6.  It will all be dependent on what the mouse wants to do.  Bowlsby's negative comments toward ESPN is not helping their cause.

[Arkstfan]

$2 million is what we are hearing. Don’t think it bounces from the $1.4 million range until the schools enter. 

[wardly]

7 minutes ago, Arkstfan said:

$2 million is what we are hearing. Don’t think it bounces from the $1.4 million range until the schools enter. 

Published reports on ULM's budget put it at $20 million, which is the same as New Mexico State. As a comparison, North Dakota State's budget is $25 million.

[10Eagle10]

With all due respect (and remember I’m saying “with all due respect”), can you fathom how depressing it must be for the Southern Miss fan base to be excited about joining the Sun Belt in the year 2021? 

[techdawg88]

outside of baseball, their athletic programs have really gone to shit

Edited October 23, 2021 by techdawg88

[greenminer]

18 minutes ago, 10Eagle10 said:

joining the Sun Belt in the year 2021? 

from the article:

A charter member of Conference USA since 1995, Southern Miss applied and was accepted into the Sun Belt on Friday. The Golden Eagles will begin play in their new conference in 2023, sources said.

[10Eagle10]

2 minutes ago, greenminer said:

from the article:

A charter member of Conference USA since 1995, Southern Miss applied and was accepted into the Sun Belt on Friday. The Golden Eagles will begin play in their new conference in 2023, sources said.

I knew when I typed that, that there would be someone who responded with this exact thing.

 

my point is that they are excited about joining the Sun Belt. Sure we were excited about joining the sun belt over 20 years ago, not 2021.

 

if it makes you feel better though, I can edit my original post to say “can you imagine being excited about joining the Sun Belt in 2023?” It’s no less depressing

[Monkeypox]

5 minutes ago, 10Eagle10 said:

if it makes you feel better though, I can edit my original post to say “can you imagine being excited about joining the Sun Belt in 2023?” It’s no less depressing

Compared to CUSA, I can totally imagine it. It's (Sun Belt) not the right fit for us, but for a good portion of CUSA, it makes sense in the current makeup and media deal.

CUSA withered on the vine.

 

[ChristopherRyanWilkes]

45 minutes ago, Arkstfan said:

$2 million is what we are hearing. Don’t think it bounces from the $1.4 million range until the schools enter. 

Wow, that would be equal to what the new AAC teams will get. Existing AAC teams get $7 mil and MWC teams get $4m each. Looks like a new class of top tier G5 conferences, with MAC and CUSA in the cellar now, each under $1 mil per school right now. Remember those numbers also represent TV exposure. Happy for our former conference mates and us. Feel for the remaining CUSA schools but you have to hustle in this league. 

[ChristopherRyanWilkes]

33 minutes ago, 10Eagle10 said:

With all due respect (and remember I’m saying “with all due respect”), can you fathom how depressing it must be for the Southern Miss fan base to be excited about joining the Sun Belt in the year 2021? 

The remaining CUSA teams can learn from what the Sun Belt did. Stick together and add the best FCS and independent teams you can. It may be a long pay off, but those FCS call ups can become good quick. We’ve seen that time and time again. 

[Arkstfan]

5 hours ago, 10Eagle10 said:

With all due respect (and remember I’m saying “with all due respect”), can you fathom how depressing it must be for the Southern Miss fan base to be excited about joining the Sun Belt in the year 2021? 

Seriously?

Join a league that has received a bigger CFP payout based on performance four the last five years, had two ranked teams last year and Coastal was top 15 until Wednesday night.

Depressing is NOT that they are joining Sun Belt but that schools they once looked down on just joined Big XII.

They are getting a raise, they are getting a bunch of close opponents who are mostly playing good football.

Edited October 23, 2021 by Arkstfan

[NM Green]

I love the sun belt now. Glad we are in AAC but not convinced it’s better than the Belt. Was excited to tune into one of the country’s greatest new rivalries on Wednesday and was treated to a great game. Appy and Coastal are legit. Good programs fun fanbases. Southern Miss gonna prosper in this league. 
 

gmg

[rcade]

On 10/23/2021 at 1:14 PM, 10Eagle10 said:

With all due respect (and remember I’m saying “with all due respect”), can you fathom how depressing it must be for the Southern Miss fan base to be excited about joining the Sun Belt in the year 2021? 

As a UNT fan, I can fathom any form of misery that's inflicted on a G5 fan base. I had all the feels for UAB when football was dropped. Now those zombies kick our ass every year.

[rcade]

14 hours ago, NM Green said:

I love the sun belt now. Glad we are in AAC but not convinced it’s better than the Belt.

AAC schools are getting $7 million a year in TV money. Sun Belt schools are getting $500,000.

The AAC deal may change after this round of musical conferences, but not enough to make the Sun Belt a preferable conference to be in.