BMarkey said

Haven't we already learned that media markets mean nothing to programs and conferences? North Texas, UAB, FIU, Memphis, Georgia State and many more have lots of TV sets and little to no fans! Those fans already care about another state team or don't care at all! It's the big lie.

But to FAU, the move isn't about that.  It's about not losing ground in Florida.

The Sun Belt was gaining ground and would have continued to do so. Actually, it might still do so because the top teams this year and last are not the teams leaving. ASU, ULM, ULL and Troy will continue to get better and improve facilities (Troy was less than 7 points per game from an 11-1 season). USA and Texas State will probably be players in a few years. Georgia State is the Sun Belt's albatross. I hope it goes to CUSA next. UNT and FIU leaving actually helps the Belt's status.

The real solution here would have been for the leaders of both conferences to form something of a hybrid. 'Makes too much sense, I guess.

BMarkey said

I never said moving to CUSA was horrible, but not worth it. It's a slightly downward move, with more costs and no guaranteed extra dollars. The Sun Belt has risen to the occasion while adding some decent programs. CUSA grabbed some real head-scratchers.

Haven't we already learned that media markets mean nothing to programs and conferences? North Texas, UAB, FIU, Memphis, Georgia State and many more have lots of TV sets and little to no fans! Those fans already care about another state team or don't care at all! It's the big lie.

 Yes Until this morning the Belt had it chance to grow on its stong past couple years but It fell again when MTSU left and will have to add two more 1-AA schools.

I think it would be hilarious if the Belt fought back by getting, say, a USM or UAB to jump.

owlcountry40 said

BMarkey said

I never said moving to CUSA was horrible, but not worth it. It's a slightly downward move, with more costs and no guaranteed extra dollars. The Sun Belt has risen to the occasion while adding some decent programs. CUSA grabbed some real head-scratchers.

Haven't we already learned that media markets mean nothing to programs and conferences? North Texas, UAB, FIU, Memphis, Georgia State and many more have lots of TV sets and little to no fans! Those fans already care about another state team or don't care at all! It's the big lie.

 Yes Until this morning the Belt had it chance to grow on its stong past couple years but It fell again when MTSU left and will have to add two more 1-AA schools.

AD Chun was brought in to make us more marketable to the bigger conferences which he has done. the extra revenue will help us maybe renovate the baseball stadium and build a new basketball arena. Imagine hosting a regional game for baseball like they do in Miami, or a regional basketball game for March Madness. Concerts could be held in a new 10,000 seat arena, or WWE could rent the arena for events like RAW or Smackdown, and a lot of people would attend that. Its possible with the move to C-USA,

BMarkey said

The Sun Belt was probably the most stable of the non AQ conferences. It has better name teams and a stroing recent showing, plus a nice regional, affordable footprint. Its newcomers are stable and good, for the most part.

How is FAU going to pay for that stadium by hosting Charlotte, UTSA, Old Dominion and UAB?! Ugh.

Better name teams? Of the remaining Belt teams (Not FIU/UNT), the only school anyone has heard of is WKU because of their success in the NCAA Tournament.

You think a student at a school in the middle of the country knows who Troy or Louisiana-Monroe are? Doubt it highly. They probably have no idea who FAU is either. Troy has sent a number of legit players to the NFL including 1 future HOF (Demarcus Ware), but the average person has NO IDEA who Troy is or where they're from.

What new comers to the belt are good? We didn't take a team from MAC or C-USA or MWC. We added a bunch of FBS schools.

Marshall is more of a name than any team in the Belt. People associate them with movie, as well as Randy Moss and Chad Pennington.

Southern Miss is 12-2 this year and La. Tech was ranked in the top 25 for a number of weeks. I think they were as high as 19, but not sure. If fans see that the # 19 team in the country is coming to Boca they will definitely come out and watch.

This also puts us in a conference with a championship game that can potentially be played at our stadium.

From Wikipedia:
The team with the better regular season record serves as the host team.

Each year, the game has been televised live on ESPN College Football. In the 2006 season, the game was moved from Saturday afternoon to Friday night. In 2011 the game was on ABC.

The winner of the C-USA Championship customarily receives a berth to play in the Liberty Bowl. However, the Liberty Bowl is not contractually obligated to choose the game's winner. If the C-USA champion finishes ranked in the top 12 of the BCS or in the top 16 and ahead of the champion of one of the AQ conferences, it could receive an at-large bid to a BCS bowl. The loser of the C-USA championship game receives a bid in one of C-USA's six other bowl berths.

And if CUSA did not take us with MTSU then who? WKU, Arky St., ULL, ULM (all going to a bowl this year) or Troy and USA.

So of the 10 current belt teams this year, two are already gone next year (FIU and N. Texas) and then MTSU and another the following year. Whom does the Belt replace them with that would not be FCS teams moving up (like Ga and Texas St.)!

Unless the Belt and CUSA merge still but I see CUSA and the Big East merging as MUCH more probable!

None of these (surviving or remaining Belt teams) are really good draws anyhow are they? That is the main reason I favored the BigEast, better names to draw FOOTBALL FANS to the stadium. But CUSA sil provide better names than the Belt ever will at least and does have better media and Bowl deals.

And ANY move hopefully FORCES US to upgrade the arena and baseball stadium NOW!

No one from CUSA is going to the belt. Why would they? They give up a possibility of 6 guaranteed bowl tie-ins, compared to the Belt's, what? 2? They give up being on TV every week to having to possibly playing against a team with little or no media coverage.

UTSA is 8-4 this year in the WAC and have former UM coach Larry Coker as their HC. I'd say they are comparable to WKU in that they are both new to the FBS.

From Wikipedia:
UTSA closed out it's season with a 38-31 win over rival Texas State before an announced crowd of 39,032 at the Alamodome. For the 2012 season UTSA averaged 29,226 in attendance. That's better than us.

Rice has been in a total of 9 bowl games, with the last one being in 2008 which they won, same as us.

The TV revenue in C-USA will NOT decrease and neither will the bowls. Ark St, Troy and ULL may be on the top this year and next year it may be MTSU, FAU and WKU.

Last year, Troy was one of the worst teams in the belt, and this year they're one of the best. Staying in the Sunbelt would be a death sentence and I'd rather drop to the FCS then stay. If we didn't leave WKU would've taken our spot and then what are you left with?

Congrats to Administration, Board of Trustees, Pat Chun, Coach Pelini and all sport coaches.  Salute the Hoot!!!! They will know us!

The bowl tie-ins, revenue and TV contracts will be drastically cut after the major CUSA programs depart this year. None of that clout will remain even close to where it now is. Remember: UCF, Memphis, ECU, Tulane, Houston, SMU? Gone.

What Rice did has nothing to do with how well it will pull in fans. At least Troy is known in the south and brings hundreds if not 1,000 people and its band to Boca. Rice, UTEP, Tulsa, UNT? Not so much.

Marshall used to be a name, but faded quickly. Troy beat the Herd the last two times they played. Actually, Marshall could help FAU a bit because it has a fiesty but pretty spread out fan base, including an alumni club in Palm Beach County.

Oh and UTSA is not yet I-A and gives away tickets with KFC purchases.