Sun Belt Conference Needs To Act Sooner Rather Than Later on Conference Expansion

Sun Belt Conference should add two-four more programs in 2013

College football re-alignment is hitting the non-AQ conferences again, more conference shake ups is happening and will happen in the near future.

On this week sever schools have re-aligned with new conferences from the Big East to the ACC and now two more schools have left the Conference USA for the Big East. With all this shuffling in the conference arena, the question that is on my mind is “What is the Sun Belt Conference going to do?”

Conference USA just raided the WAC and took two programs from the Sun Belt Conference this season for 2013. And the Sun Belt replaced them with two programs Texas State and Georgia State. However it is a known fact that C-USA wants to be a super conference with at least 14 teams and high as 16 teams or more.  And now that they have lost Tulane and East Carolina to the Big East beginning in 2014, their commissioner have made it known they have more options to choose from. Sorry to say those options may be the Sun Belt Conference.

Conference USA may be headed back to the Sun Belt to get two more programs or they may go out and get two more great FCS programs that the Sun Belt has failed to add sooner rather than later in Georgia Southern and Appalachian State.  C-USA also has Western Kentucky, Middle Tennessee and UL-Lafayette on their radar. And don’t forget New Mexico State is sitting out there still an established FBS program.

So why would the Sun Belt Conference sit back and enjoy the shuffling and snatching of Sun Belt Conference teams to C-USA?  No doubt they will be looking to rob the Sun Belt Conference once again.  Commissioner Karl Benson the new conference commissioner stated several times that he want the SBC to stay a step ahead of C-USA. So does he really mean that or is it just talk?

The Sun Belt Conference has a chance to be that great powerful non-AQ conference out of the new group of five. Adding two great programs to get to the solid 12 for a conference championship game would be great for the Sun Belt Conference moving forward, especially with the new playoff system coming into effect in 2014. This would help the conference in its chances at that big bowl game and playoff and also generate more revenue for the conference and its teams.  What are the SBC offering its members to stay or come aboard?

Will the Commissioner continue to talk the talk and those that sit on the board continue to sit at the board table along with Commissioner Karl Benson and watch or will they act and get the job done before it’s too late?

Why wouldn’t the Sun Belt Conference aggressively seek to add Southern Miss and UAB, and why would they not add Georgia Southern and Appalachian State, or Lamar in Texas?

In all of this conference re-alignment talk, there is one more big eye catcher that continues to bother me, and that is the Sun Belt Conference has no exit fee in place for those programs that desire to leave. It makes it so easy for other conferences like C-USA to come in and offer so many sweet deals and greener paths to our members because it cost them anything to leave the Sun Belt, so we just get robbed. That should be changed immediately.

But this is decision making season in the offseason of college football, now that we all know what is going on and what can happen in the near future. Our commissioner and board presidents need to make a decision quickly on our next step for the Sun Belt Conference. Are we going to really stay a step ahead of the C-USA or we going to continue to get robbed and lose programs to C-USA and make them better, and watch other conferences grow? I rather see our leaders act now and preserve our conference and make it the top of the non-AQ conferences as they have been doing. Adding two more programs or four would not hurt, but I believe would help the conference in all aspects.

If the best of the FCS get added by other conferences and the SBC lose two more programs to C-USA, then who will be left to lift us back up and help us get to where we want to be. Last minute deals are not always the best deals. We don't need a repeat of the WAC in the Sun Belt Conference. 

What would you like to see happen and who would you like the conference to add as members? 

Could Conference Expansion Be In The Plans For The Sun Belt Conference? It would help!

With the 2012 college football season almost over, the Sun Belt Conference will be preparing for a new slate of members in 2013. After 2013 will the SBC remain at 10 football members or will it improve its conference to 12 football members and improve it conference for the new playoff system.

North Texas and Florida International will be departing for the C-USA and the Sun Belt Conference will be welcoming in its two newest members Texas State and Georgia State.  Both programs are moving up from the FCS, along with new member South Alabama that made the jump this season in 2012. 

Texas State will keep the Sun Belt Conference in the long star state territory and the conference will expand into the Peach State of Georgia with Georgia State.  However Texas State will not be along in Texas, they will have a new rivalry with UT-Arlington in basketball and all other sports except football. UT-Arlington will be joining the Sun Belt as a non-football member in 2013.

But is expansion still on the table for the Sun Belt to reach that 12 team football conference for a conference championship game.  Maybe so, we will see what’s ahead come the spring of 2013.

If the Sun Belt Conference does decide to expand to 12 teams in football who would it be to join the   new Sun Belt Conference? Let me share my take on possible candidates for membership in the SBC.

It’s no known secret that Georgia Southern wants to move up to FBS. This would be a great addition for the east division in the Sun Belt and a great mileage game for many schools in the Sun Belt Conference that would fall in the new east division, especially for lonely Florida Atlantic and also in-state member Georgia State, it also help the travel of Troy, South Alabama and Middle Tennessee.

Adding Lamar of Texas or McNeese State of Louisiana would be great for a west division, to help the travel of several possible western division members of Texas State, Arkansas State, ULM, ULL, Arkansas-Little Rock and Western Kentucky. But I would think they would have brought back New Mexico State as a established FBS program and can jump in immediately to help set up a western division.

The Sun Belt Conference needs to act quickly on conference expansion, with Florida Atlantic sitting in the Sun Shine state all along now. Commissioner Benson made it known to the WKU Herald, which it is possible that a school with the state of Florida maybe sought.  Just who would that may be? Nobody really knows yet but those on the inside of the conference administrations.

I do believe they should extend conference invitations to several FCS schools at the end of this season, and prepare for 2014. It’s time for us to look at the brighter days now in a big way. Hosting at Sun Belt Conference Football Championship Game in 2014 season would be awesome and it would help the conference in so many ways moving forward.  I believe that’s what the player’s want, a division to play in and win and face off in a championship and move on to bowl games. I believe many coaches would desire the same as well as AD’s and Presidents.  A Football Championship Game will also bring in more generated revenue to support teams and the conference overall and more quality players.

Commissioner had this to say to WKU Herald back in May, “The additions of Georgia State and Texas State is part of a plan and a strategy the Sun Belt has in place to bring in quality universities to not only allow the Sun Belt to get bigger, but to get better,” Benson said. “We believe strongly that the additions of Georgia State and now Texas State have made the Sun Belt a better conference for the future.”

The Commissioner did not stop there with his comments and ideas about conference expansion. “If we were to lose two current members replaced by Georgia State and Texas State, that gets us back to 10 football universities,” he said. “Our goal would be to get to 12 members to be able to divide into divisions and to create some geographic efficiency with the membership in the west versus the membership in the east.”

Appalachian State is a known FCS school waiting on an invitation to move up, along with Jacksonville State. It will be surprising to see any action come this may during the spring meeting of the conference on expansion. Will they get it done in 2013 for 2014? We will be watching and waiting to see what comes next for the Sun Belt Conference.

South Alabama Men’s Basketball ready for the Court

South Alabama had a winning season last season, losing a few games in some close calls and there was some games where the players seems as though they just gave up.

After Middle Tennessee, South Alabama was the only team in the East Division to have a record above .500 overall (17-12), but at 8-8 in conference play, didn't give much pressure to the Blue Raiders in terms of division supremacy. In 2012-2013, Ronnie Arrow is hoping his squad will be able to rectify that. Like the Blue Raiders, the Jaguars are extremely potent up front. Last season South Alabama was the top rebounding team in the conference (39.7 pg) and the eighth best in the nation overall.

Junior forward Augustine Rubit (15.2 ppg, 9.2 rpg) is the major reason for the Jaguars strong inside game. Last season he connected on 71.3 percent of his shots as is scoring numbers jumped by two points per game from his freshman season, although his rebounding did drop by nearly the same amount in that time. Mychal Ammons (10.0 ppg, 6.3 rpg) is more of a swingman but can play both on the inside and outside effectively on both sides of the ball.

More consistent guard play could push the Jaguars to the next level. Freddie Goldstein (11.7 ppg) was the best scorer from the perimeter, while Trey Anderson (5.8 ppg, 3.1 apg) turned in the best numbers in terms of assists. TCU transfer Xavier Roberson is also an intriguing backcourt option after averaging 9.9 points per game in eight games last season.

South Alabama will begin its regular season on November 9^th against Florida State in Tallahassee, Florida.