(original G5blog content)
These five are in addition of course to BYU
ARKANSAS STATE: With only one other FBS school to contend with in Arkansas, the Red Wolves should be at the top of any ones expansion list. If the MWC were looking to go south, a one two punch of Ark State and UL could prove very beneficial for the MWC. Ark State like UL, lacks a big television market. This should matter less and less however, in the new post P5 world. Conferences that concentrate on winning programs rather than markets, will be the winners in the new G5 conference arrangement.
UL: There is no hotter team in the G5 right now than the Ragin Cajuns. With great baseball, a football team on the rise and a fan base that can show up in great numbers, UL should be an obvious choice for the MWC or the AAC. It seems likely however, that as long as Tulane is in the AAC, UL will have to put its eggs in the MWC basket. The G5 conferences will need to look for winning programs not simply ones in large markets if they want to thrive. UL, given the right television exposure and resources, could become a long term player in the G5 world . If however, La Tech can get its football act together, they could press UL for the spot in the MWC or the AAC. Until that happens, UL should be sitting pretty in the realignment game.
SOUTHERN MISS: Southern Miss, in spite of its recent football woes, should still be counted as one of the better programs in the G5 world. The Golden Eagles crashed and burned at precisely the worst time possible as G5 realignment came and went leaving Southern Miss on the sidelines. Don't expect for Southern Miss to stay down for long, as it is still considered a good place to play football in the recruiting world. The AAC would be the most likely landing spot for Southern Miss as the Golden Eagles already have a long history with many of the programs in the American Athletic Association.
ARMY: Yes Army has struggled in football recently. Yes Navy and Air Force are two steps ahead of the West Point program at the moment. The truth however, is that in spite of these two realities, Army still carries a national footprint that can help both the MWC and the AAC. The Army-Navy game is still one of the hottest tickets in town and Army will always have an aura of patriotism and good will from fans everywhere. With the hiring of former Georgia Southern coach, Jeff Monken, look for Army and their style of the Wing-T to make a strong comeback .The AAC seems like the most likely landing spot for Army. Don't count out the MWC though
ODU: ODU is a program that was born to win. With a rich recruiting area, alumni ready to spend money on the program and an administration that understands the value of a winning football team, ODU is a great candidate to move up in the G5 world. The AAC seems more likely to land ODU than the MWC does. ODU however, will need to prove that it can win at the FBS level before they are a sure thing. If they do struggle and sputter out of the gate, then they would be the first school to come off of this list.
HONORABLE MENTIONS;
GEORGIA SOUTHERN: If the MWC ever wanted a southern division in their conference Georgia Southern is a good candidate. With a strong winning tradition and good fan base, Georgia Southern could become one of the better G5 teams in a hurry.
LA TECH: The former WAC school, now finds itself in Conference USA. La Tech is in a rich recruiting state and has shown that they know how to win. If Tulane gives the green light, La Tech would be a good candidate for any AAC need down the road.
MARSHALL: Marshall is one of the top G5 football programs at the moment. They also have a great prop program. It is unclear however, how they would perform without this program, which is why they are not in the top 5 expansion list. Most likely conference: AAC
NIU: The MWC would be a likely landing spot for NIU. NIU will have to prove though, that they can continue to win without their standout QB Jordan Lynch.
If not BYU, perhaps UT-San Antonio and UTEP for the Mountain West. UTSA is an up and coming school in
ReplyDeletea big city market. UTEP has a good fan base and would be natural rivals with New Mexico.
Thank you for posting and find the web site. UTEP is of course always mentioned as a MWC replacement school. It has never been clear to me however, how much, if any, energy the Mountain West has in bringing UTEP to the table. This was the main reason I left them off the list. If UTEP ever does go the MWC, then I don't think it would surprise me. The schools I listed in the blog entry are schools that I think have momentum in both winning and program strength both today and going forward.UTEP certainly has good fan support and a rich history of college football.
ReplyDeleteI'm curious as to why you think Ga Southern would be a better move up candidate over App State in the Honorable Mention group. As an overall athletic program there is no comparison. For starters App has won the SoCon's Commissioner's Cup (overall athletic excellence) 29 times of the 33 years of its existence. Appalachian has a larger athletic budget, better overall facilities, raises more corporate dollars, far more money from their boosters and draws roughly twice the number of fans per home football game. Oh, and the Mountaineers are 7-3 vs the Eagles on the football field the past 10 years Truth of the matter is Ga Southern would not have been invited to the SunBelt if not for App State.
ReplyDeleteDoug. First, glad you found the site and thanks for posting. I think App State is a great program. I even wrote a post a few days ago why I thought adding App State, along with Ga Southern was a great move the Sun Belt. My biggest concern for App State going forward is recruiting. App State is in a state with 6 other FBS programs : ECU, NC State, UNC, Wake and Duke. I also do not want to forget about UNC-Charlotte, a program that will be joining the FBS ranks in a few years. All of the achievements that you mentioned in your post will help App as it begins FBS play. The recruiting trail however,is going to be a different story. App will have to prove that they can consistently beat ECU, the other G5 program in North Carolina on the recruiting trail, before imo, they can be considered a school ready for the AAC or MWC. APP will also have to battle UNC-Charlotte for recruits in the rich recruiting area of Mecklenburg County. Even though App did not make this list, I think they have the capacity to eventually become a very good FBS program. Hope you follow us at GFiveConf on twitter . Thanks again for posting. For the Appalachian fan base I hope you are right and I am wrong.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the response. I do receive your emails and have the blogspot bookmarked. I will definitely follow you guys on Twitter.
ReplyDeleteI've been following App State Football for over 30 years. After the 4 ACC schools, South Carolina, Clemson, Va Tech and UVa are finished and ECU gets their paws on the left overs, there isn't much FBS talent left in NC. Due to that crowded room App has have never placed an emphasis recruiting in NC. Although we have enjoyed some success against ECU, Wake & Duke over the years. Due to the long tenure of Jerry Moore and the make up and continuity of his staff, our coaches have developed deep contacts in Georgia and South Carolina. They have been our primary recruiting areas for 20 years and we currently have 43 players from those two states. Only 19 players are from NC. Satterfield added two coaches with long ties to Florida and it paid big dividends this past year. With the move to FBS the staff realizes they have to cast a much wider net to get the quantity of good players we need. I've seen offers go out to players in Louisiana, Alabama, Ohio, Michigan and New Jersey. Obviously we need to have a presence in our home state, but the approach is to sign the best players we can and develop a name in FBS then begin to go more head to head with the ECU and the ACC schools.
South Alabama never seems to get a lot of talk in these conversations but USA has a ton of potential. USA has a huge endowment, great facilities (no on-campus football stadium yet though), and a good market in a football recruiting hotbed. USA has a great baseball tradition, good basketball tradition, and has found early success in football. If USA had started football a decade sooner they would be a more known commodity.
ReplyDeleteI am impressed with South Alabama and think that they are one of the programs in the Sun Belt that will only get better with time. Coach Jones is building a very good program and is modeling it after other successful programs. Schools that take South Alabama lightly do so unwisely. I don't think however, they are ready for a move. They are definitely worth keeping an eye on going forward.
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