Arkstfan

A team with the best record in Sun Belt play or tied for the best record will represent the conference in the New Orleans Bowl regardless of overall record (repeat with me slowly... 2001).

ASU needs to take 2 of the remaining four to get to six. We are at Troy, UNT and Army and host Troy. ULM needs 3 of 4. They are at MTSU and UNT and host FIU and ULL. Troy needs 3 of 4. They are at ULL and ASU and host FAU and MTSU. UNT and MTSU need 4 of 5. ULL needs 4 of 4.

Interesting. The stAte logo at ASU was designed by a trainer at ASU. Coach Lacewell and staff stumbled on to it when someone cleaned the guy's desk out after he graduated. The school made a few tweaks but that's where it came from.

They weren't asked to join but there were a number of I-AA's that were asked if they had plans to move to I-A. If there were we willing to look at them as possible members.

A few things to keep in mind. 1. A lot Tulane's expenses while living on the road are going to be picked up by FEMA and insurance. 2. Tulane athletics is being charged less for player tuition at the various sites they have scattered to than they are charged by Tulane. 3. Tulane hasn't sold many tickets while on the road but they have been paying a lot less for the facilities they have used which has ranged from nothing to just the actual expenses. 4. Tulane has one of the smaller endowments of such type schools and desperation fund-raisers have been a common ploy to help get it up. 5. I wouldn't put it past Tulane based on their poverty cries of the past, to be trying to goad CUSA into giving them some level of subsidy to recover some of their unreimbursed expenses. 6. If Tulane did pull the plug, just remember that the rumors were that UTEP was admitted by getting the minimum number of required votes. There were CUSA schools making a strong case that it would be financially better to be at 11 members than 12. 7. Last point. The Metro, made up of many of the same members let Tulane pull the plug on basketball for 2 years after a point-shaving scandal and remain a full member in other sports despite basketball being a required sport. If Tulane wished to sit out 2006 the NCAA would almost certainly allow the to resume as a I-A in 2007 and CUSA would welcome them back, as long as they had a plan to make it short hiatus.

Depends on what happens with ULM. ULM has already beaten Troy. If UNT were to win out and Troy wins out that would leave a 3 way tie for first (unless ULM were to lose to someone other than just UNT). With a three way tie at 6-1 the New Orleans Bowl would pick the team. You can scratch UNT off the list after 4 appearances and a fiasco of a non-conference season. That would leave it between ULM and Troy. The committee would likely pick ULM. You have to figure they want a Louisiana school to play in the game after the fall they have had. Their dream was probably ULL-Tulane with ULM being the #2 pick from the Belt and USM the #2 CUSA followed by Houston. Now if ULM were to lose twice and it came down between Troy and UNT then Troy goes because of the head-to-head victory.

First scoreless game (at least in I-A) to go to OT. So that means the first ever 3-0 OT win. Gang no problem rooting for FAU. They just didn't earn a win, 168 yards offense won't beat much of anyone, especially when your only trips to enemy territory are to the 48, the 27, and 25 (by rule since OT starts at the 25). Of course 393 yards offense isn't worth much either when you miss a FG, and turn the ball over 4 times in scoring range. ASU defense saved our rears.

Sad situation, but... New Orleans is only the 43rd largest media market. If New Orleans does experience a drop in population... 5% drop makes them the 51st largest media market. 10% drop makes them the 52nd (big gap between Jax, Fl and Austin between 52 and 53). New Orleans economy is heavily tourist dependent. They are looking at a number of years before the tourist economy rebounds, so you are looking at lower median incomes and lower employment for the next several years. That means lower disposable income and NFL ticket sales are dependent on having a large population base with disposable income. Potential local sponsors are most likely going to be using their cash reserves to be rebuild or to just weather a period of reduced revenue. Spending on NFL sponsorship will be a low priority. San Antonio is the 37th largest media market. There are only a handful of larger markets that don't have an NFL team and of them, like San Antonio, are located close to another NFL franchise. To move to LA requires a new stadium. The LA folks never got a real stadium proposal together, that's why the Texans are in Houston. The NFL had waited and waited and only upon giving up did they go with Houston. A new stadium is VITAL in LA, not just because of luxury seats and PSL licenses and all that jazz. It has to be smaller. The history of the NFL in Los Angeles is a history of television blackouts because of unsold seats. Obviously Fox doesn't want an NFL team in LA if that team isn't selling out because they go from showing games 17 weeks a year in LA to 9. At one point in the expansion campaign the talk was that an NFL stadium in LA would be sub-70,000 seats possibly as low as 60,000 seats with some talk of maybe going as low as 55,000 (which is what the Redskins had for decades) just to be sure of sellouts. That presents a huge problem for the NFL. The consensus has always been that any team relocated to LA would have to be sold to a local owner. A local owner is unlikely to be able to pay a huge sum for an existing team because the ticket revenue isn't likely to be there to fund the premium required to get an existing team. Minneapolis-St. Paul is the #15 market with about 1/3rd of the TV households of #2 LA but the Vikings are likely to have a better cash flow in a good stadium than an LA team will have. LA may be a good market for the NFL, but it has the earmarks of being bad market for the local owner. Now back to New Orleans. Beyond the fact that a team is not likely to be viable there for a number of years you have the problem of what is next. With Cleveland the NFL quickly promised them they would be the next expansion franchise awarded. That may be politically needed with New Orleans but its not what the NFL discussed previously. The last time Benson rattled sabers about moving the trial ballon the NFL floated was to give New Orleans a permanent spot in the Super Bowl rotation. Every year is unlikely but every other year or every three years is possible. The problem is again stadium. The Superdome lacks the number of luxury suites and other goodies that are required for a Super Bowl. Financially New Orleans would benefit more from regular Super Bowl hosting than it would from an NFL team. The NCAA gives every fourth Final Four to Indianapolis and post-9/11 that has been part of their disaster planning. The locals in Indy keep a group of dates open at the RCA dome in order to have it available if terrorism or natural disaster requires the Final Four to be relocated. A similar effort to get New Orleans on a one-in-four Final Four rotation with Indy would go a long way toward making a mega-stadium viable. Personally, I think you see major league baseball in New Orleans before you see the NFL. Baseball has a couple of franchises in trouble. Las Vegas will get one and if New Orleans gets back on its feet, it will happen at about the time the owners are ready to approve a second move. New Orleans is a good baseball town. The Zephyers are well supported and between LSU, UNO, and ULL, college baseball is well supported in the region.

Most microphones don't work well after the coach shoves it up the rear of the reporter trying to ask questions. Maybe that is the "technical" problem.

Odd fricking game. FAU had 168 yards offense. Being held scoreless, no suprise. ASU had 393 yards offense. Being held scoreless in regulation is a suprise except that Noce who had led the Sun Belt in pass efficiency threw three picks and Antonio Warren had a lost fumble. All four turnovers came while ASU was in field goal range.

Temple was never on our "wish" list. We did offer to let them play football only on precisely the same terms we gave Idaho, ULM, and Utah State. Pay an annual fee and agree to play for 2 years with a built-in two year rollover unless either Temple or the Sun Belt gives a non-renewal notice. WKU is going to start I-A ball in the Belt if they start I-A ball. The MAC isn't going to admit them until they are on track for I-A and they feel certain Temple will hang around and even then may not if basketball ratches up in the MAC. The Belt took an unofficial visit to FAMU and they immediately fell out of consideration and that was before they were found to have numerous NCAA violations and violations of Florida public finance laws. UNO hasn't even been able to start a non-scholarship program much less a scholarship I-AA or I-A program.

That's the point their coach said they were ready for these long trips when they joined, but that just ain't true.

Really? I thought when La.Tech got into the conference they were counting on short trips to Tulsa, Dallas and Houston to balance out the long trips.

Sun Belt Standings vs. (Sagarin) 1. ULM (120) 2. ASU (124) UNT (146) 4. MTSU (99) Troy (126) 6. FAU (158) 7. FIU (177) ULL (154) ULL lost to FAU but is rated below them. UNT beat MTSU and is rated well below them.

ASU set a school record for penalties and still only lost to Oklahoma State by 10.

Gotta be pretty good to only give up 13 points on 8 turnovers. That was the difference in Jonesboro. 7 turnovers led to 42 ASU points.

If you have the sports package from Dish or Direct the ULM-Troy game is available on the Altitude Network for free (well free in that you've already paid for it).

They are living at Tech practically across the street from Joe Ailett Stadium. No need for them to travel all the way to Houston.

FIU is big, I was shocked at their team size but ASU was much faster and UNT should be as well.

Yep. I'm just tickled ASU was finally on the good side of one those when the stats lose on the scoreboard games.

Last year ULL went into the 4th against ASU leading 24-0 and won 27-24. If the Sun Belt had instant replay, ASU would have won 31-27 but for a TD pass ruled to have hit the ground first but replays from the sideline and end zone showed were a catch. They love the fourth quarter against ASU.

I don't give a crap about UTEP but I would hope Price would stick around a little longer after UTEP took a chance to give him a second chance. After that mess at Bama (well actually on a trip to Florida) UTEP took some heat hiring him. I just can't imagine Tulane's coach WANTING to stay Ruston.

Jeepers, open the job and cut the salary to $175,000 and you will still get around 150 applications or private contacts (from those not willing to be known to be looking). There aren't many I-A jobs and loads of guys know that if they don't get the first one they'll never get one of their dream jobs. Steve Roberts got about $100,000 pay raise leaving NW State for ASU and he still ain't getting $200,000 at ASU.

Hey they only have something like 8 or 9 MAJOR amusement parks. A lot of the population is transplants with no ties to any of the colleges and they have a bunch of senior citizens with no ties to the state in that population. It is a good recruiting market but I'd hate to be trying to develop a crowd. The schools get a lot of out-of-state students who go back home soon as they graduate.

Your history is a bit off. While UNT left in 1974 the departures had already started. Houston left in 1959 two years after UNT joined. Cincinnati left in 1969 Memphis left in 1973 Louisville and UNT left in 1974. The only schools in the MoValley that are still I-A that were in the Valley when UNT left were New Mexico State and Tulsa. Those schools (except Houston) joined with Tulane, Georgia Tech and St. Louis to form the Metro in 1975. The focus of the Metro was hoops first, second and last. Then Memphis, Cincinnati, and St. Louis pulled out to form the Great Midwest (Louisville was supposed to join but balked over the revenue sharing plan, which opened the door to UAB). CUSA was merely the Great Midwest and Metro merging together cutting out Va.Tech, Va Commonwealth and Dayton. The focus was to create a premier BASKETBALL league that would provide a football home to the I-A schools of the Metro and Great Midwest. If UNT had stuck with the MoValley you still would have been sucked into I-AA in 1982 and had a home with Eastern Illinois, Illinois State, Indiana State, Missouri State, Northern Iowa, Southern Illinois, and Western Illinois when MoValley football morphed into the Gateway Football Conference. So you probably would have left for the Southland anyway, just maybe at a later date.