Arkstfan

Shame about Hatfield 12 years at Rice and still has a career winning record. If I had moved from Nebraska to Ohio (not State) and lost my final three games of the season after a 4-4 start I think I'd be entitled to tie one on.

Well Idaho, NMSU, and USU who needed to be in a regional league have paid $750,000 and watched their attendance fall from where it was in the Sun Belt. One of the most knowledgeable La.Tech posters has broken down La.Tech's financial situation and said with no reservation that in two more years La.Tech will no longer be able to afford membership in the WAC. The costs have become so bad that last year they had to pass the hat on the website to get enough money to send the tennis team to a tournament in El Paso. That was while the WAC money was good because UTEP, SMU, Rice, and Tulsa weren't taking a share and while Tech had conference trips to Tulsa, Dallas, and Houston. Bitch and moan about the Sun Belt being unworthy of your greatness and aspirations but your administration needed only to look at the public documents regarding Tech's financial health to make the decision that WAC membership would be potentially fatal to the entire athletic program. UNT has spent more on the athletic complex alone than Tech has spent on all facilities combined while in the WAC. They lost their bowl game in San Jose because it never drew enough fans to be remotely viable. The NCAA nearly pulled their charter three years in a row because they couldn't post the letter of credit by the deadline, the NCAA finally gave up and pulled the plug and there are rumors that not every creditor got paid fully. Scoff at the New Orleans Bowl but it is financially viable and local ticket sales in Lafayette are ahead of the same time in New Orleans. The New Orleans Bowl made it despite ACTIVE work by the Sugar Bowl to discourage local business support of the game. Now WAC teams are left with a trip to Hawaii if Hawaii isn't eligible or a trip to warm and sunny Boise. The Sun Belt will match the WAC in bowl berths probably in 2007 but no later than 2008.

There is no question that the Cajuns are the hottest team in the league. I've said on the Sun Belt board that I think Bustle should get coach of the year for getting together a 5 game win streak that started BEFORE Babb got healthy. ASU obviously won the games that mattered most because we took a share of the title and the bowl berth. The Cajuns didn't, you won the game that mattered to ASU and you won the game that mattered to taking a share of the title but not what mattered for the bowl berth. You gave up 28 to an FAU team that crossed midfield twice in regulation against ASU and one of those was an int return that set-up three plays and negative net yards. You had ASU ready to be knocked out in Jonesboro and gave up 25 fourth quarter points to an offense that most Belt fans think sucks. Win either of those games and you aren't having to count UNT winning. If I were projecting next year, I'd say the teams to watch will be the Cajuns, MTSU, FIU and UNT. Arkansas State is losing it's QB, two top tailbacks, and our placekicker just to name a few. ULM has some tough graduation losses. Troy is probably only slightly improved and FAU doesn't appear to have the quality of depth returning that FIU has. I don't expect to be in the hunt next year which makes the bowl berth all that more important to us. The bad news for the bowl is we lost our fourth starting defensive lineman for the season last Saturday when Flagg tore his ACL.

Unless something bizarre happens ASU will finish the year as the most penalized team in the nation.

For those that read the comic strip Gil Thorpe, the Arkansas-Pine Bluff game inspired a storyline where Milford did the same thing.

Phpht. If ULL had wanted to go they shouldn't have let ASU rip off a 25-7 4th quarter. The only shame for ULL is the same shame MTSU had in 2001. They frickin didn't do it when it mattered.

Arkansas-Pine Bluff did it in the NAIA playoffs one year. Took the kickoff and marched down to score the winning TD on the final play. Many moons ago Missouri State did it it ASU. They failed to even pick up a first down after they got the ball.

Shame? My arse. No shame in getting what is earned.

Humph. We took 2,000 to New Orleans for the NCAA Basketball Tournament. Found out where we were going on Sunday, game was that Friday so four days of sales. The Sun Belt didn't shoot itself in the foot. If we cannot support a bowl without the local team, we don't frickin need one and can go back to bidding for I-AA playoff games. As to bringing 20,000 less than ULL would have... another Humph. If ya'll were worried about the crowds you could have told the Sun Belt in 2001 to not apply for the waiver and send the 8-3 team that was drawing better crowds. Buncha bull.

That's very solid attendance with a losing season clinched.

From what I recall most of the folks here didn't think it was classless so why discuss it now since that has already been established?

The WAC didn't like that idea. They were willing to add one and only one team to appease Tech and nothing more. They don't like going east any more than we like going west.

Dang, hope Fichtner doesn't get the job. He was the guy who got DeAngelo at Memphis after recruiting him initially as ASU offensive coordinator.

Considering that Cal-Davis beat the team tied for 3rd in the Pac-10, I'd say its a fair assessment that some I-AA schools could win the Sun Belt.

Forgot my final comment. The Utah spread is the most interesting offense out there because it blends the wishbone's option ground attack and the R/S option air attack. Done correctly very hard offense for receivers to learn because they also function as halfbacks. Add a bruising tailback with breakaway speed and you can wildly capitalize on the offense's tendency to spread the defense from sideline to sideline.

Run and Shoot has a price. You play an inferior opponent and you can make the game a laugher very quickly. The flip side is this, I cannot recall a R/S team that could milk the clock effectively. Against a comporable opponent when you cannot score at will and you need maybe two first downs to salt a game away, the typical R/S team will have to throw to get those first downs they will normally stop the clock for their opponent on nearly half of those plays. La.Tech adopted a R/S variant after Houston routed them and I watched them encounter that problem. Mis-fired on 1st and 2nd down stopping the clock each time, 3rd down threw just short of a first down and forced to punt setting up the score that beat them. Houston had several games that way most notable was a game against Arkansas. Had the ball and the lead with about three and half minutes left, got one first down burned just a few seconds more than a minute. Arkansas scored for the win. The R/S is the brother of the wishbone. Both require less of the offensive line because blocks need only be held for a short time. Both demand quick reads from the QB. Neither requires an especially strong armed QB or one with great size. Both rely on small fast backs (wishbone makes 'em halfbacks, R/S makes 'em receivers). Both attempt to force one on one match-ups where breakaway speed can shine. Both are possession offenses counting on getting yardage in small amounts unless there is the breakaway. The difference is that wishbone can eat clock and hold a lead but is terrible for catching up as a general rule. The R/S can score quickly but is terrible for holding a lead in a close game.

John was my son's t-ball coach. Super nice guy and despite the win at all costs reputation he was the only one in the league sane enough to realize it was t-ball.

Excuses? You a dimwit? The question was that game a result of good coaching or pitiful Sun Belt. Most anyone could see that my opinion was that it wasn't good coaching by Bobby Ross so that leaves the second option.

Unfortunately under I-A rules they can only count one of those off-campus games a year. They need a dose of responsible leadership. Remember how ULM was supposedly teetering on financial collapse and a leadership change got them on track quickly.

Depends did Ross manage to convince ASU's QB to throw four lame ducks into traffic (two of which Army managed to actually catch and hold on), fumble three times (losing one), get TWO penalties behind the play on a punt return, and keep a couple Army drives alive with a variety of penalties including two 15 yard face mask calls. If Ross can do that, he's an awesome coach. If not...

Only if you exclude the three straight before it.

Considering that only Temple a worse total offense and only Temple, Buffalo and Miss. St. have worse scoring offenses, just who would you NOT swap offenses with? From what I've seen the past few years, the UNT offense has basically been "we're gonna whip your tail at the line of scrimmage." Well that worked fine in a league where half the teams were either on the verge of firing unsuccessful coaches or adopting new systems under the coaches hired to replace the unsuccessful. Other than being more entertaining you can't exactly say that Texas Tech is actually putting together great teams. They've won 8 games this year, but look at who they beat. The last place team in the Sun Belt. Two I-AA's one that is 3-6 and one that is 0-11. Kansas who is 5-5 but only 2-5 in the Big 12. Nebraska 6-3 but 3-4 in conference, Kansas State 4-6, 1-6 in conference, Baylor 4-6, 1-6 in conference, TAMU 5-5 and 3-4. They got routed by Texas and lost to Oklahoma State 4-5, 1-5 in conference. They've been routed by at least one quality team every year since Leach arrived and lost at least four games. Leach's winning percentage is a bit better than what Spike Dykes had but he's playing weaker non-conference games. It's a fun offense. It's entertaining but its not a cure-all.

Well the article is a little too glowing about the Run and Shoot. It did APPEAR unstoppable at first (most innovations do) but George Allen of the Arizona Wranglers solved the Run and Shoot problem after sending film of the Gamblers to Al Davis they cooked up a scheme to shut it down. I don't remember the particulars but as I recall most teams had blitzed up the middle for fear of the QB rolling away and either throwing on the run or rushing the ball. As I recall the scheme they cooked up eliminated almost all middle blitzes instead choosing the flood a side to force the play to one side of the field and stacking things up and basically leaving the QB the option of throwing across the field to hit one of the uncovered receivers. The danger though was that the QB would generally have to set up to make that throw allowing the d-backs a chance to break back across to break up the play. If you hit it, home run but if you missed, it was a pick. The Wranglers beat the Gamblers 17-16 less than half their normal scoring average. The word eventually spread and though it generally didn't help weaker teams, similar teams could stop hold back the run and shoot enough to have a shot at winning and better teams could beat them. Even at the height of the run and shoot Texas stopped Jenkins and Houston's unbeaten run with a 45-24 win. Pardee at hs two year peak lost to TAMU 30-16 and 17-13, Arkansas 26-21, and Washington State 24-22. The Run Shoot allowed for easier routs against inferior teams and maybe won some extra games against comporable teams by jumping out to quick leads.

I think we are stable from what I gather. Most schools are in one of two camps. Those that would desperately like to leave but pretty much get along because it is where they are and those that are happy with the association (though they wouldn't mind a call from another a league) and figure making the place you are at better, is in their best interest. I don't sense there is anyone would that leap at just any offer and we saw that in action with the WAC and with the Mid-Con's attempted raid of UALR, USA, and UNO. My impression is that there are a couple of I-AA's that have made some noise about wanting to come in and that the league feels confident enough in where it is that they better have a solid plan that is funded for moving to I-A and being competitive in basketball or they will be encouraged to not apply. All the signs point to the folks believing that when the normal five year shake-up rolls along that the shakes will be minor and are unlikely to impact them (ie. Big East won't expand or will only add one school).

As I said. I like ULM fans. But I intensely dislike numerous things that have been done over the years and they aren't the fans fault. ULM was going to have a place in the Sun Belt because they had the friends in the league to make it happen (notably Arkansas State and Louisiana Lafayette who were totally fed up with La.Tech), but issuing the a press release announcing your "secret" decision made the process harder than it should have been and it nearly caused UNT to balk because UNT was very anti-ULM at the time. ULM didn't make Sun Belt football happen, the ULM administration made it happen later than it should have. Then later when the NCAA hit us with new rules requiring 8 full members we were down to inviting flippin Idaho to join in all sports because ULM was trying to clean up a mess. All that said. Cofer from all accounts has been a great hire. That doesn't excuse forcing league members to pay for help. As to Weatherbie, he may be a good Christian and he is getting the program on track but he is the only coach in this league that I can think of to ever insult one player, much less two on the record.