Tech's best possible, REALISTIC conference movement

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Originally Posted by KSDAWG

Maybe right now, but do you want to play with ULM and ULL every year? I would rather play SMU and Tulane instead.

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Never said I wanted to play ULM or ULL. You equated Sunbelt to Gulf States. I just pointed out that was a dumb statement.

But I would prefer ULM or ULL to Grambling, NSU, Southern, or Southeastern.

Racism!

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Originally Posted by inudesu

I've made peace with this not really being in our control. If they're looking for markets, what were we going to do? Move to Dallas?

If they're looking for on-field production? Well, I'd think the smart play would be medium to long term reliability (which we'd have). And there aren't a whole lot of schools in the pool better on consistency than us, even if some of the highest highs have been higher than ours.

If they're looking for geography, well - nothing we can do about that.

If it's about budgets or eye-balls? Again, what were we supposed to do? Double our enrollment?

I'd love to play in what's left of the AAC, especially if they were to also bring in some schools we like being around (Rice, USM, just generally good programs). I could probably be ok with the Sunbelt (especially if like a USM came too). But I'd also be ok with just staying in CUSA so long as the AAC doesn't take a certain 3-4 schools. If we're getting left in a CUSA that lost, like, ODU and the F_U twins? I could live with that. Heck, I'd like it better than current CUSA (but not as much as AAC of course).

I guess my bottom line is that I've accepted that it's not really a question of "not being ready" or anything like that. There are some scenarios where we'd be worse off, but still plenty with more or less the same situation or even better.

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I think if we'd won some key games over the last decade we could have some say over what happens next. As it stands, youre right - most we can do is just let the chips fall.

Is Memphis our biggest obstacle from current members in the AAC? They were the member against us last time weren't they?

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Originally Posted by Dawgonit

Is Memphis our biggest obstacle from current members in the AAC? They were the member against us last time weren't they?

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So was Tulane and those two will probably vote against us again.

SMU and Tulane not likely to
be our friends, either.
I agree that it will
probably be about market size.

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Originally Posted by Dawgonit

Is Memphis our biggest obstacle from current members in the AAC? They were the member against us last time weren't they?

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Correct. Their president, Shirley Raines, and AD R.C. Johnson were very opposed to us joining C-USA in '04. Neither are still at Memphis.

So who would be "Yes" votes on us, and who would be "No" votes on us for AAC? I was very hopeful that our past relationships with Tulsa, SMU and Tulane (hosting them after Katrina) would be helpful to us.

Market size may be used as an excuse, but it no longer matters since the entire delivery of product has changed over the past 15 years. Never really mattered before, but it was the excuse our people used when UTEP got the nod over us for CUSA.

Tulane voted for us in both 2004 and 2012.

SMU was our biggest advocate in both 2004 and 2012. Their longtime president and DR were friends.

Exactly. Memphis led the charge against us and their leaders in that area are long gone.

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Originally Posted by Blue Dawg

I think if we'd won some key games over the last decade we could have some say over what happens next. As it stands, youre right - most we can do is just let the chips fall.

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I disagree. Of course I'd have preferred that we win any games we lost over the last 20 years but unless we're talking about like all of them, I think it wouldn't matter.

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Originally Posted by The Historian

Tulane voted for us in both 2004 and 2012.

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That is not what I was told. Maybe they did in 2012...post-Katrina as a payback, but not in 2004. But my source says Tulane voted no both times and my source was incensed they did, given what Tech did for them re: Katrina. Water under the bridge now, what's important is how Tech will fair this go-around.

Despite my recent stint as the resident irrational optimist, I don’t see it happening. That said, if Historian says we’re in a better spot than we’ve been in previously, we must be.

The tussle between the Belch and the CUSA left overs will be epic.