Them or Texas St...
''Don't be a bad dagh..."
NMST is not under consideration supposedly
''Don't be a bad dagh..."
WKU will really help CUSA in basketball. They had a good showing vs Kansas last night
I'm going to borrow Maddawg's stance and say take whoever hurts the SBC the most...
''Don't be a bad dagh..."
The Belch will suck horribly no matter which school C-USA invites next. I don't think the effect on the Belch should matter.
I want NM State because all of their games are televised.
New Mexico State is also a land-grant Tier 1 national university. WKU is a regional directional school. I'd much rather be associated with NM State.
MBB is a wash between NM State and WKU.
NM State would also help with travel costs as a travel partner of UTEP.
And NM State doesn't have the stench of coming from the Belch.
Hearing that NMST is not even under consideration...
We shall see -
''Don't be a bad dagh..."
'06 don't assume it's between NMSU and Western. What if it is between Western and LaLaff? LaLaff has quietly moved into contention while NMSU was doing all they could to keep a thug on the basketball court.
The writer lists eight teams for the east division. I am guessing that UAB would Move to the west.
They should have gone with NMSU.
NMSU may not have been a candidate, but they should have been. Landgrant vs. directional, bigger endowment, Tier 1 vs Regional, better gender balance, AggieVision exposure vs not.
WKU mostly has one thing going for it, which is competitiveness. Which may be the big selling point. So far, C*USA has bypassed all of the bowl-playing teams last year. And they've lost four (soon to be five) of their top six performers. So I can sort of understand why they'd go this route. WKU is a better institution than Arky State and ULM (though not ULL).
I'd counter this with two things: First, the avoidance of becoming a "directional institution conference." North Texas (though honestly I give Texas/Florida directionals a pass), Southern Miss, Middle Tennessee, Western Kentucky... starts adding up. WKU also recommends the second dip into USNWR "Regional" institutions, which is best avoided if you can. And lastly, it's the fifth Sun Belt school to join the conference. I thought that the conference was very wise to take two WAC, two SBC, and two CAA to avoid being seen as "Sun Belt Plus." Taking MTSU and FAU was probably the right move after that, all things considered. But I'd try to avoid bringing in any more SBC teams if they can avoid it.
That's my thinking, anyway.
University of Houston '01. Any references to "we" or "us" likely refer to UH. Cheers!
I'm not assuming it's between New Mexico State and Western Kentucky. I'm sure WKU is next. That's what we've been hearing for a while now.
What I am saying is that my personal preference for the next C-USA invite is New Mexico State. Why NM State?
- Every football, basketball, and baseball game is televised
- Solid men's basketball program
- Land-grant, Tier 1 national university
- Reduces travel costs as UTEP's travel partner
- No stench from the Belch
WKU wouldn't bring anything more to C-USA than NMSU. WKU's football program has a little more upside, but that's it. WKU doesn't produce all their games for TV, or at least I'm not aware of it if they do. WKU is located in a tiny market so they aren't an asset in TV negotiations or for conference exposure. WKU is a regional directional school, and those aren't the type of schools I like to be associated with. Their men's basketball programs are pretty comparable. Both NMSU and WKU have solid minor sports programs, but those don't really matter. However, there is no doubt that WKU is the best remaining athletic program in the Belch.
I don't think Benson will snatch up NMSU for all sports because they are too far out of the Belch's footprint.
Of course Reneau/Guice/BVDV should advocate for anybody but ULL. I certainly wouldn't want to touch ULL with a 10-foot pole. In no way should Tech ever want to be associated with ULL. I still don't think ULL is on C-USA's short list.
I don't think Texas State will get an invite until another Texas team leaves.
I don't think South Alabama will get an invite until UAB leaves.
I don't think ULL will get an invite until Tech leaves.
Maybe UTEP will keep New Mexico State out.
That leaves 1) Georgia State and 2) Arkansas State sitting in good position to be next in line after WKU.
Of course the dynamics could change depending on which schools leave C-USA.
Just look at the map. Texas and Florida are the only states valuable enough to have more than one team in the conference, and Atlanta is very valuable.
Last edited by Dawg06; 03-23-2013 at 10:05 PM.