Tech to SBC?

[dawg80]

Those of us who have been around since the 1970's have experienced the whole journey from Division II (National Champion!) through the I-AA days, to the Spirit of '88, through the Big West, WAC, CUSA and now here we are back in the Southland Conference, er, Sun Belt with the very schools we tried for decades to distance ourselves from. Yes, college athletics has forever changed. It'll never be what it once was, never. The fact this move to the Belt might make the most sense, given these changes, is not the point. Rather it is tangible proof that Tech is forever relegated to the dregs of college sports. Maybe we were all just "fooling ourselves" by reaching out and trying to elevate Tech to higher heights, and as long as we were NOT in the same conference as the UL-Xs et al, there was always that buffer (perhaps "delusion) we were better off. Now...even that is gone. Welcome to ROCK BOTTOM!

That's where I, and I know some others, are coming from. We've seen it all! Some 50 years as a diehard Tech fan...still am, of course! This is just a reality check I didn't want to face. Hope that helps explain why some of us are not thrilled about this.

[Bill Brasky]

I don’t know if I’d call it the dregs. It just is what it is in this new BS era of professional college athletics - you need to be playing in a league with parity (i.e. the other broke d$&!s). I think it can still be fun.

Yes, we’ve aspired to be a P4 program for 30 years. So many things work against us like our enrollment, endowment, lack of funding, being in a small town, politics, etc.

The one thing we had the most control over that we never could execute on was WINNING. The handful of big wins over ranked opponents in the 90s and 00s was nice as were a few conference championships and 7 straight winning seasons/bowl in the appearances in the 10s. What we needed was consistency and conference championships. Throw in incompetence on the 16th floor and some really goofy AD’s, it just wasn’t gonna happen.

[NTXDawg]

I don’t know if I’d call it the dregs. It just is what it is in this new BS era of professional college athletics - you need to be playing in a league with parity (i.e. the other broke d$&!s). I think it can still be fun.

Yes, we’ve aspired to be a P4 program for 30 years. So many things work against us like our enrollment, endowment, lack of funding, being in a small town, politics, etc.

The one thing we had the most control over that we never could execute on was WINNING. The handful of big wins over ranked opponents in the 90s and 00s was nice as were a few conference championships and 7 straight winning seasons/bowl in the appearances in the 10s. What we needed was consistency and conference championships. Throw in incompetence on the 16th floor and some really goofy AD’s, it just wasn’t gonna happen.

THIS. We were never going to be able to achieve what we aspired to. As much as we tried, the deck was too stacked against us. We gave it a good effort. We did achieve some margin of separation. I don't feel that we fell back down as much as the other schools closed the gap. We can't compete with NIL and the transfer portal. So we need to align with other schools in the same boat as us. We may not fully like it, but its reality. In all honesty my personal interest in Tech sports has increased because of this move. Don't care about SHSU, Mo St. Deleware, Kennessaw St. Jax St, NMSU at all. I do have interest in So Miss, ULL, ULM even Ark St., if for no other reason that I dislike them.

[Dawgonit]

In all honesty my personal interest in Tech sports has increased because of this move. Don't care about SHSU, Mo St. Deleware, Kennessaw St. Jax St, NMSU at all. I do have interest in So Miss, ULL, ULM even Ark St., if for no other reason that I dislike them.

I'm in the same boat. A loss to SHSU, Delaware or Kennsaw is just sad. Losing to ULL, ULM or USM will be infuriating. I will be anxious leading up to those matches. The teams in CUSA just don't cause me to care as much.

[DallasDog]

Those of us who have been around since the 1970's have experienced the whole journey from Division II (National Champion!) through the I-AA days, to the Spirit of '88, through the Big West, WAC, CUSA and now here we are back in the Southland Conference, er, Sun Belt with the very schools we tried for decades to distance ourselves from. Yes, college athletics has forever changed. It'll never be what it once was, never. The fact this move to the Belt might make the most sense, given these changes, is not the point. Rather it is tangible proof that Tech is forever relegated to the dregs of college sports. Maybe we were all just "fooling ourselves" by reaching out and trying to elevate Tech to higher heights, and as long as we were NOT in the same conference as the UL-Xs et al, there was always that buffer (perhaps "delusion) we were better off. Now...even that is gone. Welcome to ROCK BOTTOM!

That's where I, and I know some others, are coming from. We've seen it all! Some 50 years as a diehard Tech fan...still am, of course! This is just a reality check I didn't want to face. Hope that helps explain why some of us are not thrilled about this.

Man, I always forget about that pit stop in the Big West. Have gun will travel and we have. At this point shouldn't we be able to buy our way out of CUSA with our Capital One points alone?

[sharky]

I don’t know if I’d call it the dregs. It just is what it is in this new BS era of professional college athletics - you need to be playing in a league with parity (i.e. the other broke d$&!s). I think it can still be fun.

Yes, we’ve aspired to be a P4 program for 30 years. So many things work against us like our enrollment, endowment, lack of funding, being in a small town, politics, etc.

The one thing we had the most control over that we never could execute on was WINNING. The handful of big wins over ranked opponents in the 90s and 00s was nice as were a few conference championships and 7 straight winning seasons/bowl in the appearances in the 10s. What we needed was consistency and conference championships. Throw in incompetence on the 16th floor and some really goofy AD’s, it just wasn’t gonna happen.

AMEN, Brother. AMEN.p

[PawDawg]

Those of us who have been around since the 1970's have experienced the whole journey from Division II (National Champion!) through the I-AA days, to the Spirit of '88, through the Big West, WAC, CUSA and now here we are back in the Southland Conference, er, Sun Belt with the very schools we tried for decades to distance ourselves from. Yes, college athletics has forever changed. It'll never be what it once was, never. The fact this move to the Belt might make the most sense, given these changes, is not the point. Rather it is tangible proof that Tech is forever relegated to the dregs of college sports. Maybe we were all just "fooling ourselves" by reaching out and trying to elevate Tech to higher heights, and as long as we were NOT in the same conference as the UL-Xs et al, there was always that buffer (perhaps "delusion) we were better off. Now...even that is gone. Welcome to ROCK BOTTOM!

That's where I, and I know some others, are coming from. We've seen it all! Some 50 years as a diehard Tech fan...still am, of course! This is just a reality check I didn't want to face. Hope that helps explain why some of us are not thrilled about this.

We can't play the game that exists today. NIL and large markets are a must. There is nowhere else for us to go. CUSA has been a laughing stock since the presidents and ADs hired Judy. Our own people rubber stamped that DEI hire and never even considered getting rid of her. The game has changed. Stop living in the 70s and 80s. Even if our biggest mistakes like hiring Stovall and the TJE contract mistake had not been made in the 80's we'd be where we are now. We are in a small market area and our pockets aren't deep enough. Hopefully our schedule will now allow some of us to enjoy the gameday experience we enjoyed before LG and McLelland destroyed it.

[dawg80]

Y'all are the ones "living in the 70s," not me. I acknowledge our attempt and utter failure at trying to break away, but I don't embrace the failure. Y'all are giddy with excitement! Yay! we're back in our old Southland Conference days, the 1970's. Bring back that stupid State Fair Game vs. NSU too! Might as well go full board back to the 70s.

Again, I KNOW the landscape of college sports these days. Big markets, $millions spent, NIL, the portal, etc. All true, and also true that schools like Tech cannot compete in that reality. Which is exactly what the "big boys" (SEC, Big 10) wanted, and they have accomplished. While some of you cheer their victory..."hooray for us! back with the dregs, yippee!" I lament it all because there is more destruction to college athletics to come. Just watch.

And, mine is a simple acknowledgement of our coming full circle, back to where we started some 50 years ago. I'm a historian and just wanted to document this historical event in college sports: Louisiana Tech failed and finally acquiesced to the failure in 2025.

That's it, carry on my Bulldog friends! See y'all at The Joe for another Southland Conference showdown.

[NTXDawg]

Y'all are the ones "living in the 70s," not me. I acknowledge our attempt and utter failure at trying to break away, but I don't embrace the failure. Y'all are giddy with excitement! Yay! we're back in our old Southland Conference days, the 1970's. Bring back that stupid State Fair Game vs. NSU too! Might as well go full board back to the 70s.

Again, I KNOW the landscape of college sports these days. Big markets, $millions spent, NIL, the portal, etc. All true, and also true that schools like Tech cannot compete in that reality. Which is exactly what the "big boys" (SEC, Big 10) wanted, and they have accomplished. While some of you cheer their victory..."hooray for us! back with the dregs, yippee!" I lament it all because there is more destruction to college athletics to come. Just watch.

And, mine is a simple acknowledgement of our coming full circle, back to where we started some 50 years ago. I'm a historian and just wanted to document this historical event in college sports: Louisiana Tech failed and finally acquiesced to the failure in 2025.

That's it, carry on my Bulldog friends! See y'all at The Joe for another Southland Conference showdown.

I don't think anybody is cheering their victory. I think everyone agrees that what the big boys and NIL has done is ruin college football. The biggest driver in my apathy towards college sports, which has always been my favorite type of sports to watch, is NIL and the portal. Gone are the days when you recruited a kids in, developed and watch him grow over 4 years. There was buy in to the program AND the players. Now half your roster is new every year. Who cares who plays for your school because they will probably be gone next year. It's tragic what the SEC and BIG10 have done to college sports.

I don't think anyone is blind to the fact that soon, some type of breakaway will happen. Maybe I'm wrong but I see it coming soon(5-10 years). The big powers will leave the NCAA and form their own "semi-pro" league. At that time everybody left behind will have to forge their own path. Is is better for Tech to forge that path with SHSU, Missouri St. Kennesaw St. and Delaware or with So Miss., ULL, ULM, Ark St and other similar programs? I think thats a no brainer. So yes, it comes full circle, but it also puts us in the stronger position moving forward. To me the big question is will the power schools kick out their coat-tail riders (wake forest, boston college, northwestern, rutgers etc.) when the move happens.

Lastly, Tech is not the only school that failed, we are in a large group of failures. I doubt that anyone not currently in a P4 conference joins the big money break away group. Who has really joined that group in the last 40 years? Practically no one. You could possibly argue SMU and maybe UCF. As others have said, all the G5 schools are doing is keep rearranging the chairs on the titanic. Its time to find your real long-term partners and get in a lifeboat.

[dawg80]

Hearing rumblings that the bottom-feeders in the G4 leagues will be drummed out. That would be Vandy and other schools like them. It's all speculation and rumormongering right now, but I bet it's being discussed somewhere. That will cause a major reshuffling for sure.

I have acknowledged several times already that this move into the SBC West makes total sense for Tech. I have tempered that with expressing my personal distaste for it. Again, it's tangible proof of our failure. That's all I mean by any "negative" comments expressed. Here we are!

[BioMajor2013]

I agree wholeheartedly that NIL, Transfer portal, and crazy conference realignment has seriously put a damper on my fandom of my favorite sport, college football. All the things that made college football great (traditions, the bands, rivalries, loyalty to schools, iconic stadiums, etc.). The whole feel of college football went out the window thanks to NIL and the transfer portal. College football has become the NFL Lite, and sadly it will never be the same.

[faninmonroe]

Teams like Vandy, Miss State, Wake Forest, NCST, Rutgers are most likely toast and will be left behind. In fact, most schools not already in the current SEC and BIG10 will be in serious trouble. A few of the ACC power schools will move over to the new BIG10SEC.....and you will end up with a semi professional money league for those major schools. A team or two from the Big12 may end up in the new BIG10SEC.

But the picture is not always bright....Wisconsin is hemorrhaging money in this new world and the school just passed a wildly unpopular student fee for athletics to try to curb the losses.

You will be left with the leftover Big 12, leftover ACC, PAC 12, MWC, AAC, CUSA, MAC and Sunbelt....those schools will end up with a completely different governing body than the BIG10SEC....and it wont be a money league.

We really need relegation to make things fair....the Bama's, Michigans, etc. of the world would never agree to that....but relegation is the answer....with it, we will end up in a 2 tier landscape.

The only school I can think of that has truly made the leap into the big boy pool is Utah. Cincinnati, Central Florida, Houston, SMU, TCU, Boise, Louisville...will all be excluded from the final lineup of major cash programs.

Hearing rumblings that the bottom-feeders in the G4 leagues will be drummed out. That would be Vandy and other schools like them. It's all speculation and rumormongering right now, but I bet it's being discussed somewhere. That will cause a major reshuffling for sure.

I have acknowledged several times already that this move into the SBC West makes total sense for Tech. I have tempered that with expressing my personal distaste for it. Again, it's tangible proof of our failure. That's all I mean by any "negative" comments expressed. Here we are!

[dawg80]

College athletics is like an accordion. First it was contracted, tight, then expanded allowing more and more schools to move up, and now it is contracting again.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/UgYJQ...?feature=share

[weunice]

LSU aspires to get into the AAU. Understand it matters and understand there is a lot of money and influence involved. Vanderbilt IS in that group and has a vote. So does Missouri, Texas, Texas A&M and Florida. Don't be shocked when schools in that group stay where they are and it doesn't make sense to you.

[faninmonroe]

Oh, we understand quite well. The problem is TV money, ABC, Disney, ESPN, CBS, NBC, etc could not spell AAU if they tried and they quite frankly, don’t give a damn.

Example - Rice - no one in TV cares about Rice, even with their AAU status.