With 12 games allowed, there are no bye weeks. I disagree that playing NC games late in the season is typical or welcomed.

There are several NC games that are traditional and at the end-of-the-season, i. e. So. Car. - Clemson, UGA - GT, & UF - FSU (of course these examples are SEC vs ACC).

NC games such as Iowa State-Iowa or Louisville-Kentucky are early season usually.

Some schools have started the season with conference games. An example is Miss State having So. Carolina and Auburn as their first two games.

I do understand your point Tman. All schools and conferences want the right formula for scheduling. Unfortunately, quite a few get stuck with less than desirable schedules and problematic opponents OOC with some unusual dates.

I posed a good question ;D; beyond those I mentioned, WHAT OTHER SCHOOLS THAT ARE IN 1A HAVE AN END-OF-REGULAR-SEASON TRADITIONAL OPPONENT THAT IS HOUSED IN A SEPARATE CONFERENCE?

Even with a 12 game schedule, there will be 1 to 2 bye weeks. Just in September, October, and November alone this year there are 13 Saturdays. If you have the option of the first Saturday in December that becomes 14 weeks.

Actually, the point about an odd-number of teams is a good one. You can give the odd team a bye or OOC game.

Right now the MWC and WAC have 9 FB teams, and the MAC has 13 (with Temple... why they would mess things up to accommodate Temple boggles 'da mind (as Don King would say)).

So the conferences with odd numbers of teams could form various scheduling alliences....

I did not like it when Bud "the genius" Selig moved the Milwaukee Brewers to the National League Central. 30 teams fits nicely into 6 5-team divisions. BUT - Bud's argument was that he saw no other way to avoid a lot of BYES. Simple - on 150 dates, you play 300 inter-league games (not really much different from now). Each of the 15 teams in each league plays 20 inter-league games (4 each against an entire 5-team division from the other league), rotate the division match-ups through the cycle every 3 years.

Bear in mind, you have to have an odd-number of interleague games at all times to avoid the BYES, so on 75 dates you schedule 3 games (3 NL vs. 3 AL), on the other 75 dates you schedule 1 game (1 NL vs. 1 AL). Problem solved.....

.... but I digress.... here's a college football example..........

The MWC has 9 and the WAC has 9. Each team starts with 3 OOC games, that their AD lines up. During the final 9 weeks (of "league play"), both the MWC and the WAC could play their 8 league opponents and have one cross-over game. Someting like that....

Back to the main topic - if WKU does indeed move up (say 2009-ish), does this discourage others such as Georgia State, Appalachian State, etc. from moving up, or do you think the Sun Belt would go beyond 13 for all sports? Commissioner Wright Waters has publicly stated that he thinks the maximum would be 14.

the sun belt should become a football members only conference, why are there so many non football members in the sun belt?

Good point regarding Temple. The MAC had the idea to further expand in the East and viewed the Philadelphia area as a potential new market if and when Temple improved. Perhaps a similar idea was in mind when the MAC acquired another eastern team, Buffalo. This makes some sense with a conference highly based in Ohio and Michigan.

Thirteen is indeed an odd number and we wonder when #14 will be brought on-board.

Another factor the MAC may have been considering, is the potential loss of a team or two due to the attendance factor to stay 1A. Of course Temple has had attendance issues, themselves, for an extended period.

The Sunbelt, the topic of this thread, also has a few teams that are precarious regarding attendance. Some odd initiatives were undertaken such as LA-Monroe playing Arkansas in Little Rock, counting it as a home game for LA-Monroe.

Again, as to Temple, the school not housing all their teams in one conference has been a detractor among other issues. It is difficult to understand the MAC accepting Temple for a specified period without the school also making a commitment to house their other primary sports as well with the MAC. The MAC having Temple bb would have been an exposure plus.

if the ncaa enforces there 15,000 attendance rule the mac would lose almost half their members, and have trouble staying alive, hopefully it will be a better attendance year for the mac.

This was from the College football forum about attendance issues


http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/football/2006-08-16-attendance-woes_x.htm?csp=34

Highlights from article:

The NCAA's attendance requirement for continued full-fledged status in the association's Football Bowl Subdivision (Division I-A) can be met if a school averages 15,000 in actual or paid attendance for all home games one time during a rolling two-year period.

Twelve teams fell short of that goal last year and were sent a "courtesy letter" by the NCAA, reminding them of the requirement, NCAA spokesman Erik Christianson said.

The schools averaging fewer than 15,000 were Bowling Green, Louisiana-Monroe, Ball State, Temple, New Mexico State, San Jose State, Utah State, Akron, Rice, Buffalo, Kent State and Eastern Michigan, which was last nationally at 5,219 a game. Six of the teams are in the Mid-American Conference, three in the Western Athletic Conference.

......

If schools do not meet the requirement this season, they will receive a letter of non-compliance, Christianson said, which triggers a 10-year period during which time they must meet the requirements or be placed in restricted membership. That would preclude them from bowl opportunities, though Akron was the only one of the 12 schools that qualified for a bowl last season. And that was Akron's first-ever bowl game.

"Should they get placed in restricted membership, they would have to correct the deficiency the following year or else they would lose their status as a Football Bowl Subdivision institution," Christianson said.

Temple is in a holding pattern for the BE. Their contract with the MAC only runs until 2010 for FB only. This date coincides with the potential BE split in 2010. Temple will not be moving any of it other programs to the MAC until they see what unfolds for 2010.
They would probably be happy to return to the original status quo as a BE FB only member and keep their other sports right where they are in the A -10. IF they improve enough by 2010 with their new coach, attendance numbers, and the new current administration keeps them moving in the right direction with support, the FB only return might be enough to satisfy everyone in the BE and Temple with the current success the BE is having on the FB field this year. The current hybrid will continue then with a 17 team BE. 8 BB schools and 9 FB schools. Temple will probably receive some token BE BB games to keep them happy. Villanova for the the city title, regional games with Conn and Rutgers, both of whom have FB history to gether, and West Vir. a foe from long ago.

If there is a split and Temple has improved enough they would be a great fit in the Split BE for the Philadelphia market that the MAC is currently after. This would mean an all sports invite so it is useless to move all of their programs twice in five years. After 2010 when the next shake up is predicted if the BE or split BE by passes an improved Temple then there is potential for the MAC to get the rest of Temples sports programs in their league as the the A-10 / CAA are revising themselves during the next 4 year period too. Any one of the three fits above would be good for Temple providing that they can continue to improve through the next 4 years under Big AL as coach. Right now they are over loaded with too many top 25 teams in the scheduling conversion to the MAC after having to scramble to fill in what use to be their BE schedule, many of which are on the road. Play it out until 2010 and see what happens. ;D 8-)

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SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS - SEC
RUTGERS SCARLET KNIGHTS - BIG EAST / AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE / BIG TEN

Temple should either drop FB altigether or drop to IAA (or whatever they're going to call it) an join Villanova in the Atlantic 10.

WAVE-TV/Louisville reports that the WKU Board of Regents is expected to vote on November 2 on elevating the athletic program to I-A. WAVE's report mentioned that the MAC has approached WKU.

That is option 4 and a very likely one, if they get passed over for FB only again for the Hybrid BE, if they get passed over by the All Sports Split BE, and if they don't show that they can make it in the MAC by 2010. Then they would have all their teams in one league in the A-10 / CAA with 1-AA FB. Like I said before they have until 2010 to figure it out. If they go 1-AA they can still play BE teams at BE home coming games and get whacked for a decent dollar like Nova. Bet they wouldn't back out of contracts like some of the back stabbing MAC teams.

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SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS - SEC
RUTGERS SCARLET KNIGHTS - BIG EAST / AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE / BIG TEN

Article in Louisville paper regarding WKU probable upgrade to D-1a at http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060929/SPORTS/609290437/1002/SPORTS

This article implies, and/or makes the assumption that Nova is getting ready to make the jump from 1-AA to 1- A too. Could Nova be working behind the scenes with the ND Trained Goose to bring Nova on board? Has ND put the pressure on the pope to put pressure on Nova to step up to save the good thing it has going in the BE and the BE hybrid? How will Nova ADD VALUE to the FB side? Will ND play Nova at home. Stay tuned for 2010. ;D :D 8-)

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SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS - SEC
RUTGERS SCARLET KNIGHTS - BIG EAST / AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE / BIG TEN