Topic: Tulsa's conference affiliation may clear up soon...

[vandalia]

This summer, four C-USA schools - Central Florida, Houston, Memphis and SMU - are joining the Big East. In November, it was announced that two more - East Carolina and Tulane - are joining the Big East in 2014.

Conference USA's replacement schools include Charlotte, Florida Atlantic, FIU, Louisiana Tech, Middle Tennessee, North Texas, Old Dominion and Texas-San Antonio.

During a Dec. 29 interview, Upham said, "I also want to be in a conference that we can be proud of academically. Losing two of the private schools (SMU and Tulane) in Conference USA is damaging to me, in the way I think about the conference.

http://www.tulsaworld.com/sportsextra/TU/article.aspx?subjectid=94&articleid=20130116_94_B1_Uiestf876126

[luvherd]

Frankly all them southwestern teams can leave IMO.

[ThunderDent]

Well, they're more than likely going to the Big East over us, so feel that way if you like.

The only way they go MWC is if the MW make a play for Houston, or Houston/SMU, then Tulsa would rather be with them in a division.

[vandalia]

they also ended up ranked in the top 25 at the end of the season.
c-usa's only top 25 team.

[wasbarryb]

Losing two of the private schools (SMU and Tulane) in Conference USA is damaging to me, in the way I think about the conference.

Arrogant pompous @ss.

Conferences are about athletics and little else. Tulane brings virtually nothing to the table. SMU is up and down and their history of extreme cheating offsets any history of success.

If Tulsa wants to associate with uppity private institutions let ‘em try for the irrelevant Ivy League. Lots of luck at that @sshole!

[djszincgt]

Arrogant pompous @ss.

Conferences are about athletics and little else. Tulane brings virtually nothing to the table. SMU is up and down and their history of extreme cheating offsets any history of success.

If Tulsa wants to associate with uppity private institutions let ‘em try for the irrelevant Ivy League. Lots of luck at that @sshole!

You don't have any hostility do you? ;D

[Sam-I-am]

Arrogant pompous @ss.

Conferences are about athletics and little else. Tulane brings virtually nothing to the table. SMU is up and down and their history of extreme cheating offsets any history of success.

If Tulsa wants to associate with uppity private institutions let ‘em try for the irrelevant Ivy League. Lots of luck at that @sshole!

I think the Big East presidents are now spewing the "academic" nonsense line....but they may have had their eyes opened by the TV execs at the most recent BE meeting.

[whf]

Heard some logical reasoning on selection issues for the BE last week, except for ECU the schools that have been selected have reasonable good TV markets, but ALSO easy and abundant travel capabilities for the other teams in the league.  MU and Huntington hurt worse on this qualifier than perhaps anything else.  AND they are basically uncontrollable issues for the schools.  I had thought this was / could be an issue, but since I heard it from someone associated with the university, I believe it is true.................and unfortunately un-overcomeable (sp). 

In essence, I got the drift that schools don't want to, nor like to, come here.  That could be considered a death sentence for conference affiliation.  My only refuting of this theory is that they invited us into the C-USA with the same schools that are now BE; maybe their travel experiences were just too bad to invited us to continue in their league.

[herds]

Frankly all them southwestern teams can leave IMO.

Quite frankly, the two best remaining programs are out west in UTEP and Tulsa and losing them for WKU, ULL, or Ark St would be damaging to Marshall.

[ThunderDent]

Nm

[svherd]

Colleges are still about academics first. Athletics drives the money train but academics plays a role.
Unfortunately, we are viewed as weak in that category - although I would put my degree from MU up against anyone.

At this point we offer little.

[Thundering In MD]

Tulsa deserves to be in a better conference than C-USA.  Best of luck to them.  When they leave, C-USA will sink well below the Sun Belt.  Wow...

[_sturt_]

Tulsa deserves to be in a better conference than C-USA.  Best of luck to them.  When they leave, C-USA will sink well below the Sun Belt.  Wow...

Below the Sun Belt?

I think you mean below the MAC (?)... since we will, for all intents and purposes, have absorbed the best schools of the current Sun Belt.

[Thundering In MD]

Below the Sun Belt?

I think you mean below the MAC (?)... since we will, for all intents and purposes, have absorbed the best schools of the current Sun Belt.

Below the MAC?  Sturt:  get back in the Delorean...hit the pedal until you get to 88 mph...that should get you out of 1999 and back to 2013... :P

[_sturt_]

MD, I honestly thought you meant MAC... after all, just logically, we can't be BELOW the Sun Belt if we ARE the Sun Belt (... or, do you mean you really think we'd be better off in the new Sun Belt?... hmmmm)

[Thundering In MD]

MD, I honestly thought you meant MAC... after all, just logically, we can't be BELOW the Sun Belt if we ARE the Sun Belt (... or, do you mean you really think we'd be better off in the new Sun Belt?... hmmmm)

I think the new Sun Belt maybe better than C-USA.  Even with the "best of" the Sun Belt, C-USA is mired in a bunch of wannabe I-AA entrants.  I don't think C-USA will be that much stronger than the Sun Belt.  I know it will not be as strong as the MAC.

[BuyNtelos4]

I do think this new conference will be perceived stronger than the MAC from the get go, and obviously stronger than the whatever becomes the New SunBelt.  The one advantage I think we may have, is I don't ever recall any team in the BCS era going undefeated in C-USA.  The talent level on the teams from top to bottom is just to close and at some point throughout the season they always beat up on each other.  I do not see this changing at all in the New Big East, and predict a similar situation in the MWC at least 3 out of 5 years.  I think the new C-USA offers the best chance out of the 3 conferences for a team to go undefeated, and I do think an undefeated C-USA school will be ranked above a 1 loss NBE or MWC team, unless said 1 loss team had a tremendous SOS during the non-conference portion of their schedule.  That is the one and only reason I think we may be able to come out ahead by remaining in this New C-USA.  We were able to go undefeated in the MAC, it was just before they began allowing mid majors access to BCS bowls.  I think if we had remained their we would have had the opportunity to go undefeated and be selected for a BCS bowl out of the MAC conference sooner that 2012 when NIU did it, similar to Boise being able to achieve it from the WAC.  I am not saying I wish we had stayed in the MAC because I am one who prefers being associated with and playing against/ creating rivalries with teams from the South where the destinations for away games are more enjoyable than Michigan, Illinois and Ohio.  So, in summary, I think schools in the NBE and MWC will nearly every year give each other at least one loss during the conference portion of their schedules, just as history has showin in Conference USA the past several years, and if we do are part, we will not have a difficult time getting into the new "playoff" 2 to 3 out of every 5 years.  Yes I am sure there will come a time where a school from the new C-USA, MAC, or Sunbelt will be left out due to a MWC or BE team being undefeated, but I think more often than not it is going to be a 1 loss MWC or BE team being left out due to an undefeated MAC, Sunbelt, or C-USA team being undefeated. 

[BuyNtelos4]

Something I would like to see implemented is something similar to a play in game for the mid majors stating that if any 2 teams from the BE, MWC, C-USA, MAC, or SB are undefeated in the same year, the will either bypass their Conference championship game and play a game against the other undefeated mid major team.  Or just add in a game the week after the conference championship games, and if 2 undefeated teams still remain among the little 5 conferences, those 2 teams play each other in a play in game for the playoff spot.  There will almost definately be at least a 14 day break between the conference championship games and the playoff beginning, so their would be time for the game, and I think this would create a more level playing field across the little 5 conferences.