What Exactly Did the Sun Belt Sign?

[DestinCajun]

_ C'mon, Johnny Lightnin does! He's the man. He spends alot of time here, Scout Board, and Sunbelt Board....I might adopt him. Does he eat much?

Z _

And Ken Horneydawg too. The dude can spin some high octane skat.

[Zeebart21]

_ And Ken Horneydawg too. The dude can spin some high octane skat. _

He's a skat man fo sho'

[HoustonCajun]

_ You really wonder? As much as you hate the SBC you really ought to be glad we're in it because going independent is certain death for us. Ask any AD at any school that needs a good supply of Homecoming opponents. _

I do wonder and I don't know what ADs might say. The best football schedules UL ever had (both Home and Away) were as an independent. The A&M game in 1996 should have propelled UL forward and we might be a CUSA member today, were it not for Dr. A's refusal to fund athletics. We are getting no where fast in the SBC. Can we establish a winning program and a better national reputation for ourselves as an independent to put us in a better position to get into a better conference when reallignment comes in a few years? That is my question. It is not meant to be permanent.

1996 (5-6) Stokley - Florida, Texas A&M (H), USM, LA Tech (H), Houston, Ark. State (HC), USB, Memphis (H), Virginia Tech, Northern Illinois (H), Texas Tech

1997 ( 1-10) Stokley - Pitt, Oklahoma State (H), Texas Tech, Texas A&M, UAB (H), Ark. State, N. Alabama (H), ULM (HC), Tulane (H), Washington State, LA Tech (H)

1998 (2-9) Stokley - Arkansas, Northwestern State (H), LA Tech, USM, UAB, Ark. State (HC), UCF (H), Tulane, ULM, Oklahoma State, W. KY (H)

1999 (2-9) Baldwin - Oklhaoma State, Texas Tech (H), Houston, MTSU (H), LA Tech (H), Washington State, Tulane, ULM (HC), Ark. State, USM, Wofford (H)

2000 (1-10) Baldwin - Sam Houston State (H), Texas, Texas Tech, Northwestern State (H), UAB, Tulane (HC), LA Tech, N. Texas (H), ULM, Jacksonville State (H), MTSU

Then, we joined the SBC in 2001. We had our best year at 5-6 against our most difficult schedule ever. Every team is looking for OOC games to schedule. Can we compete better as an independent? Can we schedule games in today's environment? I don't know. If we could match the 1996 & 1997 schedule year in and year out, it would be a massive improvement over the current SBC. Travel would be any worse. We have no natural rivalries in the SBC and are saddled with the name issue with ULM and with the SBC.

Hey, I don't have all the answers and this certainly might not be it. If Dr. S will fund athletics and we get an RCAF started and facililty improvements, etc. will we have greater attendance vs. a better schedule? Can we recruit better against a better schedule? Can we win against a better schedule? It is an option that you might clearly discard, but IMO, is worthy of discussion, particularly after what happened to us this year.

[Arkstfan]

_ No Tech fans anywhere think we will bring 35k fans. _

Really?

Not what I saw on BBB. I saw Tech would bring its 20,000 regulars (???), 15,000 coming to check them out, and 5,000 NIU fans for a crowd of 40,000.

[Zeebart21]

_ Really?

Not what I saw on BBB. I saw Tech would bring its 20,000 regulars (???), 15,000 coming to check them out, and 5,000 NIU fans for a crowd of 40,000. _

WOW!! Do the NIU fans realize that 5K are suppose to be coming to Shreveport?

Z

[jllanclos]

Maybe Mr. Lightnin' has enough time on his hands that he can peel himself away from raginpagin and make his way over to NIU's fan forum to let them know. Could only help the attendance to remind the NIU fans that there's an important game coming up.

Kind of like FAU's fossil coach standing on a soap box in the cafeteria shouting "We have a football team! They're pretty good! We're gonna be on TV tomorrow night. Please come out and support us. Please!"

[MetryCajun]

_
1996 (5-6) Stokley - Florida, Texas A&M (H), USM, LA Tech (H), Houston, Ark. State (HC), USB, Memphis (H), Virginia Tech, Northern Illinois (H), Texas Tech

1997 ( 1-10) Stokley - Pitt, Oklahoma State (H), Texas Tech, Texas A&M, UAB (H), Ark. State, N. Alabama (H), ULM (HC), Tulane (H), Washington State, LA Tech (H)

1998 (2-9) Stokley - Arkansas, Northwestern State (H), LA Tech, USM, UAB, Ark. State (HC), UCF (H), Tulane, ULM, Oklahoma State, W. KY (H)

1999 (2-9) Baldwin - Oklhaoma State, Texas Tech (H), Houston, MTSU (H), LA Tech (H), Washington State, Tulane, ULM (HC), Ark. State, USM, Wofford (H)

2000 (1-10) Baldwin - Sam Houston State (H), Texas, Texas Tech, Northwestern State (H), UAB, Tulane (HC), LA Tech, N. Texas (H), ULM, Jacksonville State (H), MTSU

When you look at these former schedules, you realize how much easier we have it now. But, I have to say the SBC may be better for us. I think scheduling is much more difficult today than it was in the 90's.

[Project10]

_ Really?

Not what I saw on BBB. I saw Tech would bring its 20,000 regulars (???), 15,000 coming to check them out, and 5,000 NIU fans for a crowd of 40,000. _

So in actuality, BBB says Tech would bring 20k? I think that's reasonable, don't you? Especially considering the last time we were there, the attendance was 48k and the opponent was located 300 miles further away from Shreveport than NIU.

I have a hard time believing anyone at BBB thinks NIU will bring 5k. If indeed that was posted, it was probably one of our more optimistic/exuberant/fanatical members. Maybe it was an NIU fan?

[BirdofParadise]

_ Here is my reaction.

We are playing Division I FBS football not Special Olympics football where everyone is winner just by trying.

NEVER has a 6-6 team been selected at-large. Last year an 8 win Troy sat at home.

We had a deal in place that thanks to the circumstances would have GUARANTEED homes to three seven game winners. The PapaJohns.com Bowl was in Troy Saturday prepared to hand Troy its GUARANTEED bowl bid had ASU won.

Reading the papers, it seems to me that Ricky Bustle and Steve Roberts played out this year content to get to 6-6. Doubt that is the truth but it reads that way.

Anyone needs to grow stones, its the two of them. They had a choice. They could say, "We only needed to win one more game this year and we had a bowl berth stone-cold locked up and we didn't get the job done." or they could say "Boo-hoo, we won half the games we played in and someone should have picked us." They chose the latter course.

_

In the sake of fairness it should be pointed out that those were pretty much the first words out of coach Bustle's mouth yesterday at the press conference...that we could have ended the discussion by winning seven games and didn't get it done.

[4LSU]

_ In the sake of fairness it should be pointed out that those were pretty much the first words out of coach Bustle's mouth yesterday at the press conference...that we could have ended the discussion by winning seven games and didn't get it done. _

Coach Bustle comment on the subject out of the Advocate:

“There’s no question that we needed to take care of business, get that seventh win and not leave it in somebody else’s hands. We can make all the excuses we want, but if we win another game we’re not in this situation.”

Sounds like the man has a pair to me.