Conf USA in Talks with UConn, Liberty, NMSU

[How Sway?!]

I don't know who Vannini's source is, but this is definitely not happening.

A hunch or inside knowledge?

 

[Ajs120102]

What brand?

the school in the top ten list of most championships earned in sports and on the verge of being an AAU school is going to be peers with Liberty and LA tech. So yeah.

 

[Forte]

If this is true and David Benedict you are looking at this I just want to say F ...... you. I'd rather go FCS than go into that wasteland.

Fold the program.

 

[CTMike]

On one hand… never underestimate our AD’s ability to make poor decisions.

On the other hand… this is just desperation by CUSA to try and stay alive. Desperation is a stinky cologne.

 

[MCMax]

We’re not even through our first real season of independence and we’re pulling the plug and joining a crap conference. Tell me this isn’t true. A horrible year keeps getting worse!

 

[UConnMike04]

While I don’t like it, let’s face facts. We suck. We have no football brand, very little if any real history that matters. Schools schedule us mostly to fill an empty slot on a schedule with an easy game as sort of a “bye week/easy W” right now. No P5 league would touch us in football right now, and we are YEARS away from competing like we were a decade ago (which is basically our ceiling). I’d hate this, but I can somewhat understand the logic depending on $ and stability for a few more years. Hoping it’s not true - but I can at least understand picking up the phone and listening.

 

[ThabeetDown]

Flying out to New Mexico every other year just sounds depressing.

 

[metsfan2323]

If this is true and David Benedict you are looking at this I just want to say F ...... you. I'd rather go FCS than go into that wasteland.

Fold the program.

You have been trying to bury the football program since the beginning of the season. You start the most depressing threads ever. Please go away and be a pretend fan for another team.

 

[Forte]

While I don’t like it, let’s face facts. We suck. We have no football brand, very little if any real history that matters. Schools schedule us mostly to fill an empty slot on a schedule with an easy game as sort of a “bye week/easy W” right now. No P5 league would touch us in football right now, and we are YEARS away from competing like we were a decade ago (which is basically our ceiling). I’d hate this, but I can somewhat understand the logic depending on $ and stability for a few more years. Hoping it’s not true - but I can at least understand picking up the phone and listening.

So then why keep a FB program at this point? So that we can keep paying for a stadium NO ONE and i mean NO ONE outside of like 50 boneyarders will go to for games? Fold this shit so we can focus on Bball. Football is an epic joke now.

 

[HeGotGame]

Yeah but they are not just getting Liberty football, they are getting the whole university and all that it entails.

Do you realize we share a conference with Liberty in other sports?

 

[Purple Stein]

Flying out to New Mexico every other year just sounds depressing.

As my mother in law would say, it is the suck.

 

[Forte]

You have been trying to bury the football program since the beginning of the season. You start the most depressing threads ever. Please go away and follow another team.

I love the football program its one of my favorite things i look forward to every year. I am a pessimist but im a die hard and i suffer like everyone here. But if this is true yes burry it.

 

[gampelcrazies]

The University of Connecticut brand. You must be new here.

So UConn's brand is going to change sooo much from getting smacked around as an independent vs. going to C-USA?

 

[Skiblets]

Not a chance in hell this is happening. CUSA just got raided by the Sunbelt for chrissakes. That’s like being raided by the Yankee Conference. You can’t publish your big time, all in aspirations and then say yeah. We’re going to CUSA. Ain’t happening.

 

[metsfan2323]

So then why keep a FB program at this point?

I called it. This has been your mantra all year. Please go away. You stink at being a fan.

 

[NowInStorrs]

UConn needs to issue a statement strongly denying this ASAP. Or at least explaining that it's discussing scheduling arrangements or something rather than joining CUSA.

 

[CallMeBruce]

A hunch or inside knowledge?

This was a leak from CUSA to try to stop the bleeding. It's not happening.

 

[Forte]

I called it. This has been your mantra all year. Please go away. You stink at being a fan.

You seem to have a weird interest in me. Focus on the program.

 

[huskymedic]

Conference USA in negotiations with New Mexico State, Liberty, UConn: Source

The potential additions come as C-USA is down to six current members. Six C-USA schools are set to join the American Athletic Conference in the coming years and two more are set to join the Sun Belt, with Marshall potentially leaving C-USA to join the Sun Belt as well.

theathletic.com

Weakest argument of them all…

-> Why New Mexico State?​

Chris Vannini, national college football writer: New Mexico State has bounced around conferences over the last few decades. Its football program has been an independent since 2018 after the Aggies and Idaho were voted out of the southeastern-based Sun Belt. Other sports are currently in the WAC, where the men’s basketball team has won five of the last seven conference titles. They’re a longtime rival of UTEP, and pairing the two schools together as travel partners would make sense.

Why UConn football? ​

Vannini: UConn football has been independent since 2020 when the Huskies left the American Athletic Conference to join the football-less Big East. The Huskies are currently looking for a new head coach after Randy Edsall resigned two games into the season. They also have had no plans to drop to FCS, as the program has resources to pay well for a new coach and the team recently renovated the locker room.

Why Liberty?​

Vannini: Liberty is the most well-resourced and most controversial of the three. The school reportedly offered tens of millions of dollars to conferences in exchange for an invitation when it moved up from FCS five years ago, but was turned down.

The outspoken political involvement of school leaders dissuaded conferences at the time, as did the concern of keeping up with the school’s vast wealth of athletic resources. From new facilities to coaching salaries, Liberty has poured millions into athletics like a Power 5 school. Its football program has succeeded since the move up, going 10-1 last year and currently sitting at 6-2 this year. <-

Blow it up AD Dave…

 

[huskyblooz]

Benedict's wife should leave him if this happens.

 

[Banta55]

This was a leak from CUSA to try to stop the bleeding. It's not happening.

Thank you

 

[Skiblets]

Weakest argument of them all…

-> Why New Mexico State?​

Chris Vannini, national college football writer: New Mexico State has bounced around conferences over the last few decades. Its football program has been an independent since 2018 after the Aggies and Idaho were voted out of the southeastern-based Sun Belt. Other sports are currently in the WAC, where the men’s basketball team has won five of the last seven conference titles. They’re a longtime rival of UTEP, and pairing the two schools together as travel partners would make sense.

Why UConn football? ​

Vannini: UConn football has been independent since 2020 when the Huskies left the American Athletic Conference to join the football-less Big East. The Huskies are currently looking for a new head coach after Randy Edsall resigned two games into the season. They also have had no plans to drop to FCS, as the program has resources to pay well for a new coach and the team recently renovated the locker room.

Why Liberty?​

Vannini: Liberty is the most well-resourced and most controversial of the three. The school reportedly offered tens of millions of dollars to conferences in exchange for an invitation when it moved up from FCS five years ago, but was turned down.

The outspoken political involvement of school leaders dissuaded conferences at the time, as did the concern of keeping up with the school’s vast wealth of athletic resources. From new facilities to coaching salaries, Liberty has poured millions into athletics like a Power 5 school. Its football program has succeeded since the move up, going 10-1 last year and currently sitting at 6-2 this year. <-

Blow it up AD Dave…

Garbage article

 

[UConnMike04]

So then why keep a FB program at this point? So that we can keep paying for a stadium NO ONE and i mean NO ONE outside of like 50 boneyarders will go to for games? Fold this so we can focus on Bball. Football is an epic joke now.

I just hate this - but we also have to stop acting like these other schools are below us in football and aren’t looking at us the same way we look at them. We are literally the worst or second worst team in FBS.

 

[Forte]

Thank you

This was a leak from CUSA to try to stop the bleeding. It's not happening.

This is what I hope. They threw it out there to see if it would stick. If Liberty and New Mexico State Bolt couldn't we keep them as their OOC? Umass UConn Army would be all that's left outside of ND who is a non factor for us.

 

[gampelcrazies]

This was a leak from CUSA to try to stop the bleeding. It's not happening.

So CUSA is trying to stop the bleeding by leaking out UConn?

 

[Skiblets]

So CUSA is trying to stop the bleeding by leaking out UConn?

Desperate times. They don’t have a conference

 

[CallMeBruce]

So CUSA is trying to stop the bleeding by leaking out UConn?

What are their options? You call the handful of independents you could in theory invite and then leak that you're "in negotiations" so the teams currently in your league stop trying to find a parachute. They're screwed.

 

[Bonk]

This is best case scenario for the program.

Being independent is not a long term solution. No better conference will scoop us up football-only. We get to keep basketball in the big East and have a short term home in FBS until we get our footing.
By remaining independent we’d always be destined to drop to FCS, which is objectively a terrible option.

 

[Forte]

I just hate this - but we also have to stop acting like these other schools are below us in football and aren’t looking at us the same way we look at them. We are literally the worst or second worst team in FBS.

I get what you are saying but sucking now doesnt mean that is the new standard and thatwe will always have to be the worse. The problem with our fan base is they accept failure. We go to the lowest of low and fans here try to puff out their chest as holier than thou saying how proud they are team got clobbered 50-7 but didnt give up as if they are superior fans and everyone else who's upset are not real fans.

Kansas football absolutely sucks and they are still P5 ... Army has a worse schedule and down years ... I get programs like Vandy Kansas lucked out with the lay of the land and their given history but UConn football keeps hitting new lows and some of those among the few fans that are left are trying to prove they are the superior die hard of die hard that would root for this program in the SunBelt with bells on their toes rather than hold the program to a higher standard than to just fold.

 

[NowInStorrs]

What are their options? You call the handful of independents you could in theory invite and then leak that you're "in negotiations" so the teams currently in your league stop trying to find a parachute. They're screwed.

I understand why they would leak this out there but even being mentioned in this hurts UConn. Gotta clear things up quickly.