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Post by nycrusader2010 on Jan 11, 2020 17:49:32 GMT -5
The AAC will have A LOT of possible options to fill the slot left behind by UCONN. My prediction is that the filler of that slot will be both a strong football and strong basketball school in a fairly big media market and with upward potential. As sittingbull stated, the AAC is looking to bill itself as P6 and are not taking in an FCS upstart. JMU is located in a stretch of interstate surrounded by three other FBS schools (UVA, Virginia Tech, Liberty). And they've been a basketball wasteland since Lefty Driesell retired 20+ years ago -- VCU, ODU and GMU leave and the Dukes haven't even been COMPETITIVE in the CAA in that sport. Basically the basketball equivalent of East Carolina. Hoops matters to the AAC -- they wouldn't have added Wichita State if this weren't the case. Not to mention, their most prominent hoops member (by a landslide) is walking out the door.
The AAC can go a number of different angles in choosing its 12th football member. Rumors are they could look west and make overtures to the likes of Colorado State, BYU, Boise State or San Diego State. Within its current footprint, you have UAB, Charlotte and Old Dominion (IMO the newest member will be one of those three). Rice fits regionally and has long-standing relationships with a good portion of the league but I'd be surprised to see the AAC add a small private school (Rice is the HC of FBS in a lot of ways). They could also go the service academy route and look at Army or Air Force. Two more outliers - Georgia State and UTSA -- overall football tradition in their infancy but are located in big markets. Another school that could get a sniff is Buffalo. You could maybe make a case for Marshall or even Southern Miss when it comes to football tradition but I'd put them in the same boat as JMU, App State and Georgia Southern. Just not as much potential due to their location in smaller markets.
A long shot for sure but the first phone call I would make if I were the AAC would be to the University of West Virginia. Why not? I'm probably under-estimating the addiction of whatever big-time payouts they are receiving because of their Big 12 membership.
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Post by hc87 on Jan 11, 2020 18:04:58 GMT -5
Army probably makes the most sense football-wise...kinda odd that Navy is in it but Army isn't. I know they had a bad experience in C-USA football, but that was about 20 years ago now...Army seems to have righted the ship (pun intended) in football under Monken.
Couldn't see today's 2nd H...sounds like it was a good game
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Post by nycrusader2010 on Jan 11, 2020 18:27:05 GMT -5
Army probably makes the most sense football-wise...kinda odd that Navy is in it but Army isn't. I know they had a bad experience in C-USA football, but that was about 20 years ago now...Army seems to have righted the ship (pun intended) in football under Monken. Couldn't see today's 2nd H...sounds like it was a good game I would actually still be very surprised to see Army join the AAC. The aforementioned C-USA experiment was a disaster of epic proportions. And despite a REALLY good season in 2018 + near upsets of OK and MI this year and last, they still have not won with the consistency of Navy and Air Force. Army's prior Top 25 team was in 1996, the year before they joined CUSA. Perhaps the bigger problem is the scheduling of the Army-Navy game. If both teams were in the same conference, the game would have to be moved to rivalry week and would lose its standalone TV slot the second Saturday in December. This would not be a small issue.
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Post by nycrusader2010 on Jan 11, 2020 18:34:32 GMT -5
Army probably makes the most sense football-wise...kinda odd that Navy is in it but Army isn't. I know they had a bad experience in C-USA football, but that was about 20 years ago now...Army seems to have righted the ship (pun intended) in football under Monken. Couldn't see today's 2nd H...sounds like it was a good gameConsidering you predicted the outcome last St Patrick's Day, safe to say you didn't miss anything.
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Post by sittingbull on Jan 11, 2020 20:26:51 GMT -5
Give you a break? Guarantee this is the first time EVER "National name" and "1A tradition" has been written about Rice FB, and hardly anyone in Houston gives a rat's ass about about Rice, and they're definitely not tuning in to see them play on Saturday's when UT, A&M, Baylor, Houston, or even SMU are on, so try another angle. You're trying to defend why the AAC would take James Madison over Rice and other than trying your best to slam Rice (who cares if it's them or anyone else playing FBS ball), you offer nothing. You must be either 10 years old or oblivious to how FBS conferences operate. Try using some logic and tell us all your reasons for this JMU infatuation from fellow AAC members Einstein.
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Post by A Clock Tower Purple on Jan 11, 2020 20:40:19 GMT -5
If you went back and read my initial post on the subject all I asked is for another poster to back up why the horrendous AAC would not even give JMU a look if they jump to 1A. Nowhere did I say a thing about JMU being the best or obvious choice. Then you float Rice. You're clearly the one with no clue how 1A conferences operate, Rice has no chance going against the other Texas schools for viewers. Fact, not opinion. The AAC will want a market they're not in, that already isn't saturated by schools and conferences people want to watch. Give it up.
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Post by sittingbull on Jan 11, 2020 21:29:45 GMT -5
Yes you asked another poster why and I gave you one answer. Rice had nothing to do with the answer, it was mentioned just among potential alternates for the AAC, but your question was addressed.
You chose to ignore that and rather just go on to a rant about Rice.
Nice try but no logic. If you have a reason to discuss why the reasons weren't valid rather than distracting to something else, have at it. Otherwise, you obviously don't have a response worth following.
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Post by sittingbull on Jan 11, 2020 21:32:45 GMT -5
The AAC will want a market they're not in, that already isn't saturated by schools and conferences people want Reason #2 Harrisonburg VA is not a market any power conference is looking to penetrate.
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Jan 12, 2020 8:40:32 GMT -5
JMU is too geographically isolated; the closest 'true' commercial airport to Harrisonburg is nearly 120 miles away (Dulles), or about the distance between Boston and Portland. That distance is okay if one is flying in once every other year for football, but not for flying in every year for multi-sport, non-revenue contests in FBS conference play.
True, there is Shenandoah Regional Airport, which is close to Harrisonburg.
Yesterday, three commercial flights arrived @ Shenandoah, two were charters (Sun Country and Allegiant, and the NCAA paid for one, if not both) from Dallas TX. Weekdays, United runs one daily 50 seat regional jet round-trip between Shenandoah and Dulles, and one similarly sized plane on a round-trip between Shenandoah and O'Hare. The Federal government subsidizes these flights.
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Post by nycrusader2010 on Jan 12, 2020 13:52:45 GMT -5
JMU is too geographically isolated; the closest 'true' commercial airport to Harrisonburg is nearly 120 miles away (Dulles), or about the distance between Boston and Portland. That distance is okay if one is flying in once every other year for football, but not for flying in every year for multi-sport, non-revenue contests in FBS conference play. True, there is Shenandoah Regional Airport, which is close to Harrisonburg. Yesterday, three commercial flights arrived @ Shenandoah, two were charters (Sun Country and Allegiant, and the NCAA paid for one, if not both) from Dallas TX. Weekdays, United runs one daily 50 seat regional jet round-trip between Shenandoah and Dulles, and one similarly sized plane on a round-trip between Shenandoah and O'Hare. The Federal government subsidizes these flights. Any idea on the dining options at that particular airport? Without a Chick-Fil-A and Cinnabon I think the AAC might be a stretch.
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Post by moose1970 on Jan 12, 2020 13:59:21 GMT -5
funny, i have seen no mention of yesterday's FCS "championship" game in the media.
maybe its big news in north dakota right after coverage of the elk hunting season???
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Post by longsuffering on Jan 12, 2020 14:09:04 GMT -5
JMU is too geographically isolated; the closest 'true' commercial airport to Harrisonburg is nearly 120 miles away (Dulles), or about the distance between Boston and Portland. That distance is okay if one is flying in once every other year for football, but not for flying in every year for multi-sport, non-revenue contests in FBS conference play. True, there is Shenandoah Regional Airport, which is close to Harrisonburg. Yesterday, three commercial flights arrived @ Shenandoah, two were charters (Sun Country and Allegiant, and the NCAA paid for one, if not both) from Dallas TX. Weekdays, United runs one daily 50 seat regional jet round-trip between Shenandoah and Dulles, and one similarly sized plane on a round-trip between Shenandoah and O'Hare. The Federal government subsidizes these flights. Any idea on the dining options at that particular airport? Without a Chick-Fil-A and Cinnabon I think the AAC might be a stretch. There is a Chick-fil-A, which means you starve on Sunday.😀
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Post by nycrusader2010 on Jan 12, 2020 16:26:59 GMT -5
funny, i have seen no mention of yesterday's FCS "championship" game in the media. maybe its big news in north dakota right after coverage of the elk hunting season??? Its in the same section of the newspaper with the coverage of the Bahamas Bowl, Las Vegas Bowl, Arizona Bowl, Quick Lane Bowl, New Mexico Bowl, Mobile Alabama Bowl, Frisco Bowl, Birmingham Bowl, Armed Forces Bowl, Heart of Dallas Bowl, RedBox Bowl and Cheez-It Bowl.
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Post by moose1970 on Jan 12, 2020 17:09:45 GMT -5
funny, i have seen no mention of yesterday's FCS "championship" game in the media. maybe its big news in north dakota right after coverage of the elk hunting season??? Its in the same section of the newspaper with the coverage of the Bahamas Bowl, Las Vegas Bowl, Arizona Bowl, Quick Lane Bowl, New Mexico Bowl, Mobile Alabama Bowl, Frisco Bowl, Birmingham Bowl, Armed Forces Bowl, Heart of Dallas Bowl, RedBox Bowl and Cheez-It Bowl. oh, now i see it. it comes right after "toilet bowl"!!!
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Post by ndgradbuthcfan on Jan 12, 2020 17:15:36 GMT -5
Played in Flushing, N.Y. NDakota won by the way.
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Post by moose1970 on Jan 12, 2020 17:24:59 GMT -5
Played in Flushing, N.Y. NDakota won by the way. as the saying goes, "yesterday history was made when..."
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Post by Ray on Jan 12, 2020 17:28:11 GMT -5
funny, i have seen no mention of yesterday's FCS "championship" game in the media. maybe its big news in north dakota right after coverage of the elk hunting season??? It was prominent on ESPN's web site yesterday afternoon.
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Jan 12, 2020 18:47:59 GMT -5
JMU is too geographically isolated; the closest 'true' commercial airport to Harrisonburg is nearly 120 miles away (Dulles), or about the distance between Boston and Portland. That distance is okay if one is flying in once every other year for football, but not for flying in every year for multi-sport, non-revenue contests in FBS conference play. True, there is Shenandoah Regional Airport, which is close to Harrisonburg. Yesterday, three commercial flights arrived @ Shenandoah, two were charters (Sun Country and Allegiant, and the NCAA paid for one, if not both) from Dallas TX. Weekdays, United runs one daily 50 seat regional jet round-trip between Shenandoah and Dulles, and one similarly sized plane on a round-trip between Shenandoah and O'Hare. The Federal government subsidizes these flights. Any idea on the dining options at that particular airport? Without a Chick-Fil-A and Cinnabon I think the AAC might be a stretch. Pretty damned demanding, aren't you? Sorry, Chick-Fil-A is far too up-market. There are farms close-by; perhaps one has a chicken coop, and one can pre-arrange to purchase a freshly killed, plucked, and cooked carcass pre-flight. The turnoff to the airport. Local knowledge helps; otherwise you might zip past while looking for what you have traditionally thought an airport looks like. goo.gl/maps/oXtrmFgizPeTZRwa9The parking lot. goo.gl/maps/iAYAkA9iYBGz33u86The passenger terminal. goo.gl/maps/wi7SCbBDNNXstNLv8^^^ I don't place much faith in tales that there is a Burger King, a Starbucks, a Dominos, and an ale house inside the terminal.
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Post by sader1970 on Jan 12, 2020 19:07:43 GMT -5
OK, we know Chick-fil-A is closed on Sundays but what makes you think the airport is open on a Sunday?😊
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Jan 12, 2020 19:34:38 GMT -5
OK, we know Chick-fil-A is closed on Sundays but what makes you think the airport is open in a Sunday?😊 It is. The first flight of the day, Sunday, was a 6:45 AM departure for Dulles. The second (and last flight) of the day was a 9:50 AM departure for O'Hare. Its the same plane: Harrisonburg -> Dulles -> Harrisonburg -> O'Hare. The plane for the first flight arrived late Saturday night from Dulles. I'm told those waiting for arriving passengers hang out at the ale house, as alcohol can be served on weekdays and Saturdays, but never ever on Sundays.
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Post by moose1970 on Jan 12, 2020 20:12:57 GMT -5
funny, i have seen no mention of yesterday's FCS "championship" game in the media. maybe its big news in north dakota right after coverage of the elk hunting season??? It was prominent on ESPN's web site yesterday afternoon. now i feel much better.
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Post by hc87 on Jan 13, 2020 14:02:04 GMT -5
For the sense of closure, I'll post final standings when I get a chance....maybe later tonight during LSU-Clemson. Thanks for your patience.
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Post by rgs318 on Jan 13, 2020 14:14:09 GMT -5
Thanks for your efforts!
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