Sun Belt vs FCS & Power Conferences

The Sun Belt (SBC) is considered the weakest conference in all of the FBS (85 scholarship programs), by most analysts. There are 10 leagues in the Football Bowl Subdivision, 5 are in the so-called Power Conference (better thought of as the highly funded conferences) ACC, B-12, B-Ten, PAC 12, & SEC, while the other 5 reside in the Group of Five (AAC, C-USA, MAC, MWC, & SBC) & a total of 4 teams that are Independent (3 that are aligned with the GF’s …. Army, BYU & Navy). The Sun Belt added 4 new teams to their ranks this year, Idaho, New Mexico State, Appalachian State, & Georgia Southern. They also brought in Texas State & Georgia State in 2013. While recently losing, Florida Atlantic, Florida International, Middle Tennessee State, North Texas, all for the 2013 season & Western kentucky (2014) all 5 teams moved to C-USA. The Sun Belt currently has 11 teams and is looking for a twelfth. The Most likely candidates are Coastal Carolina, located in Conway, South Carolina or Liberty in Lynchburg, Virginia. The 12th team means a conference championship game on the 1st Saturday in December and lots of TV money! With the AAC adding Navy in 2015, a 12th team &  with 12 teams a championship game. It would leave the SBC as the only Group of Five without a divisional playoff game & lost TV revenue the conference needs badly!  So … look for more change in the Sun Belt … & sooner than later!

Here is what the SBC’s schedule looks like in 2014:

Appalachian State: Oh no (at least from Michigan’s perspective) the Mountaineers are back in the Big House, last time here, in 2007, they stunned the 5th ranked Wolverines, 34-32. This time Appalachian State is a member of the FBS and so if things go wrong for Michigan (B-10) it will not be as bad as the 07 debacle. Let’s review, 1st time an FCS team beat a top 5 ranked FBS opponent, 1st time in the history of the polls that a team went from a top five ranking one week to out of the rankings in a week’s time, and the only time a Michigan team ever lost to an FCS squad! What a mess!! ASU plays one GF of team Southern Miss (C-USA) and two has FCS opponents, Liberty Big South Conference (BSC) & Campbell University from the Pioneer Football League (PFL).

Arkansas State: The Red Wolves are hunting two PC prey, Miami (ACC) & Tennessee (SEC) both outside of their home territory. They also have a date with one GF team, Utah State (MWC), this hunt is in their home range and the Wolves also play host to one FCS team, Montana State (Big Sky).

Georgia Southern: The Eagles are new to the FBS this year, they hail from  the Southern Conference (same as Appalachian State) and while new to the Bowl Subdivision as a member, they are not new to playing them. In fact, last year, they stunned Florida, 26-20,  in Gainesville! Georgia Southern takes on 2 PC opponents, NC State (ACC) & Georgia Tech (ACC) both games are on the road. GS plays one GF, @ Navy & hosts a FCS team, Savannah State from the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC).

Georgia State: the Panthers take on 2 PC’s, @ Washington (PAC 12) & at Clemson (ACC). They welcome Air Force (MWC), a GF opponent, to Atlanta and one FCS team, Abilene Christian, a member of the Southland Conference (SLC) to their home stadium, the Georgia Dome!

Idaho: The Vandals are under a bowl ban in 2014, for failure to meet the Academic Progress Rate (APR) required by the NCAA. This year Idaho battles one PC team, Florida, in Gainesville and 3 GF’s. The Vandals line up against two MAC teams, at home vs Western Michigan & @ Ohio, and then travel to California to battle San Diego State (MWC). Idaho does not play a FCS opponent!

New Mexico State: Like Idaho, NMSU is new to the SBC this year, although both schools were  members of the Sun Belt years ago. The Aggies play one PC opponent, @ LSU (SEC), 2 teams from the Group of Five (GF) @ UTEP (C-USA) & at home against New Mexico (MWC). NMSU plays one FCS team, Cal Poly (Big Sky) @ home.

South Alabama: The Jaguars challenges 2 teams from the Power Conferences, @ Mississippi State (SEC) & @ South Carolina (SEC). They also play two GF opponents, Navy (IND) @ home and travel to Ohio to take on Kent State (MAC)! USA does not play an FCS squad in 2014!

Troy: The Trojans battle two PC clubs, @ Duke (ACC) & at Georgia (SEC). They also take one GF opponent, UAB (C-USA) and welcome one FCS team, Abilene Christian, to Veteran Memorial Stadium, in Troy Alabama.

Louisiana Lafayette (ULL): The Ragin Cajuns step up against one PC team, Ole Miss (SEC) in Oxford, MS ! While Challenging 2 GF opponents, @ Boise State (MWC) on the Blue Field & welcoming Louisiana Tech (C-USA) from Ruston, LA to Lafayette, LA. The Cajuns also play one FCS team, Southern University from the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC).

Louisiana Monroe (ULM): The Warhawks  play 4 teams from the Power Conferences, 3 on the road, @ LSU, @ Kentucky, & @ Texas A&M, all three are from the Southeastern Conference (SEC). Thier lone home Non-conference game is with Wake Forest (ACC). ULM did not schedule a team from the Group of Five or from the Football Championship Subdivision!

Here is the breakdown made simple:

The SBC play 44 Non-conference games:

SBC vs PC opponents: ACC: 6 games; B-12: 0; B-10: 2 meetings; PAC 12: one date, SEC: 10 contests & ND: SBC does not play the Irish! SBC plays Power Conference teams 19 times in 2014, 3 @ home, 16 on the road, 0 at a neutral site!

SBC vs GF Conferences: AAC: 1 game; C-USA: 4 dates; MAC: 3 meetings, MWC: 5 contests; & IND: 3 tilts. The SBC plays teams from the Group of Five 16 times, 7 @ home 9 away, & none at neutral sites.

SBC vs FBS conferences: Pioneer Football League (PFL): 1 date, Big South Conference (BSC): 1 game; Big Sky Conference: (B-Sky): 2 dates; Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC): 1 game; Southland Conference (SLC): 2 meetings; Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC): 2 games! The SBC plays FCS teams 9 times in 2104 and all of the contests are in SBC Stadiums!