AJC Reports GSU’s Bill Curry To Retire After 2012 Season
The Atlanta Journal Constitution is reporting that Georgia State’s Head football coach Bill Curry will retire following the 2012 season. It is believed that he will tell his players on Wednesday morning before practice.
This comes in the midst of the Panthers transition to FBS and joining the Sun Belt.
Curry began in college football when he played at Georgia Tech. He then went on to play in the NFL for ten years and was part of three championship teams. He then returned to the college football ranks by coaching at Georgia Tech before going to Alabama where he was named the national coach of the year. He then left for Kentucky before he went into broadcasting with ESPN as an analyst.
In 2008, he was hired by Georgia State to start their football program from scratch. His first two seasons he led the Panthers to a 6-5 record followed by a 3-8 record last season.
Curry’s expected announcement is not completely unexpected. He will celebrate his 70th birthday in October. He has repeatedly given the same answer when asked if he if he was going to stay on with the school. He continually answered that he would make that decision when the season ends in November.
Some of the factors that will play into his decision is his health and possibly spending more time with his family.
You can read the AJC’s full article here.
UPDATE: This morning Georgia State University has called a press conference for 1pm Eastern.
ULL’s Hudspeth Named Outstanding College Coach In Louisiana
University of Louisiana-Lafayette head football coach Mark Hudspeth was named the Outstanding College Coach for the state of Louisiana as part of the Allstate Sugar Bowl Greater New Orleans Awards.
He will be honored along with Christi Orgeron, who was recognized as the Outstanding Female Amateur from New Orleans.
Under Hudspeth, ULL improved the Cajun’s from a 3-9 record in 2010 to a 9-4 record in 2011 which included a thrilling win over San Diego State in the New Orleans Bowl. That was their first bowl game in 41 years and tied the school record of nine wins in a season. They were also a perfect 5-0 at home.
Additionally, they set a school and conference record with an average attendance per game of 29,171. That was an increase of 11,788 per game which lead the nation in attendance increase.
The Jags will travel to face the Rajin’ Cajun’s on November 24, one week before the Jags travel to Hawaii to end their regular season.
Three SBC Players Named To Doak Walker Watchlist
Three Sun Belt Conference running backs have been named to the Doak Walker Award Watchlist. Nominations for the award will be accepted through October.
Florida International’s Kendrick Rhodes, Middle Tennessee’s Benny Cunningham and Troy’s Shawn Southward were the three from the conference included in the list.
The PwC SMU Athletics Forum Board of Directors will name the semi-finalists on November 9 then the Doak Walker Award National Selection Committee, which consists of former NFL All-Pro and college All-America running backs, media members and selected special representatives, will cast votes to determine the finalists, which will be announced on November 19th. Then the committee will cast a second vote beginning on November 26th to determine who the recipient will be.
Other high-profile runningbacks on the watchlist are Montee Ball (Wisc.), Knile Davis (Ark.), Eddie Lacy (Ala.), Marcus Latimore (South Carolina), Onterio McCalebb (Aub.), Curtis McNeal (Southern Cal.) and Joseph Randle (Ok. State) among others.
Texas State Joins Sun Belt Conference In 2013
The Sun Belt Conference released a press release today announcing that Texas State Univeristy will join the conference beginning July 1, 2013 and will begin conference competition for the 2013-2014 academic year.
“Texas State University has worked very hard to be ready for FBS competition and joining the Sun Belt Conference represents a new opportunity for our future,” said Texas State University President Denise M. Trauth. “The Sun Belt’s record of competitive success over more than 35 years provides a tradition of excellence that we are happy to join. Our students and alumni will bring a very strong fan base that will welcome these new opportunities. Just as Texas State is the rising star of Texas, we believe that the Sun Belt is also on the rise and we are happy to be a part of its future.”
“On behalf of the presidents and chancellors of the Sun Belt Conference, it is my honor to welcome Texas State University as the newest member of our league family,” said Sun Belt Conference Executive Committee President and Troy University Chancellor Jack Hawkins, Jr. “We are not the same conference we were 10 years ago. The Sun Belt is strong athletically as demonstrated by the fact that our bowl record over the last eight years is better than five other BCS conferences. We are stronger academically, as 90 percent of our teams have achieved an Academic Progress Rates of 925 or higher. Texas State is an excellent addition to our strong, growing conference.”
Texas State is located between Austin and San Antonio in San Marcos. It is home to over 34,000 students and opened in 1903. They are the only university in Texas to have graduated a US president in Lyndon B. Johnson in the class of 1930.
TSU sponsors 16 varsity programs including football, whom former University of Alabama head football coach Dennis Franchione is the current head coach. Their mascot is the Bobcat and they will play their first season at the FBS level in 2012 and will be eligible to compete for football conference championships and bowl games when they join the Sun Belt in 2013.
“Texas State is a great addition to the Sun Belt Conference as the Bobcat athletic program is destined for success in the Football Bowl Subdivision,” said Sun Belt Commissioner Karl Benson. “The Sun Belt Conference’s rise to prominence will continue with Texas State as part of our league.”
“We are very excited about becoming a member of the Sun Belt Conference in 2013,” said Texas State Director of Athletics Dr. Larry Teis. “We know that our student-athletes will be eager to succeed in the Sun Belt, and we will enter the conference ready to compete. We look forward to building new rivalries with some Sun Belt schools and renewing rivalries with others. The Sun Belt Conference encompasses eight states from Texas to Florida that are rich in college athletic traditions, especially in the sport of FBS football.”
Texas State’s budget for athletics ranks in the upper half of the current Sun Belt Conference membership, and its undergraduate enrollment ranks near the top of the league’s current membership.
Welcome to the conference TSU!
Three Sun Belt Schools Talking With MWC/CUSA While SBC Considers Expansion
Earlier this week, it was made known that three Sun Belt schools were talking with the new Mountain West/C-USA Alliance. University of North Texas, Florida Atlantic and Florida International as well as pretty much every WAC school are talking with them about possible membership.
Also it was made known by Brett McMurphy of CBS Sports that UNC-Charlotte and UT-San Antonio could possibly join the Sun Belt as soon as the 2013-2014 season. However nothing has yet been decided.
Louisana Tech has made it known somewhat, that they would not mind joining the Sun Belt. But they may be holding out hope of joining the MWC/C-USA conglomeration.
Other schools that have been mentioned as possible expansion talks are Appalachian State, Texas State, UT-Arlington, Lamar, Georgia Southern and Georgia State.
Georgia Southern looks good as a potential candidate being located in the Atlanta-Savannah area and right in the thick of the Sun Belt’s eastern conference schools. It has a strong fan base and a successful athletics program. However feasibilty reports done by the school shows that they would be able to move up from FCS to FBS successfully on the athletic level. But, it showed that the financial risks would be high as alumni and boosters are not eager to back the idea as much as the student body is willing to.
However according to Russel Wright of Collegiate Consulting, Georgia State could be ready to move up to the FBS level. According to him they have the finances and a good location in Atlanta to make the move. He said that the martket drives it more than their on-field product. They have an enrollment similar to North Texas and Florida International and of the $22 Million the school receives in revenues each year, about $16 Million comes from the students.
Appalachian State has made the decision to look into moving up to FBS. They have positive results from their feasibilty report completed recently and have a nationally recognized brand after the upset of then #5 ranked Michigan as they won a 3rd consecutive national title in 2007. But they are also in the eyes of the MWC/CUSA group.
UNC-Charlotte has had a successful basketball program and have appeared in the final four. They have previously been in the Sun Belt Conference and Conference-USA. They will begin playing football in the 2013 season though. But they could also be courted by the Big East since they are in Charlotte.
South Alabama knows Lamar pretty well as they completed a home-and-home series against them last season. Lamar has been pretty aggressive about trying to move up to the FBS level. They have a nice campus and a newly renovated stadium for their return to football with a huge video screen. Their addition to the Sun Belt could help North Texas to not feel left out in the wilds of Texas alone.
Texas State, UT-San Antonio and Arlington could all decide to stay in the WAC. Which would give Lamar more of a consideration by the Sun Belt.
However, the fall of the WAC was under Commissioner Benson’s watch and his rather sudden move from there to the Sun Belt has raised a few questions. But many doubt that the same will happen to the Sun Belt once he gets going fully as commissioner. But the question remains, will he be able to keep the conference going in the right direction.
In the mean time, South Alabama’s Dr. Joel Erdmann said that the school is trying to work out a deal that will have a video screen to show replays at Ladd-Peebles Stadium this season. It was not mentioned if it was going to replace an old scoreboard or if they were going the same route that the GoDaddy.com Bowl (formerly the GMAC Bowl) has done and bring in a portable screen. I believe the portable screen is the most likely of the two.
Also he mentioned they are trying to get more speakers at the stadium. Those fans who sit on the West stands know quite well how loud those speakers. Since the East side does not have speakers, they are turned up very loud so the students and fans can hear the announcers as well.
Karl Benson Interview Outlines Two SBC Divisions In Future
Karl Benson was interviewed during halftime of the South Alabama vs Troy first round match-up at the Sun Belt Conference Tournament in Hot Springs, Arkansas.
He indicated that the Sun Belt may move up the date he begins to take over to March 15 rather than April 1.
When Benson was asked what prompted the move from the WAC to the Sun Belt, he said that it took strong decision making and analysis before making his final decision. But he though the Sun Belt was more stable than the WAC. Also, after 18 years as commissioner of the WAC and his age, he asked himself where he would want to end his career. The Sun Belt was the best opportunity.
Benson’s goal is to hit at least 12 teams for a conference championship, but also for greater scheduling alliances. He said the Sun Belt needs to get to two divisions so they can reduce some travel, not only in football, but also in the other sports. They want to maintain current membership and grow new members.
When asked about membership changes as a couple teams have been mentioned as possible invitees to the new conference being formed by the merger of Conference-USA and the Mountain West Conference. Benson said that they will have to accept membership changes if they come. The Sun Belt is very stable and they have several schools lined up on their list in case any team leaves.
When asked about possible BCS changes, since he was part of the BCS meetings, he said he thinks that the BCS will eventually go to a four team playoff. He does not know if it will be part of the bowls or seperate from it.
Finally he was asked if he anticipated a merger of the Sun Belt with any other conference, Benson said he does not anticipate that.
AD Erdmann Interviewed On WNSP
University of South Alabama Athletic Director Dr. Joel Erdmann was on the Morning Sports Drive on WNSP with Lee Shirvanian and Mark Heim on Friday. Joel and Lee were both in Hot Springs, Arkansas for the Sun Belt Conference tournament that gets underway on Saturday.
Lee immediately spoke about the football schedule that was released the day before, on Thursday. Lee asked if Joel requested Troy as the Jaguars first Sun Belt game. Joel said that he did not and it’s not really up to the school to request such things. He did say that the schools do know who they will be playing and where they will be playing for the next four to six years. However the dates are not set and the schools can can “suggest” open dates to the conference, who actually sets the conference schedules.
Back to the schedule itself, Dr. Erdmann said that the schedule is very well paced with rotating home-away games. It’s good for the team and good for the fans. It has a greath rhythm to it.
Lee followed up asking if they were all going to be Saturday games, as they are currently scheduled, or if there were any possibilities of Jaguar games being picked up by the Sun Belt Network for television. Dr. Erdmann said that they are all scheduled for Saturday’s and that the times are still TBA. It is doubtful that the Jags will get a SBC televised game since South Alabama will not be eligible for the championship or post-season play.
Lee then transitioned over to the new Sun Belt commissioner Karl Benson and said that he was scheduled to have a press conference tomorrow in Hot Springs, Arkansas. Since Benson’s announcement as the new Sun Belt commissioner, there have been wide discussion for the conference to move to 12 football schools. Dr. Erdmann said it would be good if the conference can find good matches in schools for the conference within the region and that they want it to be discussed.
Back to the Jags schedule, Joel said that three of the four home Sun Belt games will be against teams who played in a bowl game over the last two seasons.
Lee asked about scheduling Nebraska, asking if it was for money or if it was because of their name. Erdmann stated that it was more because of the game; it helps with recruiting. But it is also depends if the date works for both schools and other factors.
Rounding out the interview, Lee asked if South Alabama is looking to schedule more teams to home-and-away series or 2-for-1’s. Erdmann said that they are looking to schedule more series and try to get some big name schools to visit Mobile like they have scheduled with Oklahoma State, Mississippi State and N.C. State.
Incoming Commissioner Speaks Of Conference Expansion For Sun Belt
The new incoming Sun Belt commissioner made the rounds last Friday after the announcement of his selection to replace the retiring Wright Waters.
He said that his immediate priority as the new commissioner would be to upgrade the league’s brand during this time of flux in college football. Currently Sun Belt schools who participate in football are Arkansas State, Florida Atlantic, Florida International, Louisiana-Lafayette, Louisiana-Monroe, Middle Tennessee, North Texas, Troy and Western Kentucky with South Alabama playing a full Sun Belt schedule in 2012 and joining as a full member in 2013.
Benson said, “Today is the beginning of the message that the Sun Belt Conference is going to be a player on the college landscape. We believe we provide opportunities for our existing institutions, but for any future institutions, (we) compare favorably to our peers.”
A couple Sun Belt schools have been mentioned as possible targets by the as-yet unnamed conference born out of the merger talks between Conference USA and the Mountain West Conference. Those teams mentioned have been Florida International, Florida Atlantic and North Texas.
But Benson said that maintaining a presence in both Florida and Texas is important for the conference. But he also mentioned that the conference will be in conversations with unnamed Conference-USA members about moving to the Sun Belt.
The appeal of the Sun Belt would be to allow those unnamed schools to remain in a regional conference that is more beneficial and logical to them while allowing the Sun Belt to expand to at least 12 football-participating schools.
Louisiana Tech, who is currently a member of the WAC, has publicly expressed their desire to be a part of the new Sun Belt Conference. If Louisiana Tech joins the conference, only one more football playing school would be needed for the required 12 to have a conference championship game.
While Benson was at it, he talked with Tony Barnhart and Wes Durham on their radio show on 790 The Zone. He said he was aware of other schools in the region such as Georgia State and UNC-Charlotte. While Georgia State does not have plans on moving up to the FBS, UNC-Charlotte does want to move up to FBS but does not have a timeline to do so and will only be playing their first season of football in 2013, a full year away.
While Benson’s priority would be to add existing FBS members to the conference, he would be open to schools with aspirations for FBS play if the attempted addition of current FBS schools was not fruitful for the conference.
Karl Benson Officially Announced As New Sun Belt Commissioner
As reported, Karl Benson was officially introduced as the Sun Belt’s new commissioner when Wright Waters officially steps down from his 12 years as commissioner in the coming months. Mr. Benson will join the SBC in April and will be full-time on July 1.
Troy University’s Dr. Jack Hawkins delivered the opening statement giving a history of the Sun Belt since it’s inception in 1976. The SBC is one of 11 BCS conferences since they added football in 2001. He also mentioned how the SBC is ranked sixth among the 32 Division I conferences.
He also mentioned that 90% of SBC teams have earned a multi-year progress rate of 925 or higher. But he touted that the real strength of the conference was it geographical distance between its schools being a regional conference. He said its proximity to each other fosters natural rivalries, helps to save money by reducing travel costs and makes sense for each schools fans. It also makes sense for student-athletes who have to take time away from campus to participate in athletic events.
Mr. Benson opened with a statement thanking the Sun Belt school presidents and chancellors for choosing him for his position. He mentioned that it is an uncertain time in college sports and that the Sun Belt is well positioned to take advantage of it.
He then praised Mr. Waters’, the previous Presidents and Chancellors for their leadership in continually shaping the the conference into the conference it is today.
The Sun Belt schools are gaining national attention as they build new stadiums and arenas, winning contests by both men’s and women’s teams, fan attendance at contests continually rise, and operating budgets are getting larger while more contests are being televised.
They then opened up to questions from members of the teleconference.
One of the first questions was about future plans for adding teams to the conference. “Again as we settle in and look at the potential and looking at the future of membership is an important one,” Benson said. “The Sun Belt currently has ten football-playing schools and one non-football-playing school in the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Without getting specific in terms of numbers, I think that there’s an advantage to getting to at least 12 to take advantage of additional post season opportunities. Know that in the coming weeks, the Sun Belt board will establish a committee that will look to evaluate the current membership and the future membership. Chancellor Hawkins mentioned the Sun Belt footprint in terms of geography and how conducive that is for the student-athletes from a travel standpoint, a participation standpoint, and fan travel. The Sun Belt footprint also provides a pool of possible numbers that are already in that footprint: current FBS members, as well as FCS members that have indicated interest in perhaps in moving to FBS. Again it will be a very important piece in the coming months.”
Another question was about what things are attractive for current members to remain in the Sun Belt. “The fact that there has been Sun Belt members mentioned as part of the Conference USA-Mountain West merger is a testament to the program growth that the Sun Belt individual institutions have made along with the Sun Belt as a conference in general,” Benson said. “The Sun Belt has established itself as a credible, as a bona fide Division I BCS conference. I think that we hope to be able to demonstrate in the coming weeks that the future is bright for the Sun Belt that in light of the changes that have occurred in Conference USA, in the Mountain West, in the WAC, that the Sun Belt position in terms of the hierarchy of the so-called non-AQ conferences has increased tremendously, and the opportunity for the Sun Belt to succeed in a manner that will provide the current membership with greater bowl opportunities, with greater television opportunities, with greater revenue opportunities that we will be able to demonstrate that the Sun Belt is on par with any other of the non-BCS conferences.”
Another question was about how he would approach potentially adding teams from the WAC to the Sun Belt. “Right now I’m focusing on the 10 football playing members of the Sun Belt along with the University of Arkansas-Little Rock and focusing on how to make the Sun Belt a stronger conference, a more attractive conference and once I officially move into the chair, into the position, there will be a transition period where Wright [Waters] and I will be working together in the Sun Belt office,” Benson began. “At that time I will then focus on the bigger picture. It’s not the first time a commissioner moving from one conference to the other. There may be sensitivity and perhaps some awkwardness. I think everyone understands that once you change positions that you are now responsible and obligated to that conference. I will certainly do that with the Sun Belt.”
ESPN Reports That WAC Commissioner Karl Benson To Replace Wright Waters As SBC Commissioner
Benson is a 60-year old Boise State alum who has been the WAC commissioner since 1994. During his tenure, he has helped to reshape the conference numerous times as teams came and went.
Recently Boise State left the WAC for the Mountain West while Nevada, Fresno State and Hawaii are all leaving after this season for the Mountain West. The WAC is left with Utah State, Louisiana Tech, New Mexico State, Idaho and San Jose State and it has Denver, Seattle, Texas State, Texas-Arlington and Texas-San Antonio joining for the 2012-13 season. Denver, Seattle and UT-Arlington do not have football programs. Boise State plans to rejoin the WAC in everything but football when it joins the Big East in 2013.
While the Mountain West and Conference USA are dissolving to for a new conference, the WAC is in danger of losing more schools as the new conference is targeting 18-24 schools.