![]() The Panthers have also agreed to play the Charlotte 49ers, a C-USA standout. Recently Georgia State scheduled a series against the UAB Blazers. Moreover, it could create more rivalries amongst programs, leading to higher fan interest. ![]() Especially for regional games, it makes more sense and reduces travel costs. Rather, there should be more games between the two conferences. However, there is a better solution for both parties involved. Georgia State has just found its footing in the conference merging with another conference would put all its progress in jeopardy. Such an unstable environment should be a red flag for anyone thinking about a merger. C-USA has been so unstable that some want to blow it up altogether. “The Sun Belt gets paid more per school than C-USA does.”Ĭonsidering how much harm financial harm the coronavirus has already done to athletic programs, merging for less money would be a terrible idea. “No way the conference merges and splits up less money,” Moore said. By no means is the Sun Belt rich, but merging with C-USA would possibly make both lose revenue. The Sun Belt is nowhere near the level of the Atlantic Coast Conference or the Southeastern Conference in terms of revenue. Even after landing a new television deal in 2018, they still lost money. The conference’s geography causes many teams to travel far to play each other. ![]() A young Panthers football team is one of the many that would struggle with the odd and long schedule of traveling.Ĭonference USA is one of the many smaller conferences to ask the NCAA for aid and it underscores a huge issue. On top of funding, teams in East Coast states, like Georgia State and Coastal Carolina, would also be harmed through travel costs, which come out of the school’s pockets and are not funded by the NCAA. In particular, C-USA does not have as much program funding as the Sun Belt. With all of this in mind, a merger sounds great and could really help Georgia State, but don’t hold your breath.Īs great as the idea might sound, a conference merger is quite complex. 20 nationally, received a bowl date before Christmas a merger could put them in a better spot. As a result, the two could benefit from better access to top-tier bowl games and more bids for the NCAA Basketball Tournament.Ĭurrently, both conferences are relegated to one bid each in their conference, and bowl-wise are subject to terrible slots. Both mid-major conferences have strong programs in football and basketball. On paper, the proposal to merge both conferences makes a lot of sense. “A possible merger has been rumored for a long time now,” Moore said. Roy Moore of 247Sports is familiar with talks of a merger. They boast successful programs such as the Appalachian State Mountaineers in football and the Georgia State Panthers in basketball. The Sun Belt is undeniably a better conference. Both have an abundance of teams, but they also have varying levels of talent and success. While the idea itself is not new, the urgency of such a proposal is now being taken seriously by fans of both conferences. Now, those schools must consider some radical ways to ensure they can still play in the upcoming season.Ī popular option would be a merger between Conference USA and the Sun Belt Conference. Their loss is on a growing list of the financial impacts many small and mid-major conferences are facing. Some small programs are shutting down, such as Morehouse College’s, which ended its program for the foreseeable future last month. The pandemic is wreaking havoc on the sports world, and college football in particular is already feeling the effects. And although professional sports are set to come back, collegiate athletics have not been able to say the same. For the last four months, COVID-19 paused sports entirely.
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