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110%er [9949]
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Coastal Carolina, E. Kentucky on Sun Belt’s expansion radar
Jul 24, 2015, 11:59 AM
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Posted by Kevin McGuire on July 24, 2015, 10:31 AM EDT
Sure, the topic of expansion in the Sun Belt Conference may have been put on the shelf earlier this week, but the shelf life on expansion rumors is pretty limited. Matt Hogue, athletics director at Coastal Carolina, says the Sun Belt Conference has contacted his university in recent weeks, although there may be no real reason to get too excited just yet.
“We’ve been contacted and we’ve had some discussion and that’s really the extent at this point,” Hogue said in a story published by The Sun News. “That’s where we are. We can acknowledge that they have contacted us, and certainly our stance has always been we would explore any opportunities that are presented to us.”
Sun Belt Conference commissioner Karl Benson has confirmed the conference has been in conversations with both Coastal Carolina and Eastern Kentucky. The Sun Belt currently has 11 football-playing members, including a pair of associate members for football only, Idaho and New Mexico State. Full league membership does not appear to be on the table for either associate member.
“I think Eastern Kentucky has been public in declaring their interest in moving up to FBS. I think that Coastal Carolina has not made that public statement,” Benson told The Daily Advertiser in a this week. “So has Eastern Kentucky contacted the Sun Belt? Yes. Have we had conversation with Coastal Carolina and others? Yes. That’s about all I can say.”
Coastal Carolina is a rising FCS power and would seem to fit the footprint requirement the Sun Belt aims to stick to with possible expansion on the horizon. Earlier this week at Sun Belt Conference media days Benson suggested if the conference does expand, it would need to stick to its own geography. Coastal Carolina is located in South Carolina. The Sun Belt footprint includes schools in Georgia (Georgia Southern and Georgia State) and North Carolina (Appalachian State), but skips over the state of South Carolina. That makes the Chanticleers a viable and attractive option considering other FCS candidates to fill a spot in the conference. Keep in mind it is not likely the Sun Belt would be adding any FBS programs from another conference. Coastal Carolina reached the quarterfinals of the FCS playoffs last season before losing a 39-32 game to eventual national champion North Dakota State. The football program started up in 2003, but has already put together five playoff appearances and seven conference titles.
Eastern Kentucky would also seem to fit in nicely, and bring the conference back to the state of Kentucky. Western Kentucky previously was a member of the conference after moving up from the FCS ranks. Since then the Hilltoppers have joined Conference USA, leaving a Kentucky void for the Sun Belt Conference. Eastern Kentucky is 44-29 since 2008, with a pair of Ohio Valley Conference championships. The program has won a pair of national titles at the FCS level, although the last came in 1982. Last year Eastern Kentucky reached the FCS playoffs, but the Colonels took an early exit at the hands of Indiana State in the first round.
If either school were to make the jump, Eastern Kentucky would appear to be more ready for the move than Coastal Carolina. The Colonels play in a stadium with a capacity of 20,000 (Roy Kidd Stadium). Minimal upgrades would be needed for seating capacity concerns compared to Coastal Carolina. Coastal Carolina’s Brooks Stadium holds just 9,214 fans. Significant expansion would need to be done in order to satisfy attendance concerns for the Sun Belt Conference.
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All-In [46574]
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Re: Coastal Carolina, E. Kentucky on Sun Belt’s expansion radar
Jul 24, 2015, 12:25 PM
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I'd love to see Coastal be apart but the population in the fall is not so much. Attendance would be the biggest question. I think that the area could bring in 20-25 thousand fans. I went there first but I wouldn't drive to see them play football or any other sport.
It's a very nice campus that is getting better every year. I'm not sure Coastal is ready for the Sun Belt. I do think they need to expand the stadium to be a part. It will be interesting to see it play out.
Go Tigers!
When I was there we had a poll about what the mascot should be. I believe the Sea Gulls and Carolina Cats were the two that were at the top. The never changed it but I wished they would have. Never like the Chanticleer because it's in the same family with the coots chicken.
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As a Coastal grad (wife is a CU grad) there has been a lot
Jul 24, 2015, 1:49 PM
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of change over the last 20 years there. The student population has more than doubled, the new basketball arena is nice, and with ol' Cliff there the team has done well recently. The baseball team has been solid for a good while and they were working on the new stadium last time I was up there for a game last fall. Being in between MB and Conway there is plenty of room for growth. The Grand Strand has plenty of football interest with the closest big schools being hours away in Columbia or Greenville, NC.
Coastal has done a good job of growing at the right rate, and I think that will continue. That being said, I don't think the time is right to move to FBS. More infrastructure is still needed, Cost of Attendance could be an issue, and the money and time need to be there to make things happen. 10-15 years from now I could see a move like App St. or Ga Southern, but now isn't the time.
The problem may be will the opportunity be there when the time is right. Sometimes you gotta fish or cut bait with what you have at the time.
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110%er [5915]
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Re: Coastal Carolina, E. Kentucky on Sun Belt’s expansion radar
Jul 24, 2015, 3:26 PM
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I know the Coastal President. He is a very intelligent man. He has long range plans for Coastal to have the second largest UNDERGRADUATE enrollment of any college in SC. Yes - larger than Clemson.
Our Bridge Program was started to some extent because of Coastal's growth.
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All-In [46574]
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Re: Coastal Carolina, E. Kentucky on Sun Belt’s expansion radar
Jul 24, 2015, 7:11 PM
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I went there 86-90 and I worked on the beach an ocean lifeguard five summers and paid for my schooling there almost totally from the money I made in the summer. The baseball & soccer team was very good then but only about 4,500 students then.
I go back and vist friends there often. Love the campus and the beach and if I could do it again I would.
Their was always more Clemson fans there than you would think considering it used to be usc-Coastal Carolina. It's a great area. My wife are looking to move back to North Myrtle beach in the next year. My Daughter has a saddlebred barn business that also takes rescues and helps train service mini horses for soldiers, kids and adults who need service mini's or medical service dogs. Our biggest challenge is finding a farm for her to continue in that area. She might have to live closer to Conway or Surfside to find the acres she needs.
All of my family are in the Anderson and Elberton, Ga area. I was much more ready for Clemson after Coastal, I would have never made Clemson if I hadn't grew up some..lol
If Clemson is not playing at home I would go to the Coastal games. I'm with you, they need to develop more to move up.
We actually had a semi-pro team there in the late '80s. It didn't pan out.
The president is a great guy, I'm so thankful a guy with brains and a vision is at the helm. I'd love to see Coastal grow into a much bigger school. There is enough land and area to really expand. They are constantly building since I left.
I took Business and loved it. I majored mostly in beach so I'm thankful those years were easy and night and day from Clemson acedemically. The biology and chemistry classes were hard there and that's it.
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