AppStateNation.com recently filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request with both Appalachian State and Georgia Southern regarding any documents they had pertaining to conference realignment. They have apparently received the information back from Georgia Southern already. Included within the information AppStateNation has already released contains a geographic footprint map containing all Sun Belt Conference members including 2 new possible additions – Appalachian State and Georgia Southern. Also contained within e-mails between Sun Belt Commissioner Karl Benson and Georgia Southern’s Athletic Director is information pertaining to 15 “candidates” for Sun Belt expansion. Liberty is included within those 15 schools.
According to AppStateNation.com, the 15 schools mentioned within these emails are:
Delaware
Georgia Southern
Idaho
Illinois State
Jacksonville State
James Madison
Lamar
Liberty
Missouri State
New Mexico State
Richmond
Sam Houston State
Towson
UT Chattanooga
The Sun Belt is currently at 8 football playing members and 10 all-sport members. They have stated numerous times over the past several weeks and months that they intend to be a 10 football playing member and 12 all-sport member conference. So, they obviously need to add 2 more schools. It definitely feels like Georgia Southern and Appalachian State are the odds on favorites to be included as the next 2 additions; however, Conference USA and/or other conferences would raid the Sun Belt any day forcing the Sun Belt to add more than 2 teams.
AppStateNation states they will release more information within the coming days.
List of Possible Expansion Targets
List of Sun Belt Conference Map With 2 Potential New Members
It’s a little discouraging that the map has Appalachian State and Georgia Southern on it without Liberty, but it’s probably just specific for those two schools. Liberty probably got a different one that has themselves with James Madison on it, etc. The Sun Belt wouldn’t be stupid enough to hand out this map to all the potential applicants and show what the league would look like without the other applicants on.
I like how most of the candidates would move the Sun Belt closer to Liberty’s territory. The Liberty homer in me wants to read this as the Sun Belt wants to expand with Liberty but needs more schools in the area to make it worth it. Unfortunately, this is probably furthest from the truth.
As for the budgets, it’s encouraging that Liberty is at the top in most categories but discouraging to have the lack of results. Hopefully this problem is in the process of being corrected.