Sun Belt positioned for multiple bowls
Posted on Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Sun Belt Conference Commissioner Wright Waters is sorry for the confusion.
Waters inadvertently raised questions a few weeks ago about the postseason destination of the Sun Belt Conference football champion. To be clear, Waters said this week, the winner of the Arkansas State-Troy game at Troy, Ala., on Saturday will go to the New Orleans Bowl with at least a share of the Sun Belt title and the conference’s best overall record.
Comments to the contrary were ill-advised, Waters said, referring to a statement he made in which he speculated that the Sun Belt winner might go to a different bowl and leave New Orleans to a runner-up.
“I’m probably the root of the confusion,” Waters said. “And it was because I was quoted about three or four weeks ago when I was sitting here looking at our schedule and saying there’s no way we would end up with multiple teams with seven wins or more.”
If Troy wins, it will be 8-4 overall and 6-1 in the Sun Belt, and if Arkansas State wins, both teams will be 7-5, 5-2 and Arkansas State would advance to New Orleans, the Sun Belt’s lone bowl guarantee, by virtue of its victory over Troy. Troy would then be an attractive regional candidate for the Papajohns. com Bowl in Birmingham, Ala.
With either an Arkansas State or Troy victory, four Sun Belt teams will have the minimum of six victories required for bowl eligibility, with three hoping for an at-large bid elsewhere.
Louisiana-Lafayette, if it beats Middle Tennessee tonight, would be 6-6, 5-2, and with an Arkansas State victory on Saturday, there would be a three-way tie for the Sun Belt championship. Louisiana-Lafayette beat Arkansas State this year, and Troy beat Louisiana-Lafayette.
But the NCAA says Arkansas State be the New Orleans Bowl representative over Louisiana-Lafayette because of its overall record.
“The NCAA rule is if you have a team that has a winning record, meaning seven wins or more, you must fill your contracted spots with your winning records,” Waters said. “You can’t take a 6-6 team and put them in your contracted spot and then declare that seven-win team out there as an at-large.”
The clearest scenario would be in play if Troy beats Arkansas State and wins the title outright, leaving three Sun Belt teams at 6-6. That would be fine with Troy Coach Larry Blakeney.
“Being able to say you’re the conference champion is huge to me in the development of our program, or anybody’s program,” Blakeney said.
The other six-victory teams, if Troy wins, would be Arkansas State, Florida Atlantic and either Middle Tennessee or Louisiana-Lafayette, and all would be hoping for the best from the Sun Belt’s new bowl ties announced in the summer.
Should the Big East or Conference USA not field enough bowl-eligible teams — with records better than 6-6 — for the St. Petersburg Bowl on Dec. 20, an eligible Sun Belt team is to be the next selection. If the Big East and SEC can’t field enough teams for the Papajohns. com Bowl on Dec. 29, a 6-6 Sun Belt team would be chosen.
If the SEC and Big 12 can’t fulfill their requirements for the Independence Bowl in Shreveport on Dec. 28, an eligible Sun Belt team would be the second choice, or the first choice if the St. Petersburg Bowl and Papajohns. com Bowl do not have an opening.
While there are attractive regional possibilities — Florida Atlantic in St. Petersburg, Fla., or Arkansas State or Louisiana-Lafayette at Shreveport — much still hinges on the BCS picture and its impact on the 11 Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A ) conferences plus independents.
The best-case scenario for the Sun Belt would be Arkansas State beating Troy and going to the New Orleans Bowl, while Troy would go to a bowl like Papajohns. com. That would give the Sun Belt two bowl teams for the third time in its eight years of football.
“The protection in our backup agreement is getting our teams to seven wins,” Waters said. “We could have that if Arkansas State beats Troy. Otherwise, we’re out there dealing.”
FEEDBACK:
Something to say about this topic? Submit a Letter to the Editor online
