App with #129 SOS, weakest in the Sun Belt. Only 3 teams from the Sun Belt crack the top 100 in SOS with 3 teams, including App, ranked in the bottom 10. ULM comes in as the highest rated SOS at #86, followed by ULL #95 and GS #98.

UGA #2
Wake #21
UMASS #75

http://www.espn.com/college-football/st ... rder/false

Not all that surprising considering who is missing from the schedule. Still not good, but really nothing we can do about it.

How can our SOS be that bad with Wake and UGA on the schedule?

Rekdiver wrote:How can our SOS be that bad with Wake and UGA on the schedule?

Because the bottom half of the SBC is THAT bad.

That's precisely why we would have to run the table and lay waste to out SBC opponents in order to have a shot at NY6 bowl.

But that should be our goal.

Of course App has the lowest SOS in the SBC, we don't have to play against App State.

Ouch. We need to beat Georgia and Wake Forest by three touchdowns each and then hope each of them goes 11-1 for the year.

B30020 wrote:Ouch. We need to beat Georgia and Wake Forest by three touchdowns each and then hope each of them goes 11-1 for the year.

That is one way. The other is for our confernce mates to actually win their non-conference games against FBS schools - especially against other G5. Us, Georgia southern and S bama can't pull the weight of all.

AppDawg wrote:

B30020 wrote:Ouch. We need to beat Georgia and Wake Forest by three touchdowns each and then hope each of them goes 11-1 for the year.

That is one way. The other is for our confernce mates to actually win their non-conference games against FBS schools - especially against other G5. Us, Georgia southern and S bama can't pull the weight of all.

Yes. I'm looking at you, Arkansas State.

Over/Under 5 years until we leave the Sun Belt?

/\PP ST/\TE GRAD 09 wrote:Over/Under 5 years until we leave the Sun Belt?

I actually doubt we straight-up leave for a new conference any time soon. I do hope the Sun Belt/CUSA realignment happens in that time.

Arkansas State's performance has nothing to do with our SOS this year, although I know it impacts the perception of the conference as a whole. Georgia Southern's performance last year is hurting us, but I think they will surprise people this year and as long as we beat them, that will wind up being a good win this year.

Short of pulling an Ole Miss what does anyone see happening at some of the conference bottom feeders anytime soon that will make them good? The only thing that will give the Sunbelt respectability is (like others have said) for middle to upper tier conference teams to get significant wins nationally. We need to take down UGA and one of the other good programs needs a big win as well. As mentioned it doesn't help for Arky to go winless in non-conference play.

I think the bottom feeders are already trending positive, but perception hasn't caught up. Georgia State has been much more respectable the past two years and has a solid new coach who will continue the trend. Idaho is no longer a joke and is actually in the top half of the conference (until they disappear completely). Texas State is recovering from a coaching fiasco but has had excellent recruiting. Chances are they will be more respectable each year but it's a process. NMSU is leaving the conference.

Yosef84 wrote:I think the bottom feeders are already trending positive, but perception hasn't caught up. Georgia State has been much more respectable the past two years and has a solid new coach who will continue the trend. Idaho is no longer a joke and is actually in the top half of the conference (until they disappear completely). Texas State is recovering from a coaching fiasco but has had excellent recruiting. Chances are they will be more respectable each year but it's a process. NMSU is leaving the conference.

I wouldn't make that arguement about Georgia State. They won just 3 games last season. 1 of those against a FCS, another agaist a very bad tx st. The only reason we perceive them improving is that they are 2-0 against Georgia southern the last 2 seasons. Despite getting up for an in-state rival they are still a very bad football team.

Further, the year they went to a bowl with 6 wins, they stull managed to lose to charlotte and a FCS.

I do think TxSt with Withers is a team that will steadily improve over the course of the next few seasons.

ULM - they appear to be a 100% lost cause.

AppDawg wrote:

Yosef84 wrote:I think the bottom feeders are already trending positive, but perception hasn't caught up. Georgia State has been much more respectable the past two years and has a solid new coach who will continue the trend. Idaho is no longer a joke and is actually in the top half of the conference (until they disappear completely). Texas State is recovering from a coaching fiasco but has had excellent recruiting. Chances are they will be more respectable each year but it's a process. NMSU is leaving the conference.

I would make that arguement about Georgia State. They won just 3 games last season. 1 of those against a FCS, another agaist a very bad tx st. The only reason we perceive them improving is that they are 2-0 against Georgia southern the last 2 seasons. Despite getting up for an in-state rival they are still a very bad football team.

Further, the year they went to a bowl with 6 wins, they stull managed to lose to charlotte and a FCS.

I do think TxSt with Withers is a team that will steadily improve over the course of the next few seasons.

ULM - they appear to be a 100% lost cause.

Also, just because GSU's coach went to App and coached OL here doesn't mean he'll be a good head coach. That's still totally TBD.

I actually like ULM's coach and think he might make them respectable. However you're probably right that they're a lost cause in the long term.

EastHallApp wrote:

/\PP ST/\TE GRAD 09 wrote:Over/Under 5 years until we leave the Sun Belt?

I actually doubt we straight-up leave for a new conference any time soon. I do hope the Sun Belt/CUSA realignment happens in that time.

If we're going to be in a bad conference why not start over with a bad conference with nearby opponents. The east stands to gain a LOT more than we lose. Gain: rivalries, Marshall/WKU/MTSU. Lose: crazy travel and the Texas Schools. An OOC agreement can be reached with Ark State if we wanted to keep playing them.

/\PP ST/\TE GRAD 09 wrote:Over/Under 5 years until we leave the Sun Belt?

Sun Belt finished ranked 3rd last season above both the MAC and Conference USA. Which conference are we leaving for?

/\PP ST/\TE GRAD 09 wrote:Over/Under 5 years until we leave the Sun Belt?

There is no place to go. We will wait for realignment.

Our SOS should improve from 2018 onward, considering we'll play GS, Troy, CCU, and GSU every season. Especially if GSU improves under Elliot and Coastal continues their FCS success into the Belt.