Belk Bowl?

[MAD Doctor]

We are too good for the Belk Bowl. It is for 4 and 5 loss teams. We are better than every ACC team except Clemson, so no thank you. We'll be waiting in New Orleans for whomever they care to send us, most likely a 3rd place CUSA team because the top two are scared to death of us.

[ericsaid]

We are too good for the Belk Bowl. It is for 4 and 5 loss teams. We are better than every ACC team except Clemson, so no thank you. We'll be waiting in New Orleans for whomever they care to send us, most likely a 3rd place CUSA team because the top two are scared to death of us.

This is the worst rationalization for not playing in the Belk Bowl that i've seen.

[falcoapp]

We are too good for the Belk Bowl. It is for 4 and 5 loss teams. We are better than every ACC team except Clemson, so no thank you. We'll be waiting in New Orleans for whomever they care to send us, most likely a 3rd place CUSA team because the top two are scared to death of us.

We are too good for a bowl game that is more coveted than the one we will most likely get.

Ok, got it.

[/\PP ST/\TE GRAD 09]

We are too good for the Belk Bowl. It is for 4 and 5 loss teams. We are better than every ACC team except Clemson, so no thank you. We'll be waiting in New Orleans for whomever they care to send us, most likely a 3rd place CUSA team because the top two are scared to death of us.

I'd take a 4 or 5 loss P5 school in a location that would bring a huge crowd over a 3 loss C-USA team that combined with App won't even cover the bottom level of the Superdome.

[Yosefus]

We are not going to the Belk Bowl.

[ericsaid]

We are not going to the Belk Bowl.

Thank you Captain Obvious.

[NattyBumppo'sRevenge]

UNC fans don't want to come see their team get beat by App again, but by a larger margin this time.

[NattyBumppo'sRevenge]

We are not going to the Belk Bowl.

Some of us might.

[MAD Doctor]

We are too good for the Belk Bowl. It is for 4 and 5 loss teams. We are better than every ACC team except Clemson, so no thank you. We'll be waiting in New Orleans for whomever they care to send us, most likely a 3rd place CUSA team because the top two are scared to death of us.

This is the worst rationalization for not playing in the Belk Bowl that i've seen.

You just haven't been looking hard enough, lol. The Belk Bowl Twitter site has been messing with us (and Charlotte) like they are the Sugar Bowl or something. Screw 'em. We know what our reality is- might as well embrace it.

[ericsaid]

We are too good for the Belk Bowl. It is for 4 and 5 loss teams. We are better than every ACC team except Clemson, so no thank you. We'll be waiting in New Orleans for whomever they care to send us, most likely a 3rd place CUSA team because the top two are scared to death of us.

This is the worst rationalization for not playing in the Belk Bowl that i've seen.

You just haven't been looking hard enough, lol. The Belk Bowl Twitter site has been messing with us (and Charlotte) like they are the Sugar Bowl or something. Screw 'em. We know what our reality is- might as well embrace it.

If I knew what my reality was and embraced it, i'd be stuck. Marshall and USM have done this and look where it left them. Always push, prod, poke, and stoke.

If App truly is better than every ACC team, as you propose, why not seek to prove it on the field? You're most likely the only person on Earth that would say that and believe it. Is App better than UVA and Virginia Tech, this year? Possibly. But there would be only one way to prove that because I can guarantee you few outside of App State would believe that.

[bigdaddyg]

We are too good for the Belk Bowl. It is for 4 and 5 loss teams. We are better than every ACC team except Clemson, so no thank you. We'll be waiting in New Orleans for whomever they care to send us, most likely a 3rd place CUSA team because the top two are scared to death of us.

This is the worst rationalization for not playing in the Belk Bowl that i've seen.

You just haven't been looking hard enough, lol. The Belk Bowl Twitter site has been messing with us (and Charlotte) like they are the Sugar Bowl or something. Screw 'em. We know what our reality is- might as well embrace it.

If I knew what my reality was and embraced it, i'd be stuck. Marshall and USM have done this and look where it left them. Always push, prod, poke, and stoke.

If App truly is better than every ACC team, as you propose, why not seek to prove it on the field? You're most likely the only person on Earth that would say that and believe it. Is App better than UVA and Virginia Tech, this year? Possibly. But there would be only one way to prove that because I can guarantee you few outside of App State would believe that.

What is this fixation that so many people have with how much better App is/might be over all of the many P5 teams (along with Memphis, Cincinnati and Boise)? Can't we simply have arguably the best team we have ever had, play whomever we are assigned in whatever bowl we are assigned to, kick ass and move on? It is just exhausting (and nuts) to extend a thread out to now 6 pages to debate and discuss a bowl that we won't play in. Some yahoo at ESPN who evidently doesn't know or care to research the bowl tie-ins happened to slot us in the Belk Bowl and we go bananas. Now we can beat about anybody in the country. Man we are ranked, recognized by the only list that matters and have a shot to finish 13 and freaking 1. Just breathe guys.

[ericsaid]

We are too good for the Belk Bowl. It is for 4 and 5 loss teams. We are better than every ACC team except Clemson, so no thank you. We'll be waiting in New Orleans for whomever they care to send us, most likely a 3rd place CUSA team because the top two are scared to death of us.

This is the worst rationalization for not playing in the Belk Bowl that i've seen.

You just haven't been looking hard enough, lol. The Belk Bowl Twitter site has been messing with us (and Charlotte) like they are the Sugar Bowl or something. Screw 'em. We know what our reality is- might as well embrace it.

If I knew what my reality was and embraced it, i'd be stuck. Marshall and USM have done this and look where it left them. Always push, prod, poke, and stoke.

If App truly is better than every ACC team, as you propose, why not seek to prove it on the field? You're most likely the only person on Earth that would say that and believe it. Is App better than UVA and Virginia Tech, this year? Possibly. But there would be only one way to prove that because I can guarantee you few outside of App State would believe that.

What is this fixation that so many people have with how much better App is/might be over all of the many P5 teams (along with Memphis, Cincinnati and Boise)? Can't we simply have arguably the best team we have ever had, play whomever we are assigned in whatever bowl we are assigned to, kick ass and move on? It is just exhausting (and nuts) to extend a thread out to now 6 pages to debate and discuss a bowl that we won't play in. Some yahoo at ESPN who evidently doesn't know or care to research the bowl tie-ins happened to slot us in the Belk Bowl and we go bananas. Now we can beat about anybody in the country. Man we are ranked, recognized by the only list that matters and have a shot to finish 13 and freaking 1. Just breathe guys.

Failure to accept the status quo is what led App to this position in the first place.

Ultimately, what you're asking for will happen. This is all conjecture will no bearing on anything that will happen Saturday or beyond.

[MAD Doctor]

We are too good for the Belk Bowl. It is for 4 and 5 loss teams. We are better than every ACC team except Clemson, so no thank you. We'll be waiting in New Orleans for whomever they care to send us, most likely a 3rd place CUSA team because the top two are scared to death of us.

This is the worst rationalization for not playing in the Belk Bowl that i've seen.

You just haven't been looking hard enough, lol. The Belk Bowl Twitter site has been messing with us (and Charlotte) like they are the Sugar Bowl or something. Screw 'em. We know what our reality is- might as well embrace it.

If I knew what my reality was and embraced it, i'd be stuck. Marshall and USM have done this and look where it left them. Always push, prod, poke, and stoke.

If App truly is better than every ACC team, as you propose, why not seek to prove it on the field? You're most likely the only person on Earth that would say that and believe it. Is App better than UVA and Virginia Tech, this year? Possibly. But there would be only one way to prove that because I can guarantee you few outside of App State would believe that.

First of all, if we win Saturday, our reality for THIS SEASON is NOLA. Surely you don't buy the Belk Bowl Twitter tease.
Second, I seriously doubt that I'm the only one of 300 million to think that App is better than ACC teams not named Clemson this season, considering that both the AP and Coaches polls ranked us higher as well. Are you saying the polls are b.s. and we are not as good as unranked or lower ranked ACC teams? Hmmmm.
As for proving it on the field, we are 1-0 and can only beat who is on our schedule.

[AppStFan1]

We are too good for the Belk Bowl. It is for 4 and 5 loss teams. We are better than every ACC team except Clemson, so no thank you. We'll be waiting in New Orleans for whomever they care to send us, most likely a 3rd place CUSA team because the top two are scared to death of us.

You do realize if we were in the ACC we would probably be a 8-4 team, 9-3 at best. It would not shock me if we were 7-5 depending on which teams we had in the ACC. We are a good team but the only games I think we could win for sure are GT, Duke, UNC, BC, Syracuse, and NC State. We would definitely lose to Clemson and the other games are 50/50 to me. I am pretty sure the ball would not bounce our way in one or two of them as well.

We can't be arrogant because 11-1 or 10-2 in the SBC is not a guarantee. If we can lose to Georgia Southern then we could lose to half of the ACC for sure.

North Dakota State is the most dominant program in FCS history and I would even tell them that they would lose a couple games in the MAC, as bad as it is. Unless you have a roster full of those caliber guys, along with depth, then it won't happen. We have P5 talent but we don't have 35 guys who could start at most ACC schools. We need about 3 more Davis-Gaither, Demetrius Taylor, Shaun Jolly, Evans, Thomas, Sutton, etc caliber players on each side of the ball before we should think we could roll the entire ACC but Clemson.

[ericsaid]

We are too good for the Belk Bowl. It is for 4 and 5 loss teams. We are better than every ACC team except Clemson, so no thank you. We'll be waiting in New Orleans for whomever they care to send us, most likely a 3rd place CUSA team because the top two are scared to death of us.

This is the worst rationalization for not playing in the Belk Bowl that i've seen.

You just haven't been looking hard enough, lol. The Belk Bowl Twitter site has been messing with us (and Charlotte) like they are the Sugar Bowl or something. Screw 'em. We know what our reality is- might as well embrace it.

If I knew what my reality was and embraced it, i'd be stuck. Marshall and USM have done this and look where it left them. Always push, prod, poke, and stoke.

If App truly is better than every ACC team, as you propose, why not seek to prove it on the field? You're most likely the only person on Earth that would say that and believe it. Is App better than UVA and Virginia Tech, this year? Possibly. But there would be only one way to prove that because I can guarantee you few outside of App State would believe that.

First of all, if we win Saturday, our reality for THIS SEASON is NOLA. Surely you don't buy the Belk Bowl Twitter tease.
Second, I seriously doubt that I'm the only one of 300 million to think that App is better than ACC teams not named Clemson this season, considering that both the AP and Coaches polls ranked us higher as well. Are you saying the polls are b.s. and we are not as good as unranked or lower ranked ACC teams? Hmmmm.
As for proving it on the field, we are 1-0 and can only beat who is on our schedule.

I said I didn't believe the Twitter account because they enjoy trolling people. All it takes is one Tweet to go Viral, at some point, and the Belk Bowl will get more eye balls than they ever will on the game; that's how society works these days.

I believe App could beat anyone in the Sun Belt, including Clemson, any given Saturday. However just because you are ranked doesn't mean the game shouldn't be played. Would App be in the ACC Championship if this team were in the Coastal? Possibly. No way to know. Again, a thought experiment is more of what this exercise is. I've had many process improvements born out of discussions like are being had here.

It's "here is where we are, here is what we want, what can we do to make it happen and when?" As for the discussion of this game that won't happen, it's purely about what could happen in the future and what is the justification? That's how you move forward and improve, in one way. Inaction caused by a lack of discussion leads to nothing changing.

My perception is that App could go to the Belk Bowl and whomever the match-up was with would likely be a good game. My guess is that NOLA and Mobile will be fine. The Cotton Bowl still isn't completely out of reach though asking for three independent events to occur to allow App to jump to the front of the G5 pecking order makes odds astronomically low.

We could technically still be discussing the Cotton Bowl and you could make the same argument of, "Love the NOLA Bowl and get over it". But there is always a chance, if not this year, then next.

[ericsaid]

We are too good for the Belk Bowl. It is for 4 and 5 loss teams. We are better than every ACC team except Clemson, so no thank you. We'll be waiting in New Orleans for whomever they care to send us, most likely a 3rd place CUSA team because the top two are scared to death of us.

You do realize if we were in the ACC we would probably be a 8-4 team, 9-3 at best. It would not shock me if we were 7-5 depending on which teams we had in the ACC. We are a good team but the only games I think we could win for sure are GT, Duke, UNC, BC, Syracuse, and NC State. We would definitely lose to Clemson and the other games are 50/50 to me. I am pretty sure the ball would not bounce our way in one or two of them as well.

We can't be arrogant because 11-1 or 10-2 in the SBC is not a guarantee. If we can lose to Georgia Southern then we could lose to half of the ACC for sure.

North Dakota State is the most dominant program in FCS history and I would even tell them that they would lose a couple games in the MAC, as bad as it is. Unless you have a roster full of those caliber guys, along with depth, then it won't happen. We have P5 talent but we don't have 35 guys who could start at most ACC schools. We need about 3 more Davis-Gaither, Demetrius Taylor, Shaun Jolly, Evans, Thomas, Sutton, etc caliber players on each side of the ball before we should think we could roll the entire ACC but Clemson.

That's what makes the P5 games fun. You can match-up on any given Saturday. However depth in a season long schedule in a P5 conference, even the ACC, would be lacking currently.

Plus Florida State, Louisville, and Virginia Tech will likely be back to their old ways soon.

[AppStFan1]

We are too good for the Belk Bowl. It is for 4 and 5 loss teams. We are better than every ACC team except Clemson, so no thank you. We'll be waiting in New Orleans for whomever they care to send us, most likely a 3rd place CUSA team because the top two are scared to death of us.

You do realize if we were in the ACC we would probably be a 8-4 team, 9-3 at best. It would not shock me if we were 7-5 depending on which teams we had in the ACC. We are a good team but the only games I think we could win for sure are GT, Duke, UNC, BC, Syracuse, and NC State. We would definitely lose to Clemson and the other games are 50/50 to me. I am pretty sure the ball would not bounce our way in one or two of them as well.

We can't be arrogant because 11-1 or 10-2 in the SBC is not a guarantee. If we can lose to Georgia Southern then we could lose to half of the ACC for sure.

North Dakota State is the most dominant program in FCS history and I would even tell them that they would lose a couple games in the MAC, as bad as it is. Unless you have a roster full of those caliber guys, along with depth, then it won't happen. We have P5 talent but we don't have 35 guys who could start at most ACC schools. We need about 3 more Davis-Gaither, Demetrius Taylor, Shaun Jolly, Evans, Thomas, Sutton, etc caliber players on each side of the ball before we should think we could roll the entire ACC but Clemson.

That's what makes the P5 games fun. You can match-up on any given Saturday. However depth in a season long schedule in a P5 conference, even the ACC, would be lacking currently.

Plus Florida State, Louisville, and Virginia Tech will likely be back to their old ways soon.

Exactly. We don't have quite that much depth yet. We need about 10 more P5 stud caliber players, more size, and more depth on the lines before we can think anything more than 8-4 is realistic right now. A team that is 20-25 is about 8-4 in a good P5 conference and that is exactly what I think we would be. 8-4 or maybe 7-5 depending on our OOC. Give us 4 years recruiting at the P5 level though and I have no doubt we could win 9-10 games in the ACC.

[ericsaid]

We are too good for the Belk Bowl. It is for 4 and 5 loss teams. We are better than every ACC team except Clemson, so no thank you. We'll be waiting in New Orleans for whomever they care to send us, most likely a 3rd place CUSA team because the top two are scared to death of us.

You do realize if we were in the ACC we would probably be a 8-4 team, 9-3 at best. It would not shock me if we were 7-5 depending on which teams we had in the ACC. We are a good team but the only games I think we could win for sure are GT, Duke, UNC, BC, Syracuse, and NC State. We would definitely lose to Clemson and the other games are 50/50 to me. I am pretty sure the ball would not bounce our way in one or two of them as well.

We can't be arrogant because 11-1 or 10-2 in the SBC is not a guarantee. If we can lose to Georgia Southern then we could lose to half of the ACC for sure.

North Dakota State is the most dominant program in FCS history and I would even tell them that they would lose a couple games in the MAC, as bad as it is. Unless you have a roster full of those caliber guys, along with depth, then it won't happen. We have P5 talent but we don't have 35 guys who could start at most ACC schools. We need about 3 more Davis-Gaither, Demetrius Taylor, Shaun Jolly, Evans, Thomas, Sutton, etc caliber players on each side of the ball before we should think we could roll the entire ACC but Clemson.

That's what makes the P5 games fun. You can match-up on any given Saturday. However depth in a season long schedule in a P5 conference, even the ACC, would be lacking currently.

Plus Florida State, Louisville, and Virginia Tech will likely be back to their old ways soon.

Exactly. We don't have quite that much depth yet. We need about 10 more P5 stud caliber players, more size, and more depth on the lines before we can think anything more than 8-4 is realistic right now. A team that is 20-25 is about 8-4 in a good P5 conference and that is exactly what I think we would be. 8-4 or maybe 7-5 depending on our OOC. Give us 4 years recruiting at the P5 level though and I have no doubt we could win 9-10 games in the ACC.

I mean, that's never going to happen.

But if it did, it sure would be interesting to see what that extra cash flow could do for App. At this point it'd be interesting to see what the additional cash flow from the AAC deal would do for App.

[MAD Doctor]

We are too good for the Belk Bowl. It is for 4 and 5 loss teams. We are better than every ACC team except Clemson, so no thank you. We'll be waiting in New Orleans for whomever they care to send us, most likely a 3rd place CUSA team because the top two are scared to death of us.

You do realize if we were in the ACC we would probably be a 8-4 team, 9-3 at best. It would not shock me if we were 7-5 depending on which teams we had in the ACC. We are a good team but the only games I think we could win for sure are GT, Duke, UNC, BC, Syracuse, and NC State. We would definitely lose to Clemson and the other games are 50/50 to me. I am pretty sure the ball would not bounce our way in one or two of them as well.

We can't be arrogant because 11-1 or 10-2 in the SBC is not a guarantee. If we can lose to Georgia Southern then we could lose to half of the ACC for sure.

North Dakota State is the most dominant program in FCS history and I would even tell them that they would lose a couple games in the MAC, as bad as it is. Unless you have a roster full of those caliber guys, along with depth, then it won't happen. We have P5 talent but we don't have 35 guys who could start at most ACC schools. We need about 3 more Davis-Gaither, Demetrius Taylor, Shaun Jolly, Evans, Thomas, Sutton, etc caliber players on each side of the ball before we should think we could roll the entire ACC but Clemson.

My initial comment that we were too good for the Belk Bowl was semi- tongue in cheek and not intended to be "arrogant." It was more of a reaction to a ridiculous Twitter tease. At the same time, I don't intend to be an apologist for the fact that we are currently ranked above all ACC teams except Clemson. I state that as a source of pride in our program's current status, not to imply that we have arrived as the second best team in the ACC. Some folks have trouble accepting our current prosperity, and feel that somehow order must be restored, so they speculate on the ACC teams we would probably/possibly lose to. Whatever works for you.

[appstatealum]

[/b]

Would give them leverage. I can't think of a single team in C-USA that would bring half the number of fans as App would. GS would likely bring 12,000 or so as well. It works well as a secondary tie-in when compared to C-USA, for sure.

You also wouldn't have to drive 20-hour round trips, it seems. Though with three young kids, if I could get permission, I'd gladly take the solitude 20 hours of driving could provide.

My son was 2 at the time. The solo road trip definitely wasn't all bad.

If App ever goes to the Cure Bowl, I promised my wife we can make a family trip of it and do a theme park or two. But yeah, still hoping for NOLA.

I took my two little ones (9 and 5) to New Orleans last year with a layover in Auburn on the way down. They had a great time in New Orleans and are looking forward to a return trip. We even stayed in the slightly run down “House of the Rising Sun” boutique hotel in French Quarter. New Orleans had so much going on for the holidays and the Bowl crowds, it was really a great destination.

I've got a few more years before they are ready for that. 7, 2, 9 months. Myrtle Beach/Orlando would be more feasible thanks to family considerations in those areas.

Sounds like you made some memories for at least the 9 year old that he won't soon forget. Kudos on tying it into football!

No doubt. My son hasn’t missed many games since he was born. I remember sitting in a blizzard at Kidd Brewer when he was 6 months old stuffed in my jacket. I guess that’s why he is obsessed with football. My little girl is just as hardcore. It’s great!