You may be thinking, “wait, a realignment post that isn’t about superconferences, relegation, or FBS at all?” For me at least, this is a nice change of pace. With the news of Stephen F. Austin leaving the WAC and the conference seemingly on life support (for like the 4^(th) time in the last 20 years…), I wanted to post about my predictions on the ramifications. Currently there are 4 remaining football schools in an alliance with the ASUN, and 7 schools total:
– Abilene Christian
– California Baptist
– Southern Utah
– Tarleton State
– UT Arlington
– Utah Tech
– Utah Valley
I honestly don’t see these schools sticking around for long, so where do they go? Here are my predictions/wishes for what happens now.
Summary
- Abilene Christian, Tarleton State, and UT Arlington likely moving to the Southland conference.
- Utah Tech, Utah Valley, and Southern Utah possibly joining Summit/MVFC.
- California Baptist to the WCC for non-football sports.
- Potential changes in the ASUN and OVC-Big South alliances.
Abilene Christian, Tarleton State, and UT Arlington to the Southland:
Returning to the Southland could be a strategic move for the Texas schools to find a stable conference home and regional opponents, especially after recent developments.
Utah Tech, Utah Valley, and Southern Utah to the Summit/MVFC:
Possibility of these schools joining the Summit/MVFC due to historical ties and the need for a football conference.
California Baptist to the WCC:
Although non-football related, Cal Baptist might find a comfortable fit in the WCC due to shared characteristics.
While the WAC and ASUN were in a football alliance the past few years, the destruction of the WAC would leave the ASUN with 4 current/5 future football members, short of the 6 required for an automatic playoff spot. One idea is that the ASUN could look to the other FCS alliance, the OVC-Big South. Because of this, the ASUN may look to add the 2 Big South schools for football in order to get over that 6-member threshold.