Sun Belt vs CUSA

[Gonzo]

I just pulled this data from the Sun Belt board. These are the head-to-head match ups during the 2012-2013 sports seasons. *Some of these are ongoing.

Football:
9-1-12 Troy 39 vs UAB 29
9-8-12 Memphis 28 vs ASU 33
9-15-12 FIU 20 vs UCF 33
9-15-12 MTSU 48 vs Memphis 30
9-22-12 USM 17 vs WKU 42
9-29-12 ULM 63 vs Tulane 10
10-6-12 UNT 21 vs Houston 44
10-6-12 Tulane 13 vs ULL 41
12-22-12 ULL 43 vs ECU 34
SBC won head to head 7-2

Men's Basketball:
11-10-12 WKU 64 vs USM 67
11-20-12 MTSU 75 vs UCF 61
11-24-12 UALR 69 vs SMU 56
11-27-12 UAB 75 vs Troy 55
12-5-12 UAB 64 vs MTSU 84
12-8-12 USA 78 vs UAB 92
12-15-12 Tulsa 65 UALR 72
12-15-12 ULL 63 vs Houston 85
12-20-12 ULM 69 vs UAB 76
3-20-13 USA 73 vs Tulane 84
C-USA won head to head 6-4

Women's Basketball:
11-11-12 Memphis 68 vs MTSU 82
11-12-12 UALR 73 vs Tulsa 64
11-12-12 ULM 60 vs Tulane 70
11-15-12 UNT 63 vs SMU 67
11-16-12 USM 67 vs USA 69
11-19-12 UALR 47 vs SMU 43
11-24-12 Rice 48 vs UALR 76
12-4-12 USM 45 vs UALR 64
12-7-12 UALR 56 vs Memphis 44
12-9-12 USM 55 vs ULM 73
12-13-12 UCF 49 vs FIU 66
12-17-12 ULM 56 vs SMU 76
12-18-12 Tulsa 51 vs UALR 78
12-19-12 Tulane 64 vs ULL 65
12-19-12 USA 64 vs UCF 65
12-22-12 UNT 62 vs Tulane 73
Sun Belt won head to head 11-4

Baseball:
2-19-13 ASU 3 vs Memphis 2
2-26-13 USM 5 vs ULM 6
3-1-13 ULM 2 vs Memphis 4
3-1-13 USM 12 vs Troy 4
3-2-13 ULM 1 vs Memphis 3
3-2-13 USM 3 vs Troy 6
3-3-13 ULM 5 vs Memphis 3
3-3-13 USM 3 vs Troy 8
3-6-13 USM 5 vs USA 6
3-8-13 UAB 1 vs ASU 2
3-8-13 ULL 2 vs USM 9
3-9-13 UAB 1 vs ASU 8
3-8-13 Rice 7 vs FIU 2
3-9-13 Rice 6 vs FIU 5
3-9-13 UAB 4 vs ASU 3
3-9-13 ULL 13 vs USM 4
3-10-13 ULL 9 vs USM 1
3-10-13 Rice 7 vs FIU 11
3-12-13 UAB 9 vs Troy 3
3-26-13 MTSU 2 vs Memphis 1
3-26-13 USA 3 vs USM 1
3-27-13 MTSU 4 vs Memphis 6
4-9-13 Tulane 7 vs ULL 5
4-16-13 Tulane 5 vs ULM 2
4-16-13 FAU 10 vs UCF 2
4-30-13 ULL vs Houston
4-30-13 Memphis vs ASU
4-30-13 ULM vs USM
Sun Belt currently leads 14-11 (3 games TBD)

Softball:
2-8-13 FAU 1 vs Marshall 3
2-8-13 UNT 6 vs Memphis 2
2-8-13 UNT 9 vs Memphis 1
2-10-13 FAU 1 vs Marshall 2
3-2-13 USA 8 vs UAB 2
3-2-13 Troy 3 vs USM 2
3-2-13 Troy 11 vs USM 7
3-2-13 WKU 7 vs Memphis 2
3-20-13 UAB 0 vs USA 3
4-2-13 Troy 9 vs USM 7
4-2-13 Troy 6 vs USM 4
4-10-13 USM 2 vs ULL 18
4-10-13 USM 0 vs ULL 10
4-10-13 UCF 2 vs FIU 0
4-10-13 Memphis 0 vs ULM 1
4-16-13 UAB 1 vs Troy 2
4-17-13 Houston 1 vs ULL 9
4-17-13 Houston 5 vs ULL 10
Sun Belt won head to head 15-3


We can only speculate as to how this dynamic will change come 2014 with all the new membership. It seems to me that the SBC will widen the gap in football and baseball with each leagues departing/incoming membership. Basketball might tip a little further into CUSA's favor.

[asumike83]

Thanks for the info. This is how I see it.

Baseball: Sun Belt will remain about the same in terms of strength. WKU, MTSU, FIU, FAU and App, GaSo, GaSt, TX St is a pretty even trade. C-USA will take a minor hit. The 4 incoming programs are solid but traditionally not on par with ECU, UCF and Houston. Both conferences should be very evenly matched in baseball.

Football: Both conferences will take a hit initially as the FCS programs transition. One thing to consider here is that 2012 was an anomaly for Southern Miss, a traditionally strong program who saw the wheels fall off last season. I think Marshall will be in competition for league titles in the coming years also. Long term, I do think App/GaSo will outperform FIU/FAU. What could end up determining which conference ends up stronger on an annual basis could be how well USA/GaSt transition vs. UNCC/ODU.

Basketball: C-USA has a clear upper hand here and the gap widened with MTSU/WKU joining, even with the loss of Memphis because they took two of the top programs from the Sun Belt. GaSt looks like they are making the right moves on the hardwood and could be a factor in the coming years. The burden falls on us here. App and GaSo have to step up to the plate if the SBC is going to be anywhere near C-USA.

Summarized version - Baseball, push. Basketball, C-USA. Football, TBD when the FCS programs can truly be compared.

[moehler]

I thnk in the near term, SBC has an slight advantage over USA, Marshall has been awful for the last 10 years, maybe they are starting to turn it around, but probably will be a slow process, UNCC is probably not going to have a positive contribution for atleast 4-6 years, I live in SF, trust me, both FIU, and FAU couldnt win the SC next year, they are that bad, and nothing shows that they are getting better, and ODU, I think is a slight step behind App and GS. Basketball, I agree, there is a large talent gap between USA and the SBC.