I still disagree. Do you realize the AE is constantly always at the bottom as far as conference strength is concern!!!! I would think SB could attract better athletes if their sports programs played in the CAA. You have no idea if JMU is going to move up to the CAA anytime soon. I see SH wanting SB to move up to FBS before JMU does...
The AE isn't the best, but it can get better. Our league is poised to be quite good this year. I still don't see the value in hopping from a single one bid league to another. Better athletes could be a reason to move, but is there proof we'd be able to recruit any better in the CAA as opposed to the AE? The downsides of the CAA are the increased travel and sports like Lacrosse may take a hit in that league.
If we did move to the CAA however, it's likely we wouldn't be alone. Albany I'm almost certain would tag along which would make the jump a bit more attractive.
Heilbron can want to take us to FBS, but there's no chance in Hell we move to FBS before JMU. JMU already has the facilities, stadium, and winning tradition to be attractive to an FBS conference TODAY. They turned the Sun Belt down a few years ago and are arguably a more attractive school than ODU for a conference. They're the next team out the door and when they're gone, expect significant changes to the CAA.
Our average home attendance last year (3,221) would have put us ahead of three A-10 teams – Duquesne, Fordham and LaSalle, all perennial doormats – and just behind George Washington, which ranked 11th in the 14-team conference. The arena, while beautiful, does cap in the low 4,000s, but a media friend told me that the A-10 "would trade La Salle for Stony Brook tomorrow if it could."
In the CAA, we would've ranked third behind UNCW and C of C. Our attendance is double what Hofstra, Towson, Northeastern and Elon get, and TRIPLE what Drexel drew. Two years ago, we'd have been second.
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