Liberty in the CAA

[yorkcountyUNHfan]

if Liberty gets past the first round of the playoffs they will find out how they match up against the top third of the CAA

[GoneTribal]

I agree with what has been said already. Mostly would see them as a middle of the pack team. Leadbolt nailed it...the razon thin line between 4th & 8th is most likely where they would end up.

Long term I think they would be top middle to playoff contender...again, with the line between a good year and a bad year being pretty thin.

[93henfan]

Just out of curiosity, what is the status of Delaware's expansion?

Basically, an ~8,000+ seat increase to ~31,000 seats. New seats will be from a horseshoe of the north end zone (the far side in my sig pic) and in the club level. New press boxes & suites & all the modern amenities. New athletic performance center. Just waiting on the big donors. The U has been very silent on how the fundraising is going.

http://www.udreview.com/web-updates/har ... -1.1489699

[happyappy99]

There seem to be a ton of "Liberty in the CAA" what-if threads from Liberty posters. Is this the power of suggestion at work?

I think I'll start posting some "Delaware in the Big East" threads if this starts to work. The Villanova fans have already started.

I'm monitoring the situation closely.

Well, I personally don't believe that Appalachian should even consider joining the ACC

[State Line Liquors]

Don't misinterpret this, because having a system of values is important, BUT....

I honestly think the code of conduct at Liberty would prevent them from competing consistently with the top programs in the CAA for talent. Terrific facilities and boat loads of money from the passing of the collection plate at the megachurch or online will only go so far in attracting the talent that the CAA or to a much greater extent the FBS teams are going after.

I'd have to believe that it's a bit of a buzzkill for a stud high school football player accustomed to being the BMOC, to be told he can't have his girlfriend over to his bedroom after he scores the game-winning touchdown. Kids have a preconceived notion (I'm not saying right or wrong) of what the social aspects of college involve. I think you'd find, and perhaps your coaching staff already does, that some of the guidelines that Liberty has in place for acceptable behavior are too much of a barrier for most kids.

[SuperHornet]

There are other schools that have pulled off championships with such rules, SLL. And not all of them are Christian schools. How does it work for them and not for Liberty?

[jcmanson]

We already compete with some of the top teams in the CAA for talent.

Also, some top talent would prefer to come to Liberty over other schools for said code of conduct.

[State Line Liquors]

There are other schools that have pulled off championships with such rules, SLL. And not all of them are Christian schools. How does it work for them and not for Liberty?

I'm open to hearing who those schools are, then I'll respond.

[State Line Liquors]

We already compete with some of the top teams in the CAA for talent.

Also, some top talent would prefer to come to Liberty over other schools for said code of conduct.

Undoubtedly. My point being that on an individual by individual basis, more kids will probably be intimidated or turned off by the number of rules they're required to live by at Liberty. By the time they reach 18, most kids don't want to be told what movies they can and can't watch and what time they have to be in their room by. Just the facts of life.

[SuperHornet]

At the very least, the Domers.

You may argue against the others with the idea that "Times have changed." But most of the teams from the beginning through about 1970 had such rules. There were even NFL teams that wouldn't even allow players to bring their wives to the Super Bowl on the grounds that sex before the big game would diminish their ability to produce in the game.

[bandl]

At the very least, the Domers.

You may argue against the others with the idea that "Times have changed." But most of the teams from the beginning through about 1970 had such rules. There were even NFL teams that wouldn't even allow players to bring their wives to the Super Bowl on the grounds that sex before the big game would diminish their ability to produce in the game.

What the fuck are you talking about?!?!?!?!?!

[State Line Liquors]

At the very least, the Domers.

You may argue against the others with the idea that "Times have changed." But most of the teams from the beginning through about 1970 had such rules. There were even NFL teams that wouldn't even allow players to bring their wives to the Super Bowl on the grounds that sex before the big game would diminish their ability to produce in the game.

Poor example.

You don't actually think Notre Dame is like this now, right? We're talking about today. UD had curfues, and restrictions on woman and male contact, etc back in the 70s.

[SuperHornet]

bandl: Read the next post. I neglected to quote. SLL knew I was responding to him.

SLL: I wholeheartedly believe South Bend is still doing bedchecks. It would be out of character for them not to. But I don't believe much of anybody outside of RC/Conservative Baptist schools are doing so nowadays. You asked for examples of schools that held to such policies and won a title, not specifically those who were doing so today. While I believe ND is still doing so, that they did in the past and still won a title qualifies.

[State Line Liquors]

SLL: I wholeheartedly believe South Bend is still doing bedchecks. It would be out of character for them not to. But I don't believe much of anybody outside of RC/Conservative Baptist schools are doing so nowadays. You asked for examples of schools that held to such policies and won a title, not specifically those who were doing so today. While I believe ND is still doing so, that they did in the past and still won a title qualifies.

Notre Dame has parietals which don't allow you to be in the opposite sexes dorm room after midnight on weeknights and 2AM on weekends. That's basically it. http://admissions.nd.edu/life-at-notre- ... -life-faq/ . Needless to say, this restriction isn't anywhere even remotely near the code at Liberty.

I can't find the official document highlighting Liberty's code, but will try to look for one not posted by some goofball who works for Rolling Stone or some Canadian hipster journal for impartiality's sake.

[jd of de]

It would likely take a few years; maybe the 1st CAA recruiting class' Jr year to be better than 2-6 or 3-5. Talent is only part of the formula for success. Players, coaches and staff need to learn what you are walking into at each local on the road, and while Liberty has the "BIG HOUSE" of the Big South, there place and crowd isn't going to scare many CAA visiting teams.

Plus, JMU, W&M, UR, UD and Nova in 8 weeks can be brutal. You don't draw all the bottom teams each year and Georgia State and ODU are getting added to the mix too. URI moves to the Patriot; the schedule get even tougher. And UNH, Maine and UMass are far from cupcakes.

It takes living through that first season to spend the extra time in the weight room in July or for a 20 year old to listen more intently to coaches.Their enrollment is big enough and the University would likely have the commitment. But IMHO they would have a 2-3 year learning curve.

[rogers3]

Terrific facilities and boat loads of money from the passing of the collection plate at the megachurch or online will only go so far...

There a plenty of conservative athletes who don't mind adhering to the code of conduct at LU. There are plenty of of these kind of players who get to play on a much bigger stage than LU or any CAA program can provide; maybe as LU continues to build its program, it will be more likely to attract such athletes. I don't think that every great athlete feels that he must bed his girl after every successful outing.

By the way- LU gets no funding from passing the plate at a megachurch, contrary to what many think. If you don't believe it, break away from the hard stuff for a bit and do a little bit more research on the school.

[UD1Hens]

We already compete with some of the top teams in the CAA for talent.

Also, some top talent would prefer to come to Liberty over other schools for said code of conduct.

If that were the case (and it could be) then you are getting one guy here or one guy there. There just might not be enough of that top talent doing so...or you'd have a playoff resume that showed it.

[happyappy99]

Too bad you missed out on Tim Teblow

[ccd494]

I will say this, I would have serious reservations about my state funded school being associated with Liberty in a conference.

[rogers3]

We already compete with some of the top teams in the CAA for talent.

Also, some top talent would prefer to come to Liberty over other schools for said code of conduct.

If that were the case (and it could be) then you are getting one guy here or one guy there. There just might not be enough of that top talent doing so...or you'd have a playoff resume that showed it.

It could be more a function of time and tradition. It wasn't long ago when one could watch a game between Liberty and Newport New Apprentice. Not anything that is a sure bet, but Liberty has just recently began to develop some name recognition in the area of athletics. Get LU out on a bigger stage, and catches like Tebow might be more common than you or I would think.

[State Line Liquors]

Terrific facilities and boat loads of money from the passing of the collection plate at the megachurch or online will only go so far...

There a plenty of conservative athletes who don't mind adhering to the code of conduct at LU. There are plenty of of these kind of players who get to play on a much bigger stage than LU or any CAA program can provide; maybe as LU continues to build its program, it will be more likely to attract such athletes. I don't think that every great athlete feels that he must bed his girl after every successful outing.

By the way- LU gets no funding from passing the plate at a megachurch, contrary to what many think. If you don't believe it, break away from the hard stuff for a bit and do a little bit more research on the school.

I've given my honest 2 cents, and frankly added an additional variable why, relating the topic and why I don't think Liberty would ever be more than a middling success in the CAA. For that matter I don't think Liberty is a fit as additional conference member for the CAA, and yes it's just an opinion. Quite simply the set of players with values seeking out the rigid structure is less than the set of players who would prefer not to have those rules placed on them. Given the option, most young people, even 'conservative' (which I don't neccesarily feel is an accurate description) ones are going to choose personal responsibility over forced regulation. Maybe you're right, as time goes by, all the kids seeking out this structure will choose Liberty.

Good to know about their funding sources. I'll take your word for it though. I don't intend to do any further research. From those things I do know about Liberty, I think they share little in common with UD outside of a motivated fanbase that enjoys football.

[93henfan]

I will say this, I would have serious reservations about my state funded school being associated with Liberty in a conference.

Why? We already have Villanova.

[ccd494]

I will say this, I would have serious reservations about my state funded school being associated with Liberty in a conference.

Why? We already have Villanova.

Apples and oranges. While the Catholic church has some positions that are personally distasteful to me, they don't promulgate hatred directly from Villanova University.

[rogers3]

From those things I do know about Liberty, I think they share little in common with UD outside of a motivated fanbase that enjoys football.

I'd agree; when considering athletics, there really isn't much more than that, anyway. Academics- that's a different topic altogether, but the general cross-section of Liberty athletes would not be too much different than their counterparts at other schools.

[ODUsmitty]

Why? We already have Villanova.

Apples and oranges. While the Catholic church has some positions that are personally distasteful to me, they don't promulgate hatred directly from Villanova University.

Guess you did not attend the Glen Beck rally this weekend?