From Atlanta waiting for a flight to Maine:
Jeff, these were not my friends. These were unsolicited comments by people behind me and another group in front of me. My friends were all in the same row. I just overheard -- or should it be overHerd -- two separate conversations near me. The only common denominator was that like Chuck and I these were all old farts. I think you miss the downbeat nature of Chuck's column. He sees Marshall's star as falling. The MAC in his mind would fit right in, though he'd still fight it.
OCF, I think those of us in our 60's understand the draw of Marshall to Ohio as a conference member. I'm sure a lot of older their fans see value in their being in the MAC as well. A lot of younger fans, on both sides, don't see it for whatever reason. Marshall would be a strong addition to the MAC. Unfortunately, IMO Marshall will never come back to the MAC, because they think C-USA is better than the MAC and the money is better there. With the changes coming next year, and they look out to who they will be playing, their perceptions may change. If the money stays more;however, they will probably stay in C-USA,. At some time, perhaps after playing the new schedules for a few years and the TV contracts are renewed, they may start asking themselves if they are really in a "better" conference. It will be interesting to see if C-USA keeps their 6 bowl spots in a few years. Marshall has also had the best of both worlds the last few years by playing both Ohio and West Virginia every year. WVU is now off their schedule into the foreseeable future. If Ohio drops off, after this 6 year contract, we would both be hurt if the series were not continued. Will it be?