My thoughts are Ohio wants to keep their options open depending on what happens with the MAC the next few years and a few of the eastern Sun Belt schools like the possibility of Ohio joining them based on their football and basketball profile.
Nothing appears to be close to happening but developing a relationship is a good thing so they can be proactive if necessary down the road.
Ohio would be a really good fit for the Sun Belt if they ever expand to 16 teams and break into North/South or East/West divisions.
James Madison, Old Dominion, Marshall and App State would be good competition from a football standpoint. Add another school like WKU, Liberty or Toledo and you could have a nice G5 division for football.
ODU is an 8 hour bus trip from Athens. Traveling to ODU would probably require a flight. Liberty located in Lynchburg, Va. is at least a five hour plus bus trip from Athens. Liberty is relatively new to FBS football, but they are loaded with deep pockets. They hired Jamey Chadwell from Coastal Carolina a few seasons ago on a seven year deal for an average of $4 million per year. The head basketball coach made $1.4 million in 2023. The head baseball coach at Liberty makes over 400 K. Liberty has money to burn!
FYI: Marshall flew to JMU last year for their football game. The game started at 8:00 PM on a Saturday night for TV. In a car, it would normally take 4.5 hours (per Google Maps) to make the drive of nearly 300 mile. Driving over the mountains in a bus would be at least be an extra hour or two plus to make the drive. Since the game would decide the SBC East Championship, Marshall spent the money for a charter plane. FYI: Marshall had always flies charter to play ODU.
FWIW: Marshall went back to charter flights last season for away games for the men's basketball team. Obviously for games nearby like Morehead or Ohio, they bus to those games.
Last Edited: 7/14/2025 9:23:53 PM by Flat Tire