Friday, June 4, 2010

A Tale of Two Conference: SWAC supports Legacy Bowl; MEAC schools against it

Unlike most SWAC schools, MEAC powers Florida A&M University Rattlers and South Carolina State University Bulldogs like to play Football Bowl Championship Subdivision schools like Miami, Georgia Tech, South Florida, South Carolina, Florida, Clemson and others for both the high payouts and competition.

On paper, it seemed brilliant and simple. The Legacy Bowl would pit the champions of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference and the Southwestern Athletic Conference -- against each other. Airing on ESPN, it would guarantee a $3 million payout to be split by the conferences. It would also end the arguments, such as when South Carolina State edged out Prairie View A&M for the Sheridan Broadcasting Network's Black National Championship -- neither team played each other (in fact, the MEAC and SWAC rarely play each other).

Ever since reports about the proposed bowl began to leak out -- first from the Jaguar Journal radio show, then
TSPNSports.com and, finally, College Sporting News -- it has seemed like a done deal. Reports say the various presidents of the SWAC and MEAC are 100 percent behind the deal. But, hold on. The proposal has hit a big snag. The game is slated for Dec. 17, 2011, right in the middle of the FCS playoffs. While the SWAC does not participate in the Football Championship Series playoffs, the MEAC has an automatic berth. In fact, the first FCS (formerly known as Division 1-AA) championship game in 1978 was won by Florida A&M over UMass).

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FAN POLL: Question 2: How should MEAC Presidents vote on Legacy Bowl game? Question 1: Should the NCAA require ALL Division I, FCS football conferences, like the SWAC, to participate in NCAA football playoffs to remain at the Division I level in football?

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