Here are Ken Pomeroy's rankings for each of the Sun Belt teams so far. We will point out that the rankings can't measure Harpermania:
EAST
55. Middle Tennessee St: 4-1
141. W. Kentucky: 4-2
179. S. Alabama: 2-3
247. Fla. Atlantic: 2-3
276. Fla. International: 1-2
297. Troy: 4-3
WEST
111. N. Texas St: 3-3
142. Arkansas St: 4-1
207. Ark-Little Rock: 4-3
228. La-Lafayette: 2-4
333. La-Monroe: 0-2
You will notice that the Belt has lost Denver, which is now playing in the Western Athletic Conference. I'm quite pleased by that development, as it makes the rest of the Belt much more contiguous.
Maybe I should replace Sun Belt Update with "1987 Sun Belt Update." Here's how things look in the 1987 Sun Belt:
ReplyDelete15. Va. Commonwealth: 4-3
99. Charlotte: 6-0
101. S. Florida: 4-2
141. W. Kentucky: 4-2
145. Ala-Birmingham: 4-3
180. S. Alabama: 2-3
191. Old Dominion: 1-5
258. Jacksonville: 3-5
That's my Belt right there, baby! Rams, 49ers, Bulls, Tops, Blazers, Jags, Monarchs and Dolphins ... SPECIAL K! ... PEANUT BUTTER AND JELLY! ... GOODY!
DeleteThat's the Belt I remember as well. I remember having big arguments in college with a guy from Pittsburgh who insisted that the Atlantic 10 was better than the Sun Belt.
DeleteI just realized that I should have put "UNC-Charlotte" instead of Charlotte.
VCU, UNCC, USF, WKU, UAB, USA, ODU and Jax (which era-appropriately always reminds me of Rax) ... The Belt has always been one of the truly great acronym collections in college sports.
DeleteHere are your 1987 Sun Belt Champs since 2003:
ReplyDelete2003: W. Kentucky (51) (23-9)
2004: Ala-Birmingham (43) (22-10)
2005: Ala-Birmingham (59) (22-11)
2006: Ala-Birmingham (57) (24-7)
2007: Va. Commonwealth (66) (28-7)
2008: W. Kentucky (59) (29-7)
2009: Ala-Birmingham (48) (22-12)
2010: Old Dominion (34) (27-9)
2011: Old Dominion (48) (27-7)
2012: Va. Commonwealth (40) (29-7)