The Daily Advertiser from Lafayette, Louisiana • 33

Wednesday, July 23, 2008 theadvertiser.eom Continued from Page ID Sun Belt Thi Advertiser 3D SUM CELT Vim PAYG K3TLDCGX Progress for SBC reflected by facilities mm I Joshua Parrott jparrotttheadvertiser.com NEW ORLEANS The announcement of three new bowl tie-ins stole the show during the final session of the Sun Belt Conference Football Media Days on Tuesday. But there were a few other topics of discussion among players, coaches and media members namely the improvement of on-campus facilities across the conference. UL recently put down new turf and opened an indoor training facility last year. FIUs new stadium is expected to open in September with a seating capacity of 18,000 before additional construction bumps it up to 45,000. North Texas and FAU are both scheduled to complete construction on new stadiums by 2010.

UNTs first phase will include seating for approximately 33,000 with potential expansion up to 50,000. FAUs stadium will hold up to 30,000 spectators. Arkansas State and UL Monroe recently installed new turf. Western Kentucky is improving its facilities before officially joining the Sun Belt in 2009. South Alabama starts its football program in 2009 and will play at the Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile free of charge for the first five years.

That will give the program the time and resources to build on-campus football facilities before joining the Sun Belt in 2013. Those facilities continue to improve, Sun Belt commissioner Wright Waters said. These are all signs of tremendous progress. Remember me? Former University of Miami coach and current ESPN analyst Larry Coker served as Tuesdays guest speaker at the Sun Belt Media slots if there were not enough eligible teams from the contracted conferences. The two-year agreement goes into effect in the 2008 season.

While the Sun Belt champion will still play in the New Orleans Bowl, the St. Petersburg Bowl and Papajohns.com Bowl will have second choice to select from the league's bowl-eligible teams. The Independence Bowl would be the last option for a Sun Belt team to grab a bowl berth. If there are any ties in the Sun Belt standings, the three bowl games have the right to select the team of their choice. With the number of bowl games now at 34, Waters said the new agreement works in favor of the Sun Belt.

To play 34 bowl games requires 68 teams, and the average number of teams that have been eligible in the past five years is 70, Waters said. So if we have a team that is bowl-eligible, the chances of them participating in a bowl just went up. Weve got to create an environment where our teams stay local and regional because we need to show that we can compete against good competition and bring a crowd. On Dec. 20, the St.

Petersburg Bowl will hold its inaugural game at Tropicana Field in a matchup of the Big Easts No. 6 team and the seventh-best from Conference USA. The Papajohns.com Bowl, to be played Dec. 29 at Legion Field in Birmingham, is scheduled to feature the Big Easts No. 5 team and the ninth-best from the Southeastern Conference.

Both games are owned and operated by ESPN Regional Television, a subsidiary of ESPN. This agreement protects the future success of our events, to which ESPN Regional Television is very committed, said ERT senior vice president and general manager Pete Derzis. We are taking this step to be able to present college football fans with two quality teams for our postseason bowl games. The Independence Bowl is set to have Big 12's No. 7 team and the eighth-best from the SEC on Dec.

28 in Shreveport. We felt it was necessary and good business to lock in a contingency plan in the unlikely event that we dont host a team from either the Big 12 or SEC, said Independence Bowl chairman Keith Bergeron. The Sun Belt and its member institutions offer a natural regional tie with Shreveport being within driving distance for fans of any Sun Belt school. The agreement was made after a memorable 2007 football season that Continued from Page ID SEG The topic was all over the radio shows in Alabama on Monday and Tuesday, from Mobile to Birmingham, and will likely continue to be a hot one today at the annual Southeastern Conference Football Media Days. Miles, along with defensive end Tyson Jackson and center Brett Helms, will be under the spotlight today along with Florida, Mississippi State and Vanderbilt.

Last year, Miles was queried constantly on his Media Days trip about unflattering, not-for-print comments he made about Alabama in February of 2007 at the annual signing day bash. He also poked fun at the schedules of Pacific-10 teams last summer. Saban and Miles will be kept apart, according to Q.J 0 Th Associated Press Former University of Miami coach Larry Coker the guest speaker at Sun Belt Football Media Days is a big fan of New Orleans Saints acquisition Jeremy Shockey Days. Coker, who coached recently acquired New Orleans Saints tight end Jeremy Shockey in college, had nothing but great things to say about the former New York Giants player. When I recruited him, I asked him what he wanted to do with his career, Coker said.

He said Coach, I want to graduate, be a first-round draft choice and win a national championship. So far Shockey is two for three. He helped the Hurricanes win the national championship in 2001. The following spring he left early for the draft and was selected with the 14th overall pick by the Giants. Coker said Shockey has yet to earn his college degree but expects him to do so in the near future.

Dates of interest For UL fans, two dates of interest come during fall camp, which begins with the Cajuns first practice session on Monday, Aug. 4. Fall Sports Fan Day is set for 6 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 10 at Cajun Field.

Camp closes with the annual team scrimmage on Wednesday, Aug. 20. release of promising offensive tackle Jarvis Jones of Rosenburg, Texas, last week. Jones, who played as a backup last season as a true freshman, was consistently praised by Miles last season and expected to be a vital contributor in the future. The issues we had with Jarvis were internal and ones that we dealt with within the framework of the team, Miles said last week.

However, we just felt like it was time to go in a different direction. We wish him well in any of his future endeavors. The subject of Ryan Perrilloux also should be broached as the former LSU quarterback has moved just down the road from Birmingham to Division II Jacksonville State, where he is expected to start this season. Miles kicked Perrilloux, a junior from LaPlace, off the team in early May after repeated incidents. He transferred to Jacksonville State.

There has been tremendous growth in TV exposure and attendance since the Sun Belt started playing football in 2001. The league went from no televised games in 2001 to five national broadcasts and eight regional games last season. In 2008 there will be four national games and 10 regional games. The average attendance in the conference has climbed from less than 10,000 in 2001 to more than 20,000 in 2007 During the 2007-08 academic year there were 180 student-athletes from Sun Belt football programs to post at least a 3.0 grade-point average When Western Kentucky joins the Sun Belt in 2009, the league will go to an eight-game conference schedule: four home and four away. In 2013, when South Alabama moves into the Sun Belt, the conference will stick with an eight-game conference schedule, rotating teams each year.

from Harvard in Andrew Hatch and redshirt freshman Jarrett Lee. There are also two holes at cornerback. But can coach Les Miles wave his magic wand again? Or was 2007 magic, or luck? 4. SUPERIOR? It's year four at South Carolina under coach Steve Spurrier, and he has been very average. Show me the superiority! 5.

WILL TEBOW GET MORE HORSEPOWER? Florida coach Urban Meyer's system became a oneengine hybrid last season with quarterback Tim Tebow. Will Meyer get perhaps the best player in the country some help this season. 6. MISSISSIPPI MUD OR HOPE? Mississippi State coach Sylvester Croom was deservedly the SEC coach of the year last season after turning around the Bulldogs, but can he keep it going? And can exiled Arkansas coach Houston Nutt reverse the same old song at Ole Miss? 1. THE NEXT NICK? Will Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino, this year's Nick Saban, address the harsh criticism he received after his sudden departure from the Atlanta Falcons late last season? A recent ESPN listing had him as the No.

1 NFL coach in history who should have stayed in college. Former Miami Dolphins coach Saban was No. 7. When asked to be interviewed last spnng by an ESPN writer, Petrino said yes but only if there was no discussion of the Falcons. ESPN refused the interview.

2. IS GEORGIA REALLY IT? The Bulldogs seem to be everyones pick to win the SEC and contend for the national title this season. But thats been said before. Can coach Mark Richt finally make the big game? 3. WILL MILES HAVE LESS? Defending national champion LSU has a gaping hole at quarterback with the elimination of troubled Ryan Perrilloux from the team last spring.

All that is left is a transfer E37 Friday along with coaches and players from Auburn and Kentucky. Miles will also likely be asked about his recent Interview list Today 1:10 p.m. Honda, Mississippi State 3:10 p.m. LSU, Vanderbilt Thursday 8:40 a.m. Alabama, Georgia 10:40 a.m.

Ole Miss, Tennessee Friday 8:40 a.m. Auburn, Kentucky 10:40 a.m. Arkansas, South Carolina Fans can watch live streaming of SEC Football Media Days at www.secsports.com the Media Days schedule. Saban will not speak until Thursday, along with SEC favorite Georgia, Ole Miss and Tennessee. Saban returns to Tiger Stadium for the first time as a college coach on Nov.

8 when Alabama plays LSU. On Friday, the SECs latest NFL coach on the rebound will speak in Arkansas Bobby Petrino after abrubtly leaving the struggling Atlanta Falcons late last season. Saban fled the Miami Dolphins after the first losing season of his career in 2006. South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier, who begged out of his position as the failing Washington Redskins coach following the 2004 season, will also speak.