On May 17th, Liberty University announced that they would be leaving the Big South and joining the ASUN as a full-time member. However, football, swimming and field hockey will remain separate. We had the opportunity to talk to the commissioner of the ASUN conference, Ted Gumbart. We asked many questions and were provided with answers to everything. Below are the highlights of our discussion. Our questions will be listed in italics and Ted's answers in bold.
Liberty's long-term future
Does the contract have an expiration date or a buy-out clause?
Liberty is joining as a full-time member and we envision a long-term partnership. This could possibly lead to scheduling arrangements in football.
Ian McCaw (Liberty Athletic Director) mentioned that there were discussions one year ago but they never materialized. What changed between then and a month ago?
Conviction that Liberty would be a long-term member and secured scheduling of football games
Are there plans for Liberty to hosts any conference tournaments in the near future?
Yes, Liberty is able to bid on anything not currently planned. Liberty actually hosted our indoor track competition last year and will do so next year. Basketball is always played at top seed.
Our thoughts -
Throughout the entirety of the interview, Ted gave the impression that this partnership is very long term. Many Liberty fans have considered C-USA or the Sun-Belt as a future conference home. We were given the impression that Ian McCaw and Jerry Falwell Jr. view the ASUN as the permanent home. Additionally, on a few occasions he compared Liberty to BYU (a school that plays independently in football and in the West Coast Conference for all other sports). So, this definitely solidifies that the intentions are to remain Independent in football.
When these discussions began a year ago, there were a few schools concerned about Liberty using the league as a stepping-stone of sorts. However, that was not a concern among the conference this year. Everyone views Liberty as all-in on the ASUN and both parties intend to use one another to grow their respective brands. Bottom line: the ASUN is the indefinite home for Liberty.
Why would the ASUN conference care about Liberty's ability to schedule football opponents, when it's joining in all sports but football? This provides security to the league that Liberty can sustain their status as an Independent and would not rely on the conference. That said, it does sound like the football team will host ASUN teams in the future. Do note though that the schedule is filled through 2021. So, the earliest match would be in 2022. Think of Notre Dame's agreement with the ACC; this sounds like a soft version of that.
As for the conference tournaments, this is very exciting as many of the Big South tournaments have been played in South Carolina. There is no bidding process for basketball as the best team plays host during each game. This year, Liberty hosted the Big South baseball tournament and it was a great success. So, obviously that's very promising for both baseball and softball. One could very reasonably expect indoor track to be in Lynchburg for the foreseeable future, considering the new facility.
Liberty's Public Image
Were any schools concerned about LU's public image as a conservative school? Or Jerry Falwell's involvement with Trump's campaign?
No, that was never a concern.
Our thoughts:
When Falwell and Jeff Barber made a strong pitch towards the Sun Belt a few years ago, there was wide speculation that several schools opposed a Liberty invite due to the politics and image of the school. With the ASUN however, it sounds like this may have not been discussed at all between league members. This may be part of why Falwell and Ian McCaw feel so comfortable joining the ASUN. There is little to no pressure on Falwell to step away from his political interests.
Considering how well Liberty has scheduled in football, it appears the “political image” may not be a concern among most athletic directors. It's quite possible the Sun-Belt had other reasons for not inviting Liberty. Why did the Sun-Belt view Coastal Carolina, a smaller public school with a smaller fan-base and state budgetary issues, over a large private school with over a billion-dollar endowment and brand new athletic facilities? Possibly fear that Liberty would outgrow the conference or maybe even it was just a geographical issue.
Whatever the case, it appears the ASUN didn't share the same concerns, or if they did, the reward outweighed any risk. Our biggest takeaway from this part of the interview is that the A-Sun and Liberty fit perfectly together.
LFSN - Liberty Flames Sports Network
What privileges will LFSN have as far as broadcasting conference games?
The conference has an arrangement and all programs must abide by the same by-laws. We want all conference members to have the best exposure and we hope to use LFSN as an asset to the conference.
Our thoughts:
Considering the restrictions, the Big-South put on LFSN during conference games and tournaments, this should be very encouraging to Flames fans. While the conference games will continue to be broadcasts by a conference partner, Ted made it very clear that they view LFSN as an asset and intend to utilize it as such. This will help increase the conference brand and possibly assist Liberty in growing their broadcasting program. Considering all the capabilities of the network, this is a huge win for both Liberty and the ASUN.
Future Members of the ASUN
There have also been rumors that High Point could be joining the A-Sun. Are there plans to add more programs soon?
There are no plans currently. We're focused on scheduling Liberty at the moment and we're very comfortable with stability in the league. No discussions or timeline at this time.
Our thoughts: The league currently sits at ten full-time programs, but soon to be nine with USC-Upstate on their way to the Big South. When Liberty announced the partnership with the ASUN, there were initial rumors that High-Point could also be joining. It does not appear that Ted, or any members of the conference feel any pressure or have any desire to grow the membership past 9. Again, this speaks to Liberty's future in the league. If anyone within the ASUN felt Liberty could leave with a new invite, they would likely be seeking at least one more member to fill the potential absence.
While many Liberty fans have been hoping for a larger conference for many years, I don't think we can overstate how well these two fit. And while the ASUN is very comparable to the Big South in terms of competitiveness, this league has lots of ambition and Ted is committed to grow the conference's brand.
Despite the ASUN not necessarily being the home Liberty fans had hoped for, this is certainly a great fit for Flames athletics. With the football schedule complete for the next several years, and a conference home solidified, Liberty sports appears to be in great hands and in a great conference home.
