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They said yes!
According to SBN's Steven Godfrey, the Chanticleers will join the Sun Belt in 2016. Former crazy coach? Check. Current Wall Street guru coach? Check. Blue-ish (but really turquoise) field? Check. Does it fill Karl Benson's need for golf? Check. They even offer a PGA Golf Management program, so double check!
Further Tweets from CCU fan site CoastalFans.com and the mothership itself solidify the news with some details.
BREAKING: Sources have confirmed that a "historic press conference" will occur @ 1:00pm tomorrow in the HTC Center. Open to the public.
— Coastal Fans (@coastalfans) August 31, 2015
Coastal Carolina will join Sun Belt in football in 2017-18, all other sports in 2016-17 sources told @ESPN
— Brett McMurphy (@McMurphyESPN) September 1, 2015
From the looks of things, Coastal will remain FCS Playoff eligible this season as you have to file a notice of subdivision change with the NCAA by June 1st to start the following season. In 2016, CCU Football will technically be an FCS Independent, ineligible for the FCS Playoffs. Then in 2017, CCU Football will join the Sun Belt, but not be bowl eligible until 2018.
The non-football sports will join the Sun Belt on July 1st, 2016 and be immediately eligible for championships. They will put the Sun Belt at 12 members and help out the geographic balance. In the east will be Appalachian State, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Troy, South Alabama and Coastal Carolina. Then in the west will be full members Arkansas State, UL-Lafayette, UL-Monroe, Texas State, then non-football members UT-Arlington and Little Rock and football-only members New Mexico State and Idaho.
This addition comes off the heels of the Sun Belt meeting on Sunday in Dallas, where any of Coastal, Eastern Kentucky or New Mexico State was up for vote.
CCU president David DeCenzo had said CCU will begin expanding their home football venue, Brooks Stadium, from 9,000 to 20,000 as soon as the invite was accepted. Brooks Stadium was built with expansion to 20,00 in mind so it won't be that hard to build.
Coastal Carolina is located in Conway, South Carolina, just a small drive away from Myrtle Beach.
With their move to FBS and the Sun Belt in 2017, Coastal Carolina will become the 130th FBS member and join a very diverse and interesting Sun Belt Conference.
The Sun Belt footprint is gigantic, its athletes well-traveled, and its venues unpredictable http://t.co/3aQG3xAHRn pic.twitter.com/KkDwOrY3Vq
— Earl (@JasonKirkSBN) September 1, 2015