The Sun Belt Conference may not be sending its conference champion to a bowl game, but the conference still had three bowl spots to fill this postseason. This season the Sun Belt will be sending Arkansas State and UL Lafayette to familiar bowl destinations. South Alabama will also be sent to a bowl game for the first time in program history.
UL Lafayette finished second in the Sun Belt this season behind Georgia Southern. The Ragin’ Cajuns will be heading to the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl. ULL fans know their way around town for this bowl game. This is the fourth straight appearance in the New Orleans Bowl for ULL. They have won three straight New Orleans Bowl games as well.
Arkansas State is also going to the same bowl game for a fourth straight season. The Red Wolves are being sent to the GoDaddy Bowl, where they have won two straight. South Alabama will be taking part in the brand new Camellia Bowl, being played in Montgomery, Alabama.
“The announcement of these three teams being selected by our bowl partners marks the beginning of what should be an exciting bowl season,” said Sun Belt Commissioner Karl Benson in a statement. “Sun Belt teams have regularly competed well in bowl games as evidence by our multiple wins in recent years and the selection of these well qualified teams should result in even more wins.”
Some conferences try to avoid sending teams to the same bowl games so frequently, but the Sun Belt tries to work wit bowl partners to send the best possible fit to sell tickets. Sending ULL to the New Orleans Bowl and Arkansas State to the GoDaddy Bowl in Alabama works out well for the conference. Being able to keep South Alabama in the brand new Camellia Bowl in Montgomery also helps the conference fill its ticket allotment as best as possible.
Georgia Southern won the outright Sun Belt Conference championship this season, its first year in the conference after moving up to FBS from the FCS. Because the program is in its first year at the FBS level, the school was prohibited from playing in the postseason due to NCAA rules. Georgia Southern filed a waiver that was denied, and an appeal was rejected as well by the NCAA. Appalachian State is also in a transition year and filed for a waiver to play in the postseason. If Georgia Southern couldn’t get in, don’t count on Appalachian State having any better luck.
The Sun Belt does have one more team eligible for postseason play. Texas State, at 7-5, is eligible to fill any bowl spot that may be available after conferences fill their bowl obligations.