The Pride of Little Egypt! While SIU is respectable most years I don't get our strategy. We give all these away games to confs below us - ODU W&M Bucknell SIU Belmont - but we r getting nothing from confs above us. if not just take a buy game on road. or maybe offer a 2 for 1, at least we got that with SIU. But there's little to gain with good chance of losses in these games, u r much better taking a road only P5 where the P5 could be overlooking us a bit AND offers big upside. I get giving up something to a local team sometimes, but these r too many mid to low major H&H. Just buy the best possible home games we can, get bought by P5 on road, and get in a good MTE finally.
Look at 26-27 we already have 3 road games locked in - W&M ODU and SIU. Ugh. 3 neutrals from a MTE, your 6 home games which seems like the required minimum, and essentially you're done. U really can't have 3 road games of ODU WM and SIU. I don't care about playing on road but make them good/high profile.