Could the Sun Belt look to the Northeast for its 12th member?
Massachusetts called the Sun Belt and both sides have had a "very preliminary" discussion about joining forces, commissioner Karl Benson told CBSSports.com.
UMass became available as a football-only member after it became clear in March that the Minutemen would not fulfill all-sports-member status required of the Mid-American Conference, its old home. UMass will part ways with the MAC in 2015.
The Sun Belt has been looking to fill its final spot by June 1 and has had discussions with several FCS-level schools, including Liberty.
The loss of several schools to C-USA prompted the Sun Belt to add Appalachian State, Georgia Southern, Idaho and New Mexico State for membership in 2014, giving the conference 11 members for now.
A 12-team league would allow the Sun Belt to host a championship game and create geographical divisions.
The Sun Belt will discuss the matter at its spring meetings later this month.