Charlotte Rejected By SoCon, Big South. Is CAA Football On Deck?

GoBlueRidge.net Link

Another FCS team entering the fray and not getting the response from a football only invite that they would like.  I still believe that Georgia State is much better positioned for the long term than the 49ers but I'd be suprised if Commissioner Yeager doesn't offer a football only invite to Charlotte as his league is quickly falling apart.

Dexter Moody, Former UGA Signee, Enrolls at Georgia State

This.  Is. Huge.

I'm extremely please that we snagged Moody.

From ESPN Scouts, Inc. in 2009:

Moody has one of the best upsides of any defensive prospect in the past few high school classes. He has natural physical gifts and is well-developed for his age. He's tall, athletically built and has a very wide wingspan and long body that should fill out.

He is a tremendous talent and the highest rated defensive player we've ever had on our campus.

I expect him to immediately fight for playing time and should immediately help us at LB. Our LB corps are in great shape moving forward even with the Muasau brothers graduating. Moody will be a RS Sophomore having 3 years helps a ton and I could see him developing into an All conference/All-American type player by his Senior season. He's extremely hungry and makes plays all over the place.

He was asked recently why he chose Georgia State.  Moody's response: "It's Georgia. [My] Family can come to my games."

Welcome to the family Dexter!

SB Nation Link

Doug's AJC Blog

New Faces on the Football Team

We've reached the start of summer school and summer workouts!  Over the next few days, our roster will be updated with the 7 recruits (8 if you count CB D'Mario Gunn who enrolled in January) and numerous new names and faces. 

Here's a list as it sits today and my thoughts on each player:

Freshman DE McClain Head - February Signee, has increase his weight to 255lbs.
Freshman S Nick Henderson - February Signee - Likely to take a RS but will likely fight for a spot on special teams.
Freshman OL David Huey - February Signee - Needs to RS, IMO.
Freshman QB Ben McClane - February Signee  - Needs to RS, IMO but may not be an option because he'll serve as the primary back up for KH4 during the first four games.
Freshman DE Roderick Thompson - February Signee - Needs a RS but we are thin at DE, IMO.
Junior LB Qwontez Mallory - February Signee - Arrived at 215lbs (not 235lbs as some speculated) and will immediately contribute.  Would like to see a 5-8lbs weight increase this summer and come to Fall camp at 220+.
Junior S Demazio Skelton - February Signee - Arrived at 190lbs and I expect him to fight for immediate laying time at Free Safety.  Really high on this kid.
RS Jr. TE Kyle Irby - Transfer from Brevard College - Walk On and could contribute on special teams.
Junior S Rashad Stewart - Transfer from Louisville - Immediate impact player on special teams and within the Safety rotation.  This kid made plays for Drake in 2009.  Was on Louisville's roster in 2010.
Freshman OL Tyler Ferguson - Flint River Academy - Griffin, GA - Impressive looking kid.  Will likely RS this Fall.  Could be play either tackle spots and will likely be cross trained.
Freshman S Nathaniel Minor - Brookwood HS - Another impressive kid with good size.  Will likely RS this Fall.
RS Sr. WR Cordero Ivory - Transfer from Ventura College - Walk-On with great size (6'5, 200lbs).  Interesting to see how we utilize Ivory and see how he grasps the offensive playbook.  Former DE prospect who has grown 4 inches since HS. Was a track guy as well, once high jumped 5'10 feet.  Goal line jump balls should be fun to watch.

Also said to be enrolled or will enroll:
Junior DE AJ Portee - Transfer from UCONN - Rumored to be attending.  May have some academic hurdles but would be an immediate impact player.
RS Sophomore LB Dexter Moody - Former UGA signee out of ECI.  Tremendous player with a ton of upside.  3 years of remaining eligibility and would be an immediate impact player at LB.
 
No longer with the program:

Sr. NG Dion Peary - Was sliding down the depth chart and hopefully will stay in school and graduate.
RS Soph. DE Demetreious Shorter - Sliding down the depth chart, battled weight issues and was rumored to possibly change positions to try to maintain a spot.

OL Starts Across College Football

From Phil Steele

For comparison sake, Georgia State football brings back a total of 86 combined starts along the offensive line.

Joe Hamilton is new Running Backs Coach for Georgia State football

According to current Defensive/Recruiting/S&C Coach Harrison's Twitter page:

I wanna give a special congrats to my great friend @joeham14 for being named Georgia State new RB coach God Is Great..Testimony of Grinding

This is absolutely great news as Coach Hamilton can now recruit for us this summer.  RB Coaches are involved with nearly every offensive position and I have no doubt he will assist Coach Bond with Kelton Hill's development during Fall practice.

Off Season Opponent Report: Jacksonville State

We continue our post Spring practice check ins with all of our 2011 opponents. We've covered Clark Atlanta and Old Dominion the last two weeks and today we take a look at our highest ranked FCS opponent and arguably one of our most exciting games in 2010.  Jacksonville State was ranked #5 entering the Dome last September and was 8-0 and ranked as high as #3 before losing 3 out of their last 4 games including the FCS Playoff opener at home vs. Wofford.  This offseason has been interesting as the JSU Board of Regents in April put possible FBS plans on the table.

When: September 17th

JSU in 2010: 9-3, Lost in FCS Playoffs - Opening Round

Spring Report: The Gamecocks will have to replace 7 starters on offense and 4 starters on defense from 2010.  I had a chance to speak with Gamecock Illustrated and they gave me some insight on the team's health, FBS transfers and his concerns exiting Spring:

To my knowledge, we came out of Spring relatively healthy. I don't know of any injuries to key players. Starting tackle Tori Mobley did not play in the Spring Game but I think he will be back this Fall. The great news was the return of Matt Jones, a Hoover [MTV] (2 a days) high school product that started as a true freshman for JSU, but had to miss all of last season w/ a knee injury. Our starting QB Marques Ivory lost about 30 pounds and looked and played like a different player in the Spring. My judgment is offensive line is a question mark for the Gamecocks. Wr Transfer Trey Smith looked great in our Spring Game but I'm not a big believer in reading too much into Spring Games.

On the defensive side of the ball, everyone seems excited about our new coordinator Chris Boone. The defensive line should be a strength of the team with several seniors and at least one guy, Monte Lewis, that may have the talent to play at the next level. Gamecock fans are anxious to see if linebacker Erik Russell will return to the team. He sat out last year for undisclosed reasons and is an impact player.  We had a few midyear transfer players that look good, but I think for now they are probably not big time impact players.

Recruits to Watch:

OG Thomas Williams - Big time OL that can play either OG position.  Had offers to Clemson, South Florida and Louisville and the Gamecocks were able to keep him home.

DT Jakarri Kinnie - A one time verbal commit according to the AJC's Chip Towers, Kinnie decided to stay at home as well.  A big time 6'1, 320lbs. noseguard who had offers from SEC, ACC and Sun Belt schools.

RB Demarcus James - Another guy that we were in the mix for that refused to leave the state.  5'10, 215lbs balanced back with very good power and good speed. 

For more on Jacksonville State football, visit the JSU football page.

Off Season Opponent Report: Old Dominion

We continue our post Spring practice check ins with all of our 2011 opponents.  Last week, we covered Clark Atlanta and today we zero in on the newest official member of CAA Football.  ODU completed their FCS Independent/Provisional season in 2010 and will get their first tast of CAA football in 2011.  This also marks our first game with a CAA football opponent and I expect a large contigent of fans from Norfolk to invade the Dome.

When: September 10th

ODU in 2010: 8-3

Spring Report: The Monarchs seem to be very defensive heavy exiting the spring.  Using a scoring system similiar to ours, their defense won their Spring Game 42-3 in front 0f 3100.  It will be the Thomas DeMarco show again in 2011 and for those who forgot, he picked our defense apart converting short throw after short throw while compiling 183 total yards and 2 TDs. 

Highlights and Recap from Head Coach Bobby Wilder Available HERE.

Injury Update: The Monarchs did lose starting DE Andrew Turner to a ruptured Achilles tendon and he'll likely miss the 2011 season.

Starters Lost: Unlike Georgia State, ODU actually suffered losses due to graduation.  The Monarchs will have to replace their starting LT, MLB and OLB this Fall. 

Recruits to Watch:
QB Taylor Heinicke - ODU swooped into our backyard and grabbed the GA Offensive Player of the Year from Collins Hill HS.  Heinicke accounted for 4218 and 44 TDs as a Senior.  He's about 5'10 and is very similiar to current starter DeMarco.

RB Tyree Lee - ODU signed him as a RB as other schools wanted him as a safety.  5'10, 205lbs back.

DE Dontez Tyler - Former Maryland commit who opened his recruitment after former Terp coach Ralph Friedgen was fired.  6'3, 220lbs with very good quickness.

For more on Old Dominion football, visit the ODU football page.

Football Season Tickets on Sale to Public

109 Days and Counting....Get your season tickets as GSU - The Movement gets remixed.  Second verse, better than the first.


2011 GSU Football Season Ticket Price Breakdown

-The Huddle: $2,500/pair ($2,200 gift; $300 tickets) - Sections 115 & 116, Rows 10-17
-PAC Blue: $350/ticket ($250 gift; $100 ticket) - Sections 115 & 116
-PAC White: $225/ticket ($125 gift; $100 ticket) - Sections 114 & 117
-PAC Red: $150/ticket ($50 gift; $100 ticket) - Sections 113 & 118
-PAC Orange: $125/ticket ($25 gift; $100 ticket) - Sections 135 & 136
-Sideline Reserved: $99/ticket - Sections 111-112, 119-120, 131-134, 137-138
-Corner Reserved: $84/ticket - Sections 110, 121, 130
-Endzone Reserved: $72/ticket - Sections 122-129
-Reserved Student Section: $35/ticket - Sections 109, 139-140

Football season tickets are available for purchase over the phone by calling 1-866-GA-STATE (427-8283), by visiting www.GeorgiaStateSports.com, or by visiting the GSU Athletics Panther Sales Center located at 125 Decatur Street, Suite 106, Atlanta, GA 30303.

Strategy Session: Defensive Front 7 Size

Yesterday we took a look at the offensive line and their offseason size gain.  Today, we'll discuss the other side of the ball and the defensive front seven.  In our 3-4 defensive scheme this includes the Weakside Defensive End, Nose Guard, Strongside Defensive End and Linebackers.

Position	Name	2010 Weight	2011 Weight
WDE	Christo Bilukidi	290	300
	Demetreious Shorter	255	255
NG	Khirrey Karriem	270	270
	Terrance Woodard	320	320
SDE	Kalan Jenkins	245	255
	Alex Findura	227*	235
OLB	Jake Muasau	243	243
	Allen McKay	200	200
ILB	Evan Bostic	235	235
	Mike Hall	219	219
ILB	Louie Muasau	248	248
	Sam Burkhalter	220**	214
ILB	Qwontez Mallory	202***	235
	Akeen Felder	195	215

*Walk on SDE Austin Wiley served as primary back up in 2010.
**Cole Moon has moved to the offensive side of the ball and basically switched positions with former RB Sam Burkhalter.
***Mark Hogan started at this position in 2010.

My Analysis: Now I hope you see why I'm much more optimistic about our ability to stop the run in 2011.  We've added 48lbs of collective weight amongst the front 7 (6.85lbs per player).  If you look at the collective gain for the two deep it's a total of 81lbs (5.78lbs per player).  I absolutely look to improve on the 10 QB sacks and nearly 188 yards per game given up on the ground in 2010.

A Big Thanks to my man Bud Elliot at Tomahawk Nation for the inspiration behind this series.

Strategy Session: Offseason OL Gains

Entering the 2011 offseason, there has been some discussion about strength/quality weight gain in the weight room.  Coach Bill Curry has mentioned publically that the S&C program lacked organization and post spring Doug Roberson of the AJC mentioned:

Then this past Monday, the school posts an Assistant Athletic Director - Speed, Strength & Conditioning position.

As a team, Curry said in the 12 to 18 months that most of the players have been in the program, he hasn’t seen enough improvement from time spent in the weight room. He said he is working to fix that area, but declined to offer any details.

So what is bugging Coach Curry?  Today, I'll start with our projected two deep along the starting Offensive Line.

  

Position	Name	2010 Weight	2011 Weight
LT	Clyde Yandell	287	287
	Ulrick John	280	290
LG	Joe Gilbert	280	290
	Michael Davis	280*	295
C	Ben Jacoby	270	285
	Tim Wynn	270*	270
RG	Harrison Clottey	310	310
	LaDeven Kirkland	340	340
RT	Grant King	285	285
	Gabriel Hampton	320	320

*Cade Yates served as back up in 2010 while Michael Davis was out after suffering a season ending ACL tear.

My Analysis: Our starting offensive line has gained a total of 25lbs (2.5lbs per man).  This is not good enough to improve upon a run game that struggled mightily in 2010.  I look for this new hire to push the OL for much bigger gains and hope to see a combined weight gain near 45-50lbs total by September.

A Big Thanks to my man Bud Elliot at Tomahawk Nation for the inspiration behind this series.

Off Season Opponent Report: Clark Atlanta

School is out this week and recruiting evaluations for the 2012 class are ongoing.  Our coaching staff has  offered 15 scholarships to this point and will likely offer 10-12 more in the next three months.

While we wait to see who gets the remaing four scholarships for 2011 (could be late signee, FBS transfer or given to a walk on), I'll preview an opponent each Tuesday.

Today, we take a look at our home opener vs. Clark Atlanta University.

When:  September 1st or 2nd (dependent on Falcons schedule/Dome conflict resolution)

CAU in 2010: 4-6

Spring Report: Took the field with 43 players back in March/April and concluded their spring with a scrimmage.  It's still unknown who their starting QB will be as RS Junior T.J. Smith and Junior Kyle Lacey were not impressive in 2010.  Clark as a team only averaged 17.5 points per game last season.  Clark's defense returns 19 seniors and as many as 9 starters and will be the strength of their team.

Recruits to Watch:
RB Darrin McPherson - 5'9, 174lbs. Lightning fast running back should start from the moment he steps on campus.  The kind of recruit that you don't find often at a D2 school.

QB Bryan Mann - 6'2, 210lbs. JUCO Transfer from Arizona Western.  Signed with Florida International out of Glades Central HS but did not qualify.  Lefty QB and has continued to improve his body.  Long wind up.  Not very mobile (reportedly ran a high 4.9/5.0 40 yard dash in HS) but will challenge for playing time.

OT Derryl Rozier - 6'3, 320lbs.  Notable because he was mega recruit Isiah Crowell's LT on the Carver-Columbus squad that went to the state semifinals.
Quotes from the Head Coach:

“It was a good opportunity to see a lot of different looks offensively and defensively,” said second year head coach Darryl McNeill. We have some kinks to work out on offense, and we are still young up front.”

For more on Clark Atlanta athletics, visit the CAU football page.

1 on 1 With Blogger Who Believes GSU Fits Sun Belt

We had a chance to catch up with super blogger Matthew Postins of PigskinU.com who made local waves after suggesting that Georgia State football made sense as a member of the Sun Belt conference.  Here are his thoughts from the outside in looking at our program, how he views Atlanta

PantherTalk.com: On the surface, you have no connections to Georgia State. So what prompted you to include us in your blog about Sun Belt expansion?

Matthew Postins: I lived in Denton, Texas, for two years, home of the University of North Texas, which is a Sun Belt member. I worked at the Denton Record-Chronicle and helped the staff cover the program, which included writing columns about the football team and traveling to the New Orleans Bowl in 2003. This was during UNT’s run of four straight Sun Belt titles. So I know the conference well and I know that they play some good football in this league. It’s not at BCS level, certainly, but it’s a quality product and not many people know that much about it. So when I get the chance, I like to dispel the myth that the Sun Belt is the Sun Wreck, as some have called it.

PT: Is it that obvious from an outsider's point of view, the potential of Georgia State football?

MP: It wasn’t obvious to me at first. I have a friend, Kendall Webb, who founded RoadTripSports.com, another site I work for, who attended the Georgia State-Alabama game last season. Now, naturally, he didn’t expect GSU to win, and it didn’t. But he said something I thought was telling. He said, “They (GSU) didn’t look as if they didn’t belong there.” That stuck with me. If you’re a first- or second-year program and you’re willing to go into a place like Tuscaloosa and play like you’re not intimidated, that says something to me. I haven’t seen the team in person, but when you consider the head coach is Bill Curry and the program is located in a major market, there is some upside.

PT: Why does this makes so much sense from where you sit? Our hard core fans often get hammered locally and called delusional. Interested in your thoughts.

MP: I think you start with the market. Atlanta is the hub of the south and it attracts people who want to live and work there. That attracts students, as well. Georgia Tech has typically had a pretty good program for some time, and its metro Atlanta location, in my opinion, is part of the attraction. For student-athletes in the state who don’t want to go far away or can’t go to the SEC, going someplace like Atlanta makes sense. I already mentioned Curry, but it bears mentioning that his SEC background puts the young program in a unique position. He knows what works and what doesn’t work and won’t risk the program’s long-term potential for a quick fix. Georgia has one of the most fertile recruiting fields in the nation (I rank it No. 5 behind Texas, Florida, California and Ohio) and not all of that talent can go to Georgia Tech and Georgia. There’s nothing that says that GSU HAS to go to FBS. They may end up feeling very comfortable in the CAA. But I think the school has enough tools to make that jump. As for delusions, well the world of sports is littered with success stories that started as delusions to most people. Boise State is a real good example. No one thought they would be a national power 10 years ago. But here they are. I’m not comparing the two. What I’m saying is its only delusion if you’re not willing to put in the hard work to make it happen. So we’ll see how much GSU wants it.

PT: I'm interested in your "many believe the Panthers will eventually go Big East" comment. Have you spoken to someone specifically about that?

MP: No one specific, but I read enough and hear enough to read between the lines. As writers, these days we’ve been given license to speculate about such things. That’s not always a good thing. But I don’t think it would be out of the realm of possibility that the Big East would be interested, especially when you consider the media market. I made the assertion in the article that, in the long run, the Big East was more interested in TCU for access to the Dallas-Fort Worth media market. Sure, TCU’s incredible run the past several years probably fueled the Big East’s interest. But TCU won’t go undefeated and go to the Rose Bowl every year. In those equations, it won’t matter to the Big East because they’ll have the TV sets in that market either way. And that matters if and when the Big East decides to go full bore for its own network. That’s GSU’s biggest chip if it decides to make the move to FBS – its location. They hold more cards in that regard than, say, South Alabama, which joins the Sun Belt in 2013. That alone makes the program attractive to any conference that has at least 10 members, since 12 teams gets you a conference championship game and the revenue that results.

PT: In your interview with Tony and Wes on 790 the Zone, you mentioned that a tremendous selling point was the Atlanta media market for future TV contracts. Were you able to locate the existing Sun Belt TV contracts?

MP: They keep that stuff under lock and key, it seems like. I did another pass looking for the numbers, and I found a Sports Business Journal article that listed the television figures for eight conferences, but the Sun Belt wasn’t one of them. The closest I could come up – and I can’t vouch for its accuracy – is from a Mid-American Conference bulletin board from 2008. This board listed the Sun Belt’s gross overall revenue at $9.3 million. But guess what? It didn’t list the Sun Belt’s television revenue. So, the Sun Belt isn’t sharing the figure with the national media, and I think that a large reason for that is the fact that it’s likely under $1 million per year. Heck, the Atlantic 10 made that in 2008, according to the figures on this board, and it’s in FCS. When you consider the money in major college football, the Sun Belt is way behind.

PT: Also, speaking about the potential for bowl expansion if/when the Sun Belt moves to 12 teams. With only 2 bowl tie-ins and 1 option tie (back in option), where do you see for future SBC bowl expansion?

MP: Well now that the NCAA has put a moratorium on certifying new bowl games – thanks in large part to the Fiesta Bowl fiasco – that question is harder to answer. The number of bowl games has gone up greatly the past 5 years. I produced this research for an unrelated article last year. I took a look at the FBS standings for the past five years. In 2005, there were just 33 8-win teams and 55 7- and 8-win teams. After that, the number of teams with at least 8 wins ballooned. In the last four seasons, the number of 8-win teams was no lower than 49, and the number of 7- and -8 win teams was no lower than 60. In other words, there are many more bowl-eligible teams than there were six years ago. The standard 12-game schedule plus the use of FBS wins over FCS teams for bowl eligibility appear to be the chief factors in this surge. The short answer is I don’t know. The SBC is the back-up for the Beef O’Brady Bowl, the BBVA Compass Bowl and the Independence Bowl, but they sent three teams to bowl games, thanks to FIU getting into the Little Caesars Bowl. Since no new bowl games are coming (and more teams are coming to FBS), the Sun Belt’s best plan would be to prove to those three backup bowls that they’re capable of sending competitive teams that have a good traveling fan base, since they make geographic sense.

PT: Do you think Georgia State needs to prove themselves on the field with wins before they can be in a FBS conference discussion?

MP: Well, that would make sense except that UT-San Antonio is going to be in the WAC in 2012 and it hasn’t even played a game yet. But, frankly, the WAC is much more desperate than the Sun Belt right now. Yes, winning against quality programs is going to help their case, and they’re probably several years away from beating a non-BCS FBS school (unless you want to schedule New Mexico). But, I would contend, based on results, that the Panthers aren’t far away from being competitive on a regular basis with just about anyone. GSU pushed Jacksonville State, a FCS playoff team, to overtime, nearly beat South Alabama and defeated Lamar, a first-year FCS school that, I believe, will make the jump to FBS shortly. Before you snicker about Lamar, the Cardinals were competitive with teams like McNeese State last season. McNeese is a traditional FCS power. GSU continues to pursue the right mix of scheduling, putting Houston, UTSA and South Alabama on their schedule for 2011 and mixing it with teams from other levels. This way, once the CAA schedule kicks in next year, the Panthers won’t be shocked. FCS conferences like programs with good track records, and 2 to 4 years of winning seasons should put the Panthers in a position to be courted by FBS conferences, if that’s their plan.

Thanks again to Matthew for joining me and check out his work on PigskinU.com and RoadTripSports.com.

Interview with Video Director Blake Adams

ESPN's Erin Andrews with Blake at the Alabama Game.  Yep, he's that awesome.

Photo Courtesy of Blake Adams

                                       
Good interview with a FOB (friend of the blog) Blake Adams who serves as Director of Video and Creative Services.  Pretty interesting stuff about exchanging tape with coaches and Blake's road to where he is.

Interview Link

Blake's Blog

Coach Curry Addresses Softball Team Before Critical Road Trip

I don't care what sport it is, CBC can flat out motivate.  And from what I've been told he was a very good baseball player so he absolutely know this game.

"We respect everyone. We don't fear anyone. We aren't scared of anyone's record because their record isn't going to throw one strike, steal one base or throw someone out on a fast bunt. Not one time.  Refuse to lose. People who refuse to lose turn into people that are impossible to defeat."

From GSU Sports Communications

UTSA Game Time Set for 2pm EST

For those making the trek to San Antonio, we have a game time.

Photo Courtesy of Ballparks.com

Per UTSA Athletics

AJC: Football Ticket Sales trending up

Good for Doug getting these numbers and this is being spun positive. 

AJC Link

AJC: Curry Pleased With Spring Practice

Good work by Doug Roberson.  You can definitely see he's bringing an edge to his writing and I think this will be different (not bad different) from Ken's pieces.

One interesting note in the article: 

Curry said the linemen moved their feet properly and were getting into the right defender in the spring, but they need to become stronger and improve their conditioning.

As a team, Curry said in the 12 to 18 months that most of the players have been in the program, he hasn’t seen enough improvement from time spent in the weight room. He said he is working to fix that area, but declined to offer any details.

This screams there will be changes within our S&C staff.  CBC has mentioned workouts being unorganized and this is the third mention in less than a month.  Not good for those in charge of this program.  The term "heads will roll" may be appropriate here.

AJC Link

SB Nation: Georgia State football to Sun Belt "Makes Sense"

Check out my commentary on the interview with Dallas, TX blogger on local radio today discussing our future conference plans.

SB Nation Link

AJC: Bilukidi, Felder and Williams named Captains

Good work by our new beat writer Doug Roberson.  Make sure you comment and welcome him to covering the Panther Nation.

AJC Link

CAA Football Domino Effect: UMASS May Push New Hampshire Out

Here We Go!

UMASS announcing their plans has the other New England schools re-evaluating.  New Hampshire Athletic Director Marty Scarano:

"I've been working hard for two years looking at our status in the CAA and what that means, and what we mean to the CAA, as well as contingency plans."

"Travel's the most obvious (concern)," said Scarano. "There are going to be a lot of people traveling in ways they haven't before. More flights going down there and more flights coming up here."

"And the time, it couldn't be worse given the huge expense of travel right now. But (UNH's long-term) decision is not going to be anything just predicated on the finances."

11 football playing schools in 2011 and 10 (when we join) in 2012.  The writing is on the wall for these schools.  New Hampshire and Maine will be next to jump ship.  They cannot afford the increasing travel costs and will likely follow Rhode Island.  Like the Bud Light slogan says, "Here We Go."