He contracted the amount of time originally planned before stepping into his new Sun Belt Conference office, moving the dateline for his first day of work from early April to this coming Thursday.

When it comes to the notion of expansion, however, Karl Benson — who will succeed the retiring Wright Waters as commissioner of the Sun Belt after a short transition — has open ears.

"It’s a real possibility, yet it’s one that we need to do from a deliberate standpoint," Benson, speaking last weekend to reporters at the Sun Belt Conference basketball tournament in Hot Springs, Ark., said of the expansion issue that recently has been driving conference-affiliation movement among so many BCS schools recently.

"You get bigger to get better. You don’t just get bigger for the sake of adding one, two, three or four schools. You do it to because it adds value.

"I think the Sun Belt is in a great position to take advantage of some of this uncertainty," Benson added, "but at the same time the core member institutions provide a great, great foundation."

Benson most recently has worked as commissioner of the Western Athletic Conference, a league — commonly known as the WAC — besieged in recent by schools coming and going.

The relative solidarity of the Sun Belt, which counts UL among its longtime members, was one of the magnets that convinced Benson to change jobs after he interviewed for Wright’s position late last January in January.

"I think the new commissioner recognizes the fact there is stability in the conference as it sits today, so I thought that was a positive," said UL athletic director Scott Farmer, who heard Benson speak in Hot Springs. "On the other hands, he does a proactive expansion plan — and, if I had to guess, I would say he’s got a ‘priority’ expansion plan."

The Sun Belt had no institutions leave from last school year to the current one, although the University of Denver — a non football-playing member of the conference — will soon be departing for the more geographically sensible WAC.

"The stability of the Sun Belt was something that was very interesting to me — and the ability to grow a conference without having to deal with perhaps changes," Benson said.

"However," he added, "if there are changes, the other thing that was appealing was the number of schools that were in that footprint that are possible new members of the Sun Belt."

That’s a really long list, one that perhaps includes — among numerous others — current WAC member Louisiana Tech, incoming-WAC members UT-San Antonio and Texas State, and current Southland Conference members McNeese State and Lamar.

Troy University chancellor and Sun Belt president Dr. Jack Hawkins, also speaking to media members in Hot Springs, called that South-based "footprint" something that "makes for great rivalries (and) makes for a fan base where our fans can follow the institutions and certainly saves travel dollars and "» makes sense for student-athletes."

"Should we expand," Hawkins said, "we take those principles into consideration."

During a February conference call in which he was introduced as the Sun Belt incoming commissioner, Benson suggested both current Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) and Football Championship Subdivision (FCS; formerly Division 1-AA) programs located in the current bounds of conference would be considered if the league were to expand.

That ranges from Texas in the West to Florida in the East, and northward to Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky.

"It makes me feel confident," UL AD Farmer said, "because "» he (Benson) realizes that local rivalries and regional rivalries are important, and I agree with that philosophy."

Benson, meanwhile, must also work simultaneously to protect current conference membership, which — once Denver leaves and South Alabama joins full-time member — will stand at 11 overall and 10 that play football.    

"I think there are always going to be threats," Benson said.

"One of my goals (is) talking about the benefits of being a member of the Sun Belt and what the Sun Belt can provide and what the value (is). "» We need to really identify that, and communicate that back on the 11 campuses that the Sun Belt, as it exists today, is a powerful organization."

One of the biggest potential threats is an anticipated merger between the Mountain West and Conference USA that could result in the still-under-formation megaconference extending membership invitations to one or more Sun Belt schools.

Benson referenced several Sun Belt schools in that regard, though UL was not among them.

"I think the fact that whether it’s a North Texas or it’s a Florida International, or Florida Atlantic or Troy or Western Kentucky or any that are being mentioned," Benson said, "it’s a compliment to the growth that these institutions have had.

"I certainly have seen a number of institutions that have gotten better under the WAC umbrella and that have moved on. I don’t think there’s necessarily anything wrong with that," he added. "I’ve always said that when teams join the WAC they get better. When teams join the Sun Belt, they’re going to get better."

During his February media call, Benson suggested Sun Belt expansion to 12 football-playing members could create several benefits, including the ability to hold a conference football championship game.

But while most of the expansion and conference-membership movement nationally is football-driven, the Sun Belt had basketball-related considerations as well.

One is that, with Denver leaving and Arkansas-Little Rock left as the only Sun Belt school that plays basketball but not football, the two-division basketball conference is currently headed into next season with an odd number of members.

"I do think that balance needs to be addressed," Benson said. "Eleven members on the basketball schedule is not the ideal number.

"As we look at expansion, we need to look at the basketball piece. UALR has been a valued member of the Sun Belt for many, many years and we need to protect that and take advantage of the success they have had in Sun Belt sports."

The addition of another basketball-only member, in other words, could be in the works.

Football, however, drives the college sports landscape these days.

Benson can appreciate that, and — with it in mind — he sees the Sun Belt as an on-the-rise conference in that regard.

"Five years ago there was a (football) hierarchy of the Mountain West, the WAC, Conference USA, the Sun Belt, and then the Mid-American and Sun Belt," he said.

"That gap today has shrunk considerably, and there’s not a lot of difference between the 10 football-playing members of the Sun Belt and the membership of the WAC or Mountain West or Conference USA or Mid-American.

"Regardless of this Conference USA-Mountain West potential merger," Benson added, "I like the position that the Sun Belt is in."