Just like in basketball where conferences will send their tourney champ to the NCAA tournament instead of their regular season champ, I am betting that the Sunbelt could send their "highest ranked team" instead of their conference game champ. Since we would be part of the conference for Bowl games, they would send us if we were the highest ranked team.

Benefit to us: Clear path to a Auto Qualifier game, Sunbelt most likely conference to accommodate us.
Cost to us: Some of the bowl payout.

Benefit to Sunbelt: Another potential auto-qualifier that won't be knocked out by their conference championship game, more leverage in getting good bowl games:
Cost to Sunbelt: We could knock a core conference team out of a good bowl or an AQ bowl.

Benefits seem to outweigh the costs for both sides, and I don't think the bigwigs at the bowls and playoffs have considered this "underhand" method of qualifying.

Go Cougs!!!!!!!