If true, it's completely laughable

[ragtimejoe1]

It's going to be rough on us, regardless. A pac merger will place us in a conference with 2-4 more teams our if our league in terms of resources and spending similar to tcu, Utah, and byu.

On the other hand, we may not have a conference or be placed in a situation nobody cares about.

I guess I'd rather get our tails kicked in a somewhat relevant conference vs being solid in a completely s.h.i.t. conference

I think you're reading the room wrong. Take away the PAC TV money and Oregon St and Washington St are mid to lower tier MW teams. Both of their athletic budgets would be below Wyoming's.

This could end up being a really good thing for Wyoming.

First, I shouldn't type while driving. Yikes that post is a mess, lol.

2nd, I don't think anything is set in stone. Lots can happen. I don't think we end up better off for lots of reasons. Even if those 2 join the mwc AND regress, our next round of TV negotiations is going to be brutal. The next round of playoff negotiations is going to be brutal.

 

[DamThatRiver22]

So as of this morning, it looks like everything may have imploded. OU and UW are apparently hesitating because the Big 10 money wasn't quite enough up front to cover additional travel (they'd have to borrow from future payments). Crow is hell bent on keeping ASU in the PAC, and the ABOR is hell bent on keeping the AZs together and may thus be blocking Arizona from accepting the B12 offer.

Clock on the shitty Apple deal is ticking and there's a full Pac meeting this morning which allegedly has a GoR being presented.

If the current Pac stays [mostly] together, that doesn't bode well for the MWC...

 

[ragtimejoe1]

So as of this morning, it looks like everything may have imploded. OU and UW are apparently hesitating because the Big 10 money wasn't quite enough up front to cover additional travel (they'd have to borrow from future payments). Crow is hell bent on keeping ASU in the PAC, and the ABOR is hell bent on keeping the AZs together and may thus be blocking Arizona from accepting the B12 offer.

Clock on the poop Apple deal is ticking and there's a full Pac meeting this morning which allegedly has a GoR being presented.

If the current Pac stays [mostly] together, that doesn't bode well for the MWC...

We'd lose suds.

 

[ragtimejoe1]

It'll be interesting to see if there is an espn component for 1 or 2 years. Fox was about to own the West Coast. I'm wondering if espn stepped in with Apple to salvage the pac for a few years until the next round of playoff negotiations occurs.

 

[DamThatRiver22]

It'll be interesting to see if there is an espn component for 1 or 2 years. Fox was about to own the West Coast. I'm wondering if espn stepped in with Apple to salvage the pac for a few years until the next round of playoff negotiations occurs.

There's also the variable of what Phil Knight wants. He wants an OU championship in his lifetime, and right now the easiest path to that is staying in the PAC. Does he step in and offer to cover what the Apple deal lacks for a few years?

Remember, that dude pretty much funds Oregon athletics and he's committed a HUGE ($2B+) endowment to Oregon when he dies.

And if Oregon stays in the PAC for now, that pretty much forces Washington's hand...especially if they're also on the fence.

 

[ragtimejoe1]

Whatever the plan was, sounds like it didn't work. This is insane.

 

[DamThatRiver22]

The Apple deal was for a floor of low 20s, with additional possible incentives for viewership/subscriptions.

The Big 10 allegedly offered in the neighborhood of 35-40.

For some context, UCLA calculated their increased travel costs at 8.1. Things are close enough that Oregon and Washington are hesitating.

Stability is an intangible though. The PAC is literally on the verge of falling apart. BUT, that could be resolved with a GoR, which is being presented today.

Who knows at this point, lmao.

 

[ragtimejoe1]

Let's grant all predictions amnesty, lol.

 

[DamThatRiver22]

Just in: PAC was NOT able to convince everyone to sign the GoR this morning.

Everything is still up in the air, lmfao.

What a mess. This sh**'s more entertaining than actual football at this point.

 

[307bball]

Just in: PAC was NOT able to convince everyone to sign the GoR this morning.

Everything is still up in the air, lmfao.

What a mess. This sh**'s more entertaining than actual football at this point.

:rofl: :rofl:

 

[303cowboy]

[media]https://twitter.com/Brett_McMurphy/status/1687503777392205824?s=20[/media]

 

[laxwyo]

The great part of this is the conference is so devastated they can’t help anyone with buyouts . It’ll probably be our saving grace. It’d be amazing if the MWC stood together instead of jumping ship

 

[Poke in New England]

I would love to be a fly on the wall in the MW offices in the Springs at the moment

 

[DamThatRiver22]

[media]https://twitter.com/Brett_McMurphy/status/1687503777392205824?s=20[/media]

Yea, I almost posted this (it's a done deal according to the more reputable sources like McMurphy and Thamel) but all things considered, figured I might wait to post anything else until ink was actually dry on any deals and the conference/schools actually announce. It's been that wild.

I actually really, really feel for OSU and WSU though.

WSU athletics is $100MM in debt and currently operating at a $10MM yearly deficit. As excited as I am at the potential prospect of having them as conference mates, it's going to be completely devastating to their program.

Also, keep in mind Pullman is basically the same size as Laramie and similarly relatively isolated. Lots of businesses and people's livelihoods in that town are going to take the brunt of this.

 

[Wyokie]

Quick question...when will all of this become official, announcement-wise i.e., Oregon & Washington to the Big Ten, AU, ASU, & Utah to the Big 12, etc...?

 

[LanderPoke]

[media]https://twitter.com/Brett_McMurphy/status/1687503777392205824?s=20[/media]

Yea, I almost posted this (it's a done deal according to the more reputable sources like McMurphy and Thamel) but all things considered, figured I might wait to post anything else until ink was actually dry on any deals and the conference/schools actually announce. It's been that wild.

I actually really, really feel for OSU and WSU though.

WSU athletics is $100MM in debt and currently operating at a $10MM yearly deficit. As excited as I am at the potential prospect of having them as conference mates, it's going to be completely devastating to their program.

Also, keep in mind Pullman is basically the same size as Laramie and similarly relatively isolated. Lots of businesses and people's livelihoods in that town are going to take the brunt of this.

Yeah, that sucks for WSU. Their fans are pretty arrogant and when they visited us their fans, at least the ones I was around, were royal douche bags. They should have not gone 100m in debt

 

[Bryoming]

[media]https://twitter.com/Brett_McMurphy/status/1687503777392205824?s=20[/media]

Yea, I almost posted this (it's a done deal according to the more reputable sources like McMurphy and Thamel) but all things considered, figured I might wait to post anything else until ink was actually dry on any deals and the conference/schools actually announce. It's been that wild.

I actually really, really feel for OSU and WSU though.

WSU athletics is $100MM in debt and currently operating at a $10MM yearly deficit. As excited as I am at the potential prospect of having them as conference mates, it's going to be completely devastating to their program.

Also, keep in mind Pullman is basically the same size as Laramie and similarly relatively isolated. Lots of businesses and people's livelihoods in that town are going to take the brunt of this.

They'll fit right in with the sheep when they eventually land in the MW

 

[DamThatRiver22]

Quick question...when will all of this become official, announcement-wise i.e., Oregon & Washington to the Big Ten, AU, ASU, & Utah to the Big 12, etc...?

Literally no one knows, my dude. That's the entire crux of the saga. And none of this is guaranteed at all, by the way.

The Big Ten votes on Washington and Oregon this afternoon.

Arizona allegedly formally applied to, and was approved by, the Big XII last night, but nothing's official yet. [Also, see below.]

We have nothing concrete on ASU. Their president (a strong academic guy) has been steadfast in trying to save the PAC and stick with Stanford and Cal. This may also be part of the holdup with Arizona, as the ABOR governs both and would like to keep them together. ASU and the ABOR may be holding up Arizona.

We have even less information on Utah, who has been dead silent during this whole thing. There are rumors of them and ASU talking to the Big XII, but we don't have anything beyond that. I've spoken with a number of Utah fans and kept an eye on their insiders and no one has heard a peep beyond vague "talks are ongoing".

WSU just released an official statement saying they're "disappointed with the decisions of some of our Pac-12 peers", and giving the usual "we're preparing for numerous scenarios and will work to chart the best path forward" that you'd expect.

That's literally where we're at at this moment in time.

Keep in mind that while a lot of work was being done behind the scenes for months, Colorado went from 0-60 in about 3 days flat in the eye of the public.

Edit: Jason Scheer (Arizona beat) just Tweeted that the "plan" is for an official announcement from Arizona tomorrow.

 

[DamThatRiver22]

Yeah, that sucks for WSU. Their fans are pretty arrogant and when they visited us their fans, at least the ones I was around, were royal douche bags. They should have not gone 100m in debt

I've had the complete opposite experience over the years with their fans, tbh. Including when they visited here (the wife and I work on the front lines of the service industry in Laramie, for what it's worth, and often have to deal with the absolute worst that visiting fanbases have to offer). And all the fans on Reddit/messageboards I've come across have been nothing but humble and a pleasure to talk to (save for the typical odd douche that every fanbase has).

The fans completely aside though...that has nothing to do with the plight of the student-athletes, staff, businesses, and regular citizens of Pullman who likely have absolutely nothing to do with the fans that irked you so much.

They should not have gone 100m in debt

They didn't particularly have a choice; it's complicated. They're not running at a deficit just for sh**s and giggles.

Also, I shouldn't have to remind everyone here that we aren't that far removed from a near financial disaster a few years ago ourselves, and Laramie could be put in the same position any day.

 

[DamThatRiver22]

They'll fit right in with the sheep when they eventually land in the MW

Right, except CSU is able to outspend literally everyone in the MWC, and Ft. Collins is six times larger than Pullman and not nearly as financially dependent on CSU as Laramie is on UW or Pullman is on WSU. Like....nowhere even close.

Y'all's lack of empathy for other schools, fans, towns, businesses, etc. getting the rug pulled out from them through no fault of their own is bizarre.