My dime on expansion, conference alliance, etc...

[McPeachy]

Sucks to be a college sports fan looking from the outside - in. Put blame where you want, but honestly, at this point it doesn't matter.

Lot of dialogue about CUSA joining up with the MWC to form an alliance. Honestly...that sucks. I don't see any value in having UCF, ECU, Marshall, Tulane, Rice, or UAB in the same conference as Wyoming. And I am mixed about Tulsa and Southern Miss. UTEP...sure, a perfect fit.

So, in the near the future, the MWC looks like: AFA, CSU, New Mexico, UNLV, Nevada, Wyoming, Fresno State, and Hawaii (football only). 8 football schools, 7 everything else.

What should happen? IMO...form an entirely new western US based conference:

AFA
CSU
New Mexico
UNLV
Nevada
Wyoming
Fresno State
Hawaii (all sports)
UTEP
Utah State
Tulsa

And don't hate me...

BYU (all sports)

12 teams, 2 divisions, backfill possibilities with New Mexico State, San Jose State, Rice, Southern Miss, Tulane. New TV contract (driven by BYU's hand-job ESPN arrangement...with MOMO TV concessions), and a refreshed attitude of "us against them" again. Conference Championship basketball in Vegas (as usual), Conference football championship in Hawaii maybe (replacing the Hawaiian bowl), or in Vegas if they come through with the new stadium project.

There you have it. Stability, Western US, Name Brands, Solid Locations.

 

[SLCPoke]

McPeachy I don't hate you...as much as I like to hate BYU- it's a lot more fun when they are in our conference (to hate them that is). I actually was going to post something about dumping the c-usa merger idea and just stealing UTEP from them and then adding Utah State as well to make 10 teams in 2013. However, after reading your post, I actually like your setup much better. Two thumbs up here

 

[MrTitleist]

I'll add to this later, but so far, McPeaches, solid analysis. I get a ton of shit for this from another poster, but I think this would be a SOLID add.. UTSA.

 

[McPeachy]

I'll add to this later, but so far, McPeaches, solid analysis. I get a ton of shit for this from another poster, but I think this would be a SOLID add.. UTSA.

You may have a point. I don't know enough about UTSA, but they could be interchangable with Tulsa in my example, it if made sense.

San Antonio would be a great travel destination.........http://www.thesanantonioriverwalk.com/

 

[alyssa]

I'll add to this later, but so far, McPeaches, solid analysis. I get a ton of shit for this from another poster, but I think this would be a SOLID add.. UTSA.

You just want a little burnt orange, don't ya??
I think UTSA is good. San Antonio has waited years for a football program and they got numbers.

Tulsa seems lost and very upset about Houston and SMU going to the Big East.
I don't know that they will return West as it seems they would have went Big East if they were wanted.
Oh damn I forgot what I was gonna say while listening to the weatherman.

Well, anyway, what do y'all think about North Texas and Texas State?

 

[alyssa]

I'll add to this later, but so far, McPeaches, solid analysis. I get a ton of shit for this from another poster, but I think this would be a SOLID add.. UTSA.

You just want a little burnt orange, don't ya??
I think UTSA is good. San Antonio has waited years for a football program and they got numbers.

Tulsa seems lost and very upset about Houston and SMU going to the Big East.
I don't know that they will return West as it seems they would have went Big East if they were wanted.
Oh damn I forgot what I was gonna say while listening to the weatherman.

Well, anyway, what do y'all think about North Texas and Texas State?

 

[laxwyo]

I'll add to this later, but so far, McPeaches, solid analysis. I get a ton of shit for this from another poster, but I think this would be a SOLID add.. UTSA.

You just want a little burnt orange, don't ya??
I think UTSA is good. San Antonio has waited years for a football program and they got numbers.

Tulsa seems lost and very upset about Houston and SMU going to the Big East.
I don't know that they will return West as it seems they would have went Big East if they were wanted.
Oh damn I forgot what I was gonna say while listening to the weatherman.

Well, anyway, what do y'all think about North Texas and Texas State?

they are from texas.....nuff said. LOL just playing. :winky:

 

[MrTitleist]

I'm personally not a huge fan of UNT.. not sure what they bring to the table. Texas State.. eh. I watched Montana pound the piss out of them a couple years ago, their basketball facilities (as I recall) are pretty terrible.

 

[WyoExpat]

I think that the basic idea and analysis is dead-on accurate. I might quibble a little with a couple of the teams. I am especially not sold on Tulsa. I like the idea of bringing BYU (and the Utah market) back into the fold. Not including Utah State really has always been a gap in our conferece. I do wish that we had a presense in the state of Idaho and Montana to complete the map.

Getting into Texas makes sense. I am torn on UTEP. If New Mexico really wants them, or would prefer them to New Mexico State, then I think New Mexico should get to pick between the two.

I just want to have a complete, comprehensive conference and not a collection of odds and ends ranging from serious universities like us, New Mexico, Nevada and CSU to mediochre places like Boise State, Fresno State and San Jose State. BYU is about the only private school in the West that I think really fits into this kind of grouping. Each program can look to Tulsa, North Texas, etc for non-conference games.

 

[Wyo2dal]

Something I accepted a while ago, Wyoming is not big enough to ever be a top dog and with that being the case as long as the conference were in is competitive then that is all that matters.