Realignment Talk

[TexGator]

On 9/22/2024 at 10:11 AM, geezer said:

At some point I think you're going to see a conference including the Pac12 disappear not add FCS schools.  The prestige of the PAC-12 name may save it as they poach the best from the rest of the conferences.  The Sun Belt currently has fourteen members. The Mountain West after the initial poaching is down to eight members.  The American has fourteen members. C-USA has ten members, the Mid-American has twelve, The Pac-12 probably needs to get to ten members to be comfortable, but needs two to survive, who are the most likely targets?  The Pac-12 may also be thinking that one or two teams might decide to return to get them to ten or twelve but that will be a big pill for the returning teams to swallow.  So, who do they go after?  

Well, the Mountain West is at the point where it's either:
- Add schools like Gonzaga, UTEP, Hawaii, Montana & Montana State, Texas State, Idaho, the teams in the Dakotas
- Dissolve

We shall see how it plays out.

[geezer]

Gonzaga doesn't play football, Montana, Montana State and Idaho and the Dakotas are all FCS teams.  Hawaii is already a member.  FBS schools that make sense geographically are UTEP, Texas St, UTSA, New Mexico, New Mexico St and maybe a couple of others.  Now the Mountain West is beginning to look a lot like the old WAC.

[TexGator]

On 9/24/2024 at 9:32 PM, geezer said:

Gonzaga doesn't play football, Montana, Montana State and Idaho and the Dakotas are all FCS teams.  Hawaii is already a member.  FBS schools that make sense geographically are UTEP, Texas St, UTSA, New Mexico, New Mexico St and maybe a couple of others.  Now the Mountain West is beginning to look a lot like the old WAC.

1) There are sports other than football. Yes, football drives a lot but adding the Bulldogs is like adding a P4 school for the other sports.
2) Hawaii is a football-only member.
3) The original MWC was jettisoning the "New WAC"- now, they're poaching from elsewhere.

Just saw they're looking at Toledo, Northern Illinois, and Texas State. This is geting weird.

[geezer]

I agree that there are lots of other sports and things in general that should be driving conference realignment, but my position is that college football and basketball tv revenue is the current driving factor.  Tell me what other thing other than money makes sense for multiple schools to all want to move conferences at the same time.  The PAC 12 was a great conference in all sports except for tv revenue.  Because the football playoff system allowed for them to be excluded didn't help but the twelve team playoff system starting this year would have fixed that.  Maybe Oregon and others will be able to overcome the perceived competitive advantage of the SEC and Big 10 by playing them consistently but that may take several years.  Look at the schools that left other conferences before and tell me how they are doing on a competitive basis.  Examples are Missouri or A&M competing for conference championships on a routine basis?  What about Nebraska or Colorado?  All four were original members of the Big 12.

 

[TexGator]

On 9/27/2024 at 4:38 PM, geezer said:

I agree that there are lots of other sports and things in general that should be driving conference realignment, but my position is that college football and basketball tv revenue is the current driving factor.  Tell me what other thing other than money makes sense for multiple schools to all want to move conferences at the same time.  The PAC 12 was a great conference in all sports except for tv revenue.  Because the football playoff system allowed for them to be excluded didn't help but the twelve team playoff system starting this year would have fixed that.  Maybe Oregon and others will be able to overcome the perceived competitive advantage of the SEC and Big 10 by playing them consistently but that may take several years.  Look at the schools that left other conferences before and tell me how they are doing on a competitive basis.  Examples are Missouri or A&M competing for conference championships on a routine basis?  What about Nebraska or Colorado?  All four were original members of the Big 12.

 

I don't disagree.
The Power 4 Conferences are going to split off; we'll see who is sitting in chairs when the music stops.