What if PAC 12 tries to go to 16 with Big 12 teams?

[alexrgct]

No one is raiding the Pac 12, and at this point it doesn't appear that the Pac 12 will ever raid the Big 12. Boise State and BYU are the only two candidates for expansion in the West. Boise State is a national brand with good attendance in a decent sized city. I believe they are expanding the stadium, and with a better schedule, would probably expand it again. The basketball program sucks but would probably still win 5 or 6 conference games in a Pac 12 that is pretty awful top to bottom. I believe Boise does play a sport or two in the Pac 12 already.

BYU is a tremendous national program with a large following and is strong in football and basketball. It would be a strong financial addition to any league, particularly one like the PAC 12 that has its own network, but its leadership is a giant pain in the to work with, and it has embarked on this independence mission that seems like program seppuku to me.

Boise would be the third best football program in the Pac 12, and BYU would be about the 5th or 6th. BYU would have won the league in basketball the last two years. Those two are it though. Everyone else out there is such a huge drop off in terms of fan interest and national presence that they are not worth discussing.

the problem is that a) the PAC already has a presence is Utah, b) the cultural issues with adding a Mormon university are significant, and c) Boise State is an absolute joke academically. I don't mean like Arizona State is a party school and the second best state u in Arizona; I mean like it's a clown college. It might be the third best state u in Idaho. Maybe.

 

[UCFBfan]

all good. i just think people here are thinking short term and not long term. bball and not fball. those thoughts are how u could kill uconn off instead of help it continue to grow.

miami fball is not going to be in good shape very soon. i rather be in a conf with fl schools. its a big part of our recruiting as PP has shown. if 2moro we woke up to a acc invite with ruty, most here would be thrilled. but then next week fsu/clem goto the b12. ahh ok but i still like the acc alot better than the nbe. but next summer when the b12 grabs gt/md and the sec and b10 add schools and were left with bc/cuse/duke and wake how are you going to feel? were locked into a crappy acc contract with a couple bball schools. now we just officially killed our fball program.

I know what you're saying but what happens if UConn stays put, Rutgers says yes to the ACC and since UConn said no, they turn to USF. Cincy and Louisville get Big 12 invites. Boise and SDSU stay put in the MWC or one gets a Pac-12 invite since RU/UL/UC/and USF are gone. Now UConn is alone in the NBE for how many years? If it lasts long enough it can totally kill the football momentum we've built. No recruit will want to come play for this school. This scenario is far-fetched but what here hasn't been in some way, shape, or form.

UConn's in a tough spot. I can't see them saying no to the ACC. I can't see anyone saying ok to that decision and then watching the ACC move on to Rutgers and someone else. Even if the rest of your plan plays out in a year or more. I just don't see UConn in the B1G. I know you're a true believer in this but I just can't possibly see it.....

 

[huskypantz]

the problem is that a) the PAC already has a presence is Utah, b) the cultural issues with adding a Mormon university are significant, and c) Boise State is an absolute joke academically. I don't mean like Arizona State is a party school and the second best state u in Arizona; I mean like it's a clown college. It might be the third best state u in Idaho. Maybe.

Agree that BSU is low level academics. But BYU ain't just Utah. You're talking 6 million LDS in the US and 14 million worldwide. Less than 2 million of that is in Utah. If you can deal with the religious piece, they've got strong TV numbers.

 

[UConnJim]

What if the SEC wants UNC and UVA over NC St and VT? You have to think the SEC would target the flagship schools in a state. UNC and UVA identify themselves with Southern schools over Midwestern schools and they were in the Southern Conference years ago with the SEC schools. This might help UConn's chances of finding a home in the Big 1G.

 

[RS9999X]

The only scenario that makes sense to me for the PAC is 4 associate members in Basketball. They could find 4 basketball programs in the West to enlarge their carrier Footprint and Asian strategy and do so without giving them a full share. Five year contracts to Gonzaga, Nevada, New Mexico, and Air Force or something like that.

 

[UConnJim]

1-academics.
2-unc bball would be better off with ind/mich/michst/uconn potentialy vs uk and fl.
3- the sec would not take uva over vt.
4-while unc would be the home run vs ncst, unc will go where it fits academics and vision wise.

I disagree. I think UNC and UVA alums see themselves as Southern schools, not Midwestern schools. Plus, you always go after the flagship school in a state, not the also ran, so they would take UVA over VT. Besides, the SEC has enough good football schools, this is about markets.

 

[The Funster]

The Pac situation is the leading reason why there won't be 4 sixteen team power conferences. They have no other option but to either

a) poach from the Big 12

or

b) the big schools get together and rationally create the 4 new conferences.

I don't see either of those scenarios happening. Therefore, there has to be a fifth conference, at least, as a home for as many as 16 schools.