Realignment Carousel Spins Up again (USC and UCLA to Big 10)

[Stickboy46]

The bloodbath is now. They pay an exit fee, no revenue for 7 years and the pay players to keep up with the P4 and they lose anyway! What do you want? Those donors didn’t get rich making those kind of decisions. And the realigning of the ACC isn’t over. Just as it isn’t for the AAC. Meanwhile the NCAA has become a Junior High Cliquefest.

Final number was 9 years

[Stickboy46]

Army is good from a conference standpoint but is a non factor for us and basketball

[Dan]

1) AAC still beats the only other alternative which is the Valley.

2) Even when Memphis eventually leaves still better than Valley.

3) At some point when depleted enough the AAC will look around and question WSU’s membership. Just like SunBelt did to teams and just like original conf USA did with a few teams.

4) Side thought, what the heck does Tulsa have FBS football for? Pretty sure Newman has similar student enrollment numbers. Just checked 3740 for Tulsa, and 3736 for Newman. That includes post graduates, etc.

Rice has about 4400 undergrads and 4000 grad students. Grad students numbers can be deceiving because a lot of these people are working professionals going part time.

[Shoxing Me Softly]

1) AAC still beats the only other alternative which is the Valley.

2) Even when Memphis eventually leaves still better than Valley.

3) At some point when depleted enough the AAC will look around and question WSU’s membership. Just like SunBelt did to teams and just like original conf USA did with a few teams.

4) Side thought, what the heck does Tulsa have FBS football for? Pretty sure Newman has similar student enrollment numbers. Just checked 3740 for Tulsa, and 3736 for Newman. That includes post graduates, etc.

[Kung Wu]

In other words, Oregon State and Washington State told us no. Or ESPN doesn't care about adding them.

Maybe the opposite. I could see the university presidents of the AAC not being interested in them due to the strain it puts on our conference without a substantial increase in reward.

[Dan]

In other words, Oregon State and Washington State told us no. Or ESPN doesn't care about adding them.

I don't think they add anything other than being former P5 members. They were dogs in their conference and will probably be dogs in the MWC. Flying from Tampa to Washington or Oregon is brutal, especially when you're doing it for stuff like women's soccer.

[Maizerunner08]

In other words, Oregon State and Washington State told us no. Or ESPN doesn't care about adding them.

[TrackSuitAndTie]

[ShockBand]

The Gordon Gekko approach. That said, college athletics may well start to lose some of its appeal to me.

[Kel Varnsen]

It goes without saying but geography seems to be a non-factor now. Olympic sports be damned.

Maybe it's just the nostalgia in me, but there was some special about regional conferences. Now it's just a bunch of schools that have no ties.

The Big 8/12 was fun...it was geographical and had rivalries that had existed for nearly a century. Nebraska-Missouri, Nebraska-Colorado, Oklahoma-Nebraska, Oklahoma-Oklahoma St, Kansas-Missouri, and many other matchups have all been torn asunder. Once OU and Texas join the SEC next year, none of the departed or the original Big 12 football programs will be in a better competitive shape compared to the national landscape than they were in 2009. Not one. Nebraska can't even beat middling B1G teams, Missouri and Texas A&M will likely never compete for a playoff spot while in the SEC, OU/Texas will have to play in the SEC instead of being the big dog in the Big 12, and to top it all off...fans don't get to enjoy the rivalries and matchups they've relished for years.

As much of a capitalist as I am, the pursuit of money has changed college athletics, and not for the better.

[Kel Varnsen]

[Maizerunner08]

It goes without saying but geography seems to be a non-factor now. Olympic sports be damned.

Maybe it's just the nostalgia in me, but there was some special about regional conferences. Now it's just a bunch of schools that have no ties.

[C0|dB|00ded]

The biggest mistake ever to give up football.

We're actually VERY lucky to even be in the AAC (Thank you Gregg Marshall).

Unfortunately, the AAC is now a **** conference.

[Ashockalypse]

Every single one of us would trade our first born to be a member of the ACC. Good for SMU. This will be GREAT for the future of their institution.

I might trade your offspring.

[C0|dB|00ded]

So Washington State and Oregon State are either going to the American or MWC.

MWC. They make no sense for us geographically. The east coast schools would suffer enormously. And they're going to bounce the second they get an offer from anyone.