There is now talk of the MWC champion playing the C-USA champion for a right to get into a BCS game. Has the MWC given up hope of an automatic bid? Chances are, their champion is going to qualify for a BCS game, just have to be in the top 12, i.e. finish 11-1 or 12-0. Why muddy it up by giving C-USA a 50% chance at it? Why would the BCS even consider accepting this anyway? Also, this game would probably have to be broadcast on The Mtn. at least every other year, right? How does that help exposure or revenue?
I read that part of this might be an attempt to keep BYU? Seriously, if I'm BYU this makes me realize even more how small of an organization the MWC is. How is this ANY better than the status quo? It's even worse! And if I'm President Samuelson and this was the solution presented to me to "improve" the conference in that call on Tuesday, I would have hurried off the phone too (and then have the conference secretly vote in new members while I was gone...). Any excuse would do: I have to go (and make phone calls that might actually benefit my university).
My proposed better solution: Fresno State, BYU, Boise State, Air Force, TCU, Houston and some combination of Hawaii, Southern Miss, SMU, UTEP, and East Carolina (and maybe Tulsa) form a new conference (and get a commissioner not named Craig Thompson). This new conference could ink a deal with ESPN worth probably about 5 times what most of them are receiving right now and it would probably even be a BCS-caliber conference on its own: no stupid play-in games that the BCS doesn't care about anyway. These teams have money, average about 30,000+ in attendance, and/or have spent at least some time in the top 25 in the past 4 seasons. Leave the leeches behind. Teams like Wyoming and Rice aren't worth a quarter of a million in TV revenue, yet they take a million more than that. Find a real solution, I'll give you a hint: a C-USA/MWC "championship" game isn't it. What a joke, Craig Thompson!
Just another way for the MWC to force BYU to stay and keep the gravey train coming. Where did Thompson learn business? You keep them happy and they keep coming back (Texas and the Big 12) not with Machiavelli style tactics such as using as much coercion as possible. That just leads to you being the first one killed in the rebellion.
ReplyDeleteIndependence anyone?? I say leave the fiasco behind. I can't imagine being that worse off (if at all) by taking the risk of going independent.
ReplyDeleteMike, you've got to move to Denver ASAP. You're too fun NOT to have around to chat sports with!
ReplyDeleteShane, agreed. The MWC this week has proven they don't have what it takes to be a major player in college football/sports.
ReplyDeleteThe MWC should now be known as the let's see what we can do to screw BYU conference. What is the worse thing that can happen by going independent? It cannot be as bad as the crowton years. The worse thing that I can see happening is that we fail spectacularly and everyone is still talking about us. And if ESPN is willing to create an ESPN conference for us, then I am sure some other conference other than the LSWWCDTSBYU conference will want us. (I need to work on a smaller acronym.)
ReplyDeleteAnd I will try to work on the moving thing.
There will not be a new conference, although I like the idea. Why would the Y want anything to do with schools that just stabbed them in back, see Fresno, AFA, & TCU? Independence is the only viable option, making a name for yourself so the Big 12 becomes interested. After all, they will be adding two teams for the 2012 season, assuming Colorado leaves then with Nebraska.
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