Too early to provide much details. It is all rumors at this point. Read the comments too where he says the possible destination
Rumors indeedā¦ie- donāt put much stock in to the SMC to Big12 comment.
GU to Big East given itās a non-football conf makes more sense than the GU to the PAC-12 ever did, not to mention PAC-12ās research institution requirement which GU is not. The challenge for GU in the Big East would be the crazy travel though they do fly charter which mitigates a bit. But also raises the question of what happens to GUās other sportsā¦would be a huge challenge for soccer, baseball, volleyball to endure all that travel.
And more important to this board and SCUā¦whatās next for the WCC if both BYU and GU leave? Stand pat w/ 8 (the historical common #), or add a couple like Seattle U and Denver??? Thereās a limited # of west coast private D1 schools that fit the WCC model. Someone will throw out GCU but I hate that ideaā¦would be an odd duck as BYU was.
I donāt think this guy actually knows anything concrete.
The ways I can see it going are:
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AAC expands South, adds some sun belt and cusa. Not very exciting, really. There are some big markets represented but its not like fiu carries miami-dade. Wouldnāt really affect Gonzaga.
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MWC invites Memphis and smu. Better short term move for football but maybe not great for everything else. Gonzaga as a bkb only would make sense here. Them and Wichita would really boost mwc as a bkb product. But mwc has several passengers.
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Mountain west falls apart in or around 2027. Thatās when their TV deal expires. Maybe the value adding programs split and grab up Memphis, smu, other Texas options. Maybe thereās a role for Gonzaga and Wichita as non football members. Its harder to get rid of dead wood in an existing conference than start a new one. As the mwc knows better than anyone.
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Gonzaga, Wichita and Memphis to the big east. I donāt know what happens with Memphis football in this scenario. Maybe a football only affiliation. Wichita in tthe big east would be almost as big a cultural misfit as byu in the wcc. This just seems super tough to make work.
I donāt really buy that thereās inside knowledge that GU has a real intention to leave. The incentive to leave for GU is stronger without BYU but probably weaker than it was 3-4 years ago last time we went through this. Now that theyāve made another national championship game from the WCC, thereās nothing about the WCC that holds them back from their lofty aspirations. The Big East gets them better games and more moneyānot nothing by any stretch. But worth the move for all their non-revenue sports? Tough to say but unlikely I think.
MWC looks better in BYUās absence, but itās a feeder league for the big boys. The AAC is having its cupboard cleared out and will be hungry. The Big 12 may need to expand even more to tread water as a quasi-power conference. SDSU, Boise State, CO State, and maybe UNLV are going to be the next schools up. The MWC is a league built for disintegration. Not sure GU should hitch itself to that ship.
I disagree that the wcc will not hurt gonzaga. We are in a different world. Does it limit their NIL opportunities? Highly likely. NIL is going to be a huge thing at the elite recruiting level and 2022 recruiting looks like it is already having an impact.
A QB recruit in Kentucky literally is leaving high school right now, after playing a high school game this weekend, to go to Rutgers bc of a 6 figure NIL deal. Duren and Bates going to Memphis has a lot to do with NIL. UK basketball is probably going to get 5 of the top 15 rated recruits. Gonzaga isnāt in for any of the top 20.
I expect foreign recruiting will be impacted too. You canāt sign for a pro contract in a pro academy but you can make all the money you want in ncaa?
NIL is going to change college basketball profoundly. Iām not sure the extent has really been put together yet.
As expected, a done dealā¦BYU to the Big 12: Big 12 votes to accept adding BYU, Cincinnati, Houston, UCF to conference (espn.com)
BYU will stay in the WCC through 2022/23 season.
I know it reduces the level and profile of the WCC a hair but I donāt careā¦good riddance. I wasnāt in favor of them joining the WCC to begin with, not a good overall fit and I knew it was a short term move until they found a good landing spot for their football team. They stayed a little longer than I expected but is only because the league shuffling was fairly quiet for several years and they had no opportunity to go elsewhere until Texas/Oklahoma triggered this current series of moves.
The WCC was already considered a mid-major league prior to BYUās arrival and will remain so after they depart.
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It seems like this was the rare arrangement where all parties really got exactly what they wanted and more.
BYU got to preserve the non-negotiables that led to frustrations with the MWC (BYUtv and no Sunday games). They also got to bide time and wait for a power conference inviteāeven if much of the sports world will be scoffing at the Big12 as a power conference in football after Texas and Oklahoma exit.
The WCC got a shot in the arm for profile, revenue, etc. BYU was certainly important in getting some of the better media deals of any mid-major conference in the last decade. The all-important Zags got a relatively good in-conference rival to form the ābig 3.ā That provided some credibility to the idea that SCU, LMU, etc. could (and should) invest more in basketball to make the WCC more like the Big East, spurring those schools to action.
So I guess Iāll take the other side of 92 here. I liked BYU being part of the conference and will be bummed to see them go even though it was always a temporary arrangement. I am glad that we have two more seasons with BYU, though. Thatās two more seasons to get 1-2 other WCC members up into the at-large bubble which is a possibility that I think BYUās presence in the conference helped create.
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I was hoping they would leave sooner.
Definitely makes sense for BYU but does seem like the Big 12 ultimately becomes what the American Athletic Conference was the last few years. I canāt imagine Kansas hangs around the Big 12 much longer. Baylor and Oklahoma State Football fans are already freaking out about losing ground to Texas, Oklahoma, and Texas A&M in football. West Virginia would love to be in the ACCā¦and on and on.
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sounds like air force and Colorado state are leaving the mwc for the aac. Boise and sdsu holding out for a future expansion by a power 4 or the big 12.