Siri list 8 undesirable place to go watch a college football game. (Actually I would go to Morgantown if Cal ever plays there, but probably only once.)
This is all becoming MORE absurd. The expansionism in the SEC makes sense for them, because those are generally football and sports focused institutions who also happen to have academic programs.
A few notes:
Geography: It is a shorter drive from Gainesville to Norman (17 hours) than from Seattle to Tucson (23 hours). I realize that airplanes exist, but football road trips build character. These young boys, girls, and theys need to see the vast expanse of this country! Nobody is road tripping from the West Coast to any of those places.
Culture: How many times have we been over this? Please stop considering further dilution of the pool. We already let in an "academic institution" with the nickname of an animal that does not exist on this continent. This is the umpteenth time I have raised this issue. It worries me greatly. At least we know a Jayhawk is fake. (Right?)
Ideology: Two of those school are religious institutions, so that's a hard no. Speaking of other odd arrangements of sky daddy influenced higher learning, BYU. With a frequency, college sports reporter brainiacs propose that BYU should join the PAC. Alternative proposal: BYU + SMU + TCU + Baylor + Notre Dame join to create the Much Ado About Nothing Conference.
The PAC 12 should collaborate with the Big 10 to form a mega coast to coast conference of universities that care about academics as well as athletics. The Rose Bowl would be for the conference championship.
This is all about $. Texas has a population of 30 million, and it is rapidly growing. Grabbing some Texas teams would be very attractive from a media rights perspective. If the PAC-12 were to take Tech, Baylor, and TCU, along with OSU, the conference would definitely be able to increase its per share take, while staying relevant in the long term and likely eclipsing the ACC as the #3 conference. And it doesn't exactly matter where the school is located. It's where the alumni are. Most of the alumni of these schools (including OSU) are clustered in Texas, especially north and central Texas. Advertisers would like it.
Agree with your conclusion that the PAC doesn't HAVE to do anything. My concern is what happens if (for example) USC/UCLA or Oregon/Washington get poached away by the Big10. Sitting pat could be a disaster in a scenario like that.
At last night's dinner, my son had what I think is a solid idea, but I have no knowledge of whether the Big-10/14 is interested. Rather than expand, make a pack with the Big-10 for each Pac-12 team to play two Big-10 teams every year, drop one Pac-12 game leaving 2 games open on the schedule.
I remember for a couple years after the Big10's last expansion they had that TV commercial with a cutesy animated map of the US showing all their team logos and territories sprout up, and Rutgers pops up with NYC buildings/skyline as its territory. What a complete joke that was. I would love to know the % of people who live in NYC who have even heard of Rutgers, despite its proximity. There were so many more deserving teams to hitch that lucrative Big10 ride.
This stuff is so complicated. No wonder I grew up favoring the NFL.
Siri list 8 undesirable place to go watch a college football game. (Actually I would go to Morgantown if Cal ever plays there, but probably only once.)
This is all becoming MORE absurd. The expansionism in the SEC makes sense for them, because those are generally football and sports focused institutions who also happen to have academic programs.
A few notes:
Geography: It is a shorter drive from Gainesville to Norman (17 hours) than from Seattle to Tucson (23 hours). I realize that airplanes exist, but football road trips build character. These young boys, girls, and theys need to see the vast expanse of this country! Nobody is road tripping from the West Coast to any of those places.
Culture: How many times have we been over this? Please stop considering further dilution of the pool. We already let in an "academic institution" with the nickname of an animal that does not exist on this continent. This is the umpteenth time I have raised this issue. It worries me greatly. At least we know a Jayhawk is fake. (Right?)
Ideology: Two of those school are religious institutions, so that's a hard no. Speaking of other odd arrangements of sky daddy influenced higher learning, BYU. With a frequency, college sports reporter brainiacs propose that BYU should join the PAC. Alternative proposal: BYU + SMU + TCU + Baylor + Notre Dame join to create the Much Ado About Nothing Conference.
Anyway, bigger is not better. Just ask my wife!
The PAC 12 should collaborate with the Big 10 to form a mega coast to coast conference of universities that care about academics as well as athletics. The Rose Bowl would be for the conference championship.
https://mobile.twitter.com/byjoelanderson/status/1420514610885496833
Makes more sense to have A&M and Texas together. Texas has to be w OU, so pick a third
This is all about $. Texas has a population of 30 million, and it is rapidly growing. Grabbing some Texas teams would be very attractive from a media rights perspective. If the PAC-12 were to take Tech, Baylor, and TCU, along with OSU, the conference would definitely be able to increase its per share take, while staying relevant in the long term and likely eclipsing the ACC as the #3 conference. And it doesn't exactly matter where the school is located. It's where the alumni are. Most of the alumni of these schools (including OSU) are clustered in Texas, especially north and central Texas. Advertisers would like it.
Agree with your conclusion that the PAC doesn't HAVE to do anything. My concern is what happens if (for example) USC/UCLA or Oregon/Washington get poached away by the Big10. Sitting pat could be a disaster in a scenario like that.
At last night's dinner, my son had what I think is a solid idea, but I have no knowledge of whether the Big-10/14 is interested. Rather than expand, make a pack with the Big-10 for each Pac-12 team to play two Big-10 teams every year, drop one Pac-12 game leaving 2 games open on the schedule.
Why don't we just recruit Texas and Oklahoma into Pac12 and make Pac-14.
Nick, why not just add 4, and kick out the desert schools so we could have a Pac8 division, and [Mtn8] division?
I remember for a couple years after the Big10's last expansion they had that TV commercial with a cutesy animated map of the US showing all their team logos and territories sprout up, and Rutgers pops up with NYC buildings/skyline as its territory. What a complete joke that was. I would love to know the % of people who live in NYC who have even heard of Rutgers, despite its proximity. There were so many more deserving teams to hitch that lucrative Big10 ride.