(04-24-2017 11:17 PM)LatahCounty Wrote:  Yeah, I don't believe we were anywhere near the WAC. I'm not sure why. Our first big chance to escape the Big Sky came in the early '70s when we were invited to the PCAA, which later became the Big West and at the time featured, among others, San Diego St., Fresno St., and San Jose St, and would soon add Utah St., UNLV and NMSU. We were blocked from membership by the SBOE because Boise St. objected to being left behind.

Many, many ironies in Idaho football history.

The myth that BSU (Boise State College or BSC at the time) had anything to do with UI not getting into the PCAA in 1973 is absurd. BSC had been in the state system only four years in 1973. It only had a few thousand students and a few buildings. It had no representation on the ISBOE (ISU had little more). BSC had only been D2 for a couple years and had no desire at the time to be D1 and no prospects to be D1 so they could not be left behind. BSC was already behind. Not getting in the PCAA did not necessarily result in UI dropping down (it put them in a similar position to today) and UI did not immediately drop down a division. The rift was between a D1 PCAA faction at the UI led by the AD versus a de-emphasize athletics (BSC) faction led by prominent faculty. The incident that tipped the scales was when UI's own comptroller accused the AD of inflating economic gains from the PCAA and declared the UI would never be likely to increase attendance enough to cover the costs of being in the PCAA and thus embracing the BSC and cutting costs was the only fiscally prudent move. This disclosure from a UI employee led to the deciding vote being cast in the ISBOE by an UI alumnus from Sandpoint. It was self inflicted. Tiny BSC couldn't have influenced the ISBOE in those days even if they had wanted to do so.

You are a good guy and I root for UI to remain FBS but the tale of a BSU or BSU/ISU power move (depending on the rant) in the ISBOE in 1973 is simply not true nor was it possible then. The source for this tale comes from the UI student newpaper archives and gets repeated on Vandal websites but it obviously has no basis in fact.