http://www.witn.com/home/headlines/Confe...89338.html

Quote:ECU Chancellor Steve Ballard says the merger between Conference USA and the Mountain West Conference should be completed by January.

Ballard made the prediction during a trustees meeting Monday.

The realigned conference will consist of 18 institutions: 9 from the east and 9 from the west.

How about January 2012 instead?

Interesting. Sounds like the plan is to increase TV revenue with a title game, split it fewer ways with fewer members, and hope that on a per-school basis that makes up for the reduction in TV revenue from losing marquee teams.

Good news for the WAC if true. They'll lose one member at most -- maybe none if UTEP moves over to the western division -- and can resume their rebuilding effort.

C-USA will probably trade UTEP to the MWC and pick up La Tech from the WAC.

(11-21-2011 09:34 PM)Wilkie01 Wrote:  How about January 2012 instead?

LOL. Thanks Wilkie for noticing my mistake.

(11-21-2011 10:03 PM)Steelbeard Wrote:  C-USA will probably trade UTEP to the MWC and pick up La Tech from the WAC.

Geographically that would make a lot of sense. El Paso is closer to San Diego than Houston, much less Greenville.

It also helps LaTech's case that it would be joining as the defending WAC champion.

(11-21-2011 09:57 PM)HawaiiMongoose Wrote:  Interesting. Sounds like the plan is to increase TV revenue with a title game, split it fewer ways with fewer members, and hope that on a per-school basis that makes up for the reduction in TV revenue from losing marquee teams.

Good news for the WAC if true. They'll lose one member at most -- maybe none if UTEP moves over to the western division -- and can resume their rebuilding effort.

I think the title game will just replace the existing CUSA championship gme, so thats probably revenue neutral. But revenue per school should increase due to less schools.

Well if the big east is getting 13-17 million per school per year, this conference should get about 20 million per school per year

Someone go tell boise, we plan to make 20 million per school

ECU's travel in this configuration is simply not going to cut it

ecu needs to let go of the travel issues, the conference isn't going to stop moving just because ecu has issues with traveling. You know Tulsa is in the west division, but they are closer to ecu than UTEP

(11-21-2011 11:25 PM)randaddyminer Wrote:  You know Tulsa is in the west division, but they are closer to ecu than UTEP

How do you figure that?

Tulsa to El Paso- 800 miles
Tulsa to Greenville- 1,235 miles

(11-21-2011 11:25 PM)randaddyminer Wrote:  ecu needs to let go of the travel issues, the conference isn't going to stop moving just because ecu has issues with traveling. You know Tulsa is in the west division, but they are closer to ecu than UTEP

I agree.

if you guys haven't realized, randaddyminer is a troll but im not sure if he is intentionally trying to be a troll.

(11-21-2011 11:33 PM)CollegeCard Wrote:  

(11-21-2011 11:25 PM)randaddyminer Wrote:  You know Tulsa is in the west division, but they are closer to ecu than UTEP

How do you figure that?

Tulsa to El Paso- 800 miles
Tulsa to Greenville- 1,235 miles

I think he meant that the distance from Tulsa to Greenville is less than the distance from El Paso to Greenville.

(11-21-2011 11:33 PM)CollegeCard Wrote:  

(11-21-2011 11:25 PM)randaddyminer Wrote:  You know Tulsa is in the west division, but they are closer to ecu than UTEP

How do you figure that?

Tulsa to El Paso- 800 miles
Tulsa to Greenville- 1,235 miles

woops I pulled off a top 25 poll mistake, I meant tulane

(11-21-2011 11:35 PM)ivet Wrote:  if you guys haven't realized, randaddyminer is a troll but im not sure if he is intentionally trying to be a troll.

(11-21-2011 11:35 PM)PurplePirate Wrote:  

(11-21-2011 11:33 PM)CollegeCard Wrote:  

(11-21-2011 11:25 PM)randaddyminer Wrote:  You know Tulsa is in the west division, but they are closer to ecu than UTEP

How do you figure that?

Tulsa to El Paso- 800 miles
Tulsa to Greenville- 1,235 miles

I think he meant that the distance from Tulsa to Greenville is less than the distance from El Paso to Greenville.

I wish I did, I meant Tulane

(11-21-2011 10:55 PM)randaddyminer Wrote:  Well if the big east is getting 13-17 million per school per year, this conference should get about 20 million per school per year

Someone go tell boise, we plan to make 20 million per school

ROTFLMAO!

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(11-21-2011 11:25 PM)randaddyminer Wrote:  ecu needs to let go of the travel issues, the conference isn't going to stop moving just because ecu has issues with traveling. You know [Tulane] is in the west division, but they are closer to ecu than UTEP

Seriously, what can they do? Go Boise on us and say they're not coming unless we build a new Eastern wing?

I don't mean to make fun, cause it does suck for them, and I'm all for revisiting the issue a few years down the road after both the new conference and some of the FCS-to-FBS schools have a few seasons under their belts. However, adding more schools before this thing even gets off the ground would be stupid on multiple levels.

randaddyminer
Not that I think ECUs travel issues are as big a deal either, but your wrong...
1. Tulsa is not closer to ECU (1235 miles) then to UTEP ( 845 miles) (well, I see you corrected yourself on this one)
2. We aint just thinkin about football games on the road. It's also every other sport that has to travel.

If the Alliance increases overall revenue per school to some level that exceeds/offsets the traveling cost, then ECU will be fine. If it does not, then ECU is the same boat as before. The same for Marshall. The bottom line and there is no denying it, that most of the teams are in the central time zone or close to it. Alot of the schools can travel by bus, not ECU / Marshall or even UTEP for that matter.