(12-07-2015 12:02 AM)Memphis Blazer Wrote: We have no advantage over Houston or anyone else. This thread is fantasy land.
I have to agree with this. We're so far down the totem pole that what the Big XII does only matters since it could cause a shift where some of our peers leave us behind again.
UAB is so far behind that it'd take more than just a couple of years. We had a chance to replicate some successful models, but obvious reasons prevented as much. As a direct result, we're probably about a decade away from even warranting a glance much less moving to a better conference.
On a lighter note, I don't believe that the Big XII expanding would relegate us to non power conferences forever. Birmingham is a major college football market, and, after this fiasco, I also believe we'd do whatever we have to do to stay at a FBS level no matter how much cost escalate. As far as making the jump goes, it really boils down to straight up dominating your conference for a good stretch, a heavy commitment from the administration, and luck.
I don't think being in Texas hurts Houston that much. Yeah, it's no doubt that the Big XII wants to expand their footprint, but there's nothing wrong with pulling in a quality program. I still think Memphis and Cincinnati are more likely, though. I think UConn is making really great strides, too. As far as replacements for any teams in the AAC go, we probably wouldn't even be in the top five.