RE: Using the Big Sky to backfill the MWC
Minimum requirements are Carnegie R1 research level. that is really a requirement of ALL power conferences, especially for public universities. (Four legacy R2 schools, three in the SEC, the other Oklahoma State)
But it's more than that, as 8 of 12 schools are members of the AAU, and the remaining are members of the URA (a little less selective research organization than the AAU, mostly for US government research grants). Being designated a land grant school also helps.
Colorado State (R1 URA LG), New Mexico (R1 URA), Hawaii (R LG)
A simple test to see if a school would be admitted to the Pac-12, would an Academic Dean at UC Berkeley, UCLA, USC, Washington, Arizona, or Colorado consider the same position at the expansion candidate school? If the answer is no, then they will not be invited.
The big thing they are looking for is a partner in their research collaborations. The Pac-12, which pulls in the UC schools (Irvine, Davis, San Diego, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, Riverside) to the consortium, wants schools that are able to be peers with these. Colorado, and Utah are very good in this sense.
If you don't pass the academic and research test, it doesn't matter what your athletics are.
(This post was last modified: 02-10-2017 05:43 PM by Stugray2.)
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