(01-08-2020 09:49 AM)CoastalJuan Wrote:  East schools that I'd take over App State (not saying I want any, but I'd take them over App)
Marshall
UAB
Southern Miss
Louisiana (not really East but...)

Of those, only UAB fits the institutional profile of an AAC school, and they have other issues.
In another thread, someone asks what the value of adding another good basketball school is. In basketball, another good school would pump up everyone's ratings and increase the chances of an extra at large.
But the better question is in football - another good school gives our best team an extra chance to lose a game; and that's even tougher considering losing U Conn takes some breathing room.
From what I can tell, the fact that the AAC is so much better than the G4 gives us one thing (besides the superior tv deal): the tiebreaker for the access game. If the records are even, the AAC team goes. If we expand the disparity between us and the G4, will that get us to the point that we get the spot even if our team has one more loss than the next best, or get an autobid to an access game, or become formally recognized as P6? I hope so.

(01-08-2020 10:43 AM)DrBox Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 09:49 AM)CoastalJuan Wrote:  East schools that I'd take over App State (not saying I want any, but I'd take them over App)
Marshall
UAB
Southern Miss
Louisiana (not really East but...)

Of those, only UAB fits the institutional profile of an AAC school, and they have other issues.
In another thread, someone asks what the value of adding another good basketball school is. In basketball, another good school would pump up everyone's ratings and increase the chances of an extra at large.
But the better question is in football - another good school gives our best team an extra chance to lose a game; and that's even tougher considering losing U Conn takes some breathing room.
From what I can tell, the fact that the AAC is so much better than the G4 gives us one thing (besides the superior tv deal): the tiebreaker for the access game. If the records are even, the AAC team goes. If we expand the disparity between us and the G4, will that get us to the point that we get the spot even if our team has one more loss than the next best, or get an autobid to an access game, or become formally recognized as P6? I hope so.

I get the extra bid part, but would it have a meaningful enough effect on ratings to factor into the decision to add a school? What percentage of our viewership does basketball make up in total? Is it even 5%?

(01-08-2020 10:11 AM)Z-Fly Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 09:24 AM)mtmedlin Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 08:51 AM)Atlanta Wrote:  One western school will not bring value to the AAC unless it is BYU. They are essential to any western expansion. Without BYU western expansion makes no sense. App St is a better one off choice to get back to 12 than any western expansion that doesn't include BYU. And adding no one may be a better choice than App St.

That's where we are if $$ value is the criteria.

Nope. Been round and round on this and anyone who understands tv contracts knows that Air Force has plenty of value.

BYU isn’t coming and App state has less than no chance of making it in. Seriously, None. They add no viewership when we already have ECU.

Only part of your statement that was correct is that adding no one is better than App St.

Wouldn't they add their viewers? We don't have the B1G deal.

Too many proper nouns in the post you are answering to understand your meaning. I'm afraid you are gonna have to define who "they" are.

ETA: if you are referring to Appy State, of course they would bring their viewers. The point is, how many could that possibly be? Especially compared to Air Force.

(01-08-2020 11:10 AM)CoastalJuan Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 10:43 AM)DrBox Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 09:49 AM)CoastalJuan Wrote:  East schools that I'd take over App State (not saying I want any, but I'd take them over App)
Marshall
UAB
Southern Miss
Louisiana (not really East but...)

Of those, only UAB fits the institutional profile of an AAC school, and they have other issues.
In another thread, someone asks what the value of adding another good basketball school is. In basketball, another good school would pump up everyone's ratings and increase the chances of an extra at large.
But the better question is in football - another good school gives our best team an extra chance to lose a game; and that's even tougher considering losing U Conn takes some breathing room.
From what I can tell, the fact that the AAC is so much better than the G4 gives us one thing (besides the superior tv deal): the tiebreaker for the access game. If the records are even, the AAC team goes. If we expand the disparity between us and the G4, will that get us to the point that we get the spot even if our team has one more loss than the next best, or get an autobid to an access game, or become formally recognized as P6? I hope so.

I get the extra bid part, but would it have a meaningful enough effect on ratings to factor into the decision to add a school? What percentage of our viewership does basketball make up in total? Is it even 5%?

Then why don't we just cut basketball all together? Why do people think we can just ignore it because it doesn't have the impact football does?

UConn's departure has a negative impact on the basketball side and a positive impact on football. Basketball is the side that needs a patch to make up for that value, not football.

Add VCU and get it over with.

(01-08-2020 09:36 AM)jedclampett Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 08:51 AM)Atlanta Wrote:  One western school will not bring value to the AAC unless it is BYU. They are essential to any western expansion. Without BYU western expansion makes no sense. App St is a better one off choice to get back to 12 than any western expansion that doesn't include BYU. And adding no one may be a better choice than App St.

That's where we are if $$ value is the criteria.

That's not even a slightly convincing argument, since you haven't presented any evidence at all for these conclusions, and because it is certainly an exaggeration to suggest that "One western school will not bring (any) value (at all) to the AAC."

The truth of the matter is that one western school (since the AAC would only offer membership to the better MWC schools) would expand the conference's footprint into the mountain or pacific States, and would almost undoubtedly add more value than UConn has added in the past few years.

Everyone would agree that a Boise or BYU would bring greater viewership than the lower-tier AAC FB schools.

However, the same could be said for SDSU and Air Force. SDSU is in a large metro area and would add a slice of the southern California FBS viewership.

Air Force's viewership ratings in 2019 have been quite similar to those of BYU and Boise St.

You folks have completely ignored travel costs & the value associated with having a school WITHIN THE FOOTPRINT of the AAC that has good fan support vs a western school that will bring no fans & add about $3 to 6M annually in combined conference travel $$. You can't just look at TV revenue without considering the lack of fan involvement or travel costs.

(01-08-2020 12:12 PM)The Grape King Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 11:10 AM)CoastalJuan Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 10:43 AM)DrBox Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 09:49 AM)CoastalJuan Wrote:  East schools that I'd take over App State (not saying I want any, but I'd take them over App)
Marshall
UAB
Southern Miss
Louisiana (not really East but...)

Of those, only UAB fits the institutional profile of an AAC school, and they have other issues.
In another thread, someone asks what the value of adding another good basketball school is. In basketball, another good school would pump up everyone's ratings and increase the chances of an extra at large.
But the better question is in football - another good school gives our best team an extra chance to lose a game; and that's even tougher considering losing U Conn takes some breathing room.
From what I can tell, the fact that the AAC is so much better than the G4 gives us one thing (besides the superior tv deal): the tiebreaker for the access game. If the records are even, the AAC team goes. If we expand the disparity between us and the G4, will that get us to the point that we get the spot even if our team has one more loss than the next best, or get an autobid to an access game, or become formally recognized as P6? I hope so.

I get the extra bid part, but would it have a meaningful enough effect on ratings to factor into the decision to add a school? What percentage of our viewership does basketball make up in total? Is it even 5%?

Then why don't we just cut basketball all together? Why do people think we can just ignore it because it doesn't have the impact football does?

UConn's departure has a negative impact on the basketball side and a positive impact on football. Basketball is the side that needs a patch to make up for that value, not football.

Add VCU and get it over with.

Because then we start to creep closer and closer to what the old BigEast was. A laughing stock amongst the power conferences. A Frankenstein conference of basketball-onlys over here, and football-onlys over there. Voting imbalances. Jealousies not easily reconciled. A mess.

(01-08-2020 12:14 PM)Atlanta Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 09:36 AM)jedclampett Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 08:51 AM)Atlanta Wrote:  One western school will not bring value to the AAC unless it is BYU. They are essential to any western expansion. Without BYU western expansion makes no sense. App St is a better one off choice to get back to 12 than any western expansion that doesn't include BYU. And adding no one may be a better choice than App St.

That's where we are if $$ value is the criteria.

That's not even a slightly convincing argument, since you haven't presented any evidence at all for these conclusions, and because it is certainly an exaggeration to suggest that "One western school will not bring (any) value (at all) to the AAC."

The truth of the matter is that one western school (since the AAC would only offer membership to the better MWC schools) would expand the conference's footprint into the mountain or pacific States, and would almost undoubtedly add more value than UConn has added in the past few years.

Everyone would agree that a Boise or BYU would bring greater viewership than the lower-tier AAC FB schools.

However, the same could be said for SDSU and Air Force. SDSU is in a large metro area and would add a slice of the southern California FBS viewership.

Air Force's viewership ratings in 2019 have been quite similar to those of BYU and Boise St.

You folks have completely ignored travel costs & the value associated with having a school WITHIN THE FOOTPRINT of the AAC that has good fan support vs a western school that will bring no fans & add about $3 to 6M annually in combined conference travel $$. You can't just look at TV revenue without considering the lack of fan involvement or travel costs.

Do you understand that every time Memphis plays an away game, the team gets on a plane? Unless we are playing Arkansas State or Ole Miss (or MAYBE Mississippi State)... (NONE OF WHICH ARE IN OUR CONFERENCE), our team gets on a PLANE. Are you seriously going to sit there with a straight face and argue about the extra fuel costs for Air Force..... AIR FORCE... to fly to 4 central and Eastern time zone games per year? REALLY?

(01-08-2020 12:12 PM)The Grape King Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 11:10 AM)CoastalJuan Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 10:43 AM)DrBox Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 09:49 AM)CoastalJuan Wrote:  East schools that I'd take over App State (not saying I want any, but I'd take them over App)
Marshall
UAB
Southern Miss
Louisiana (not really East but...)

Of those, only UAB fits the institutional profile of an AAC school, and they have other issues.
In another thread, someone asks what the value of adding another good basketball school is. In basketball, another good school would pump up everyone's ratings and increase the chances of an extra at large.
But the better question is in football - another good school gives our best team an extra chance to lose a game; and that's even tougher considering losing U Conn takes some breathing room.
From what I can tell, the fact that the AAC is so much better than the G4 gives us one thing (besides the superior tv deal): the tiebreaker for the access game. If the records are even, the AAC team goes. If we expand the disparity between us and the G4, will that get us to the point that we get the spot even if our team has one more loss than the next best, or get an autobid to an access game, or become formally recognized as P6? I hope so.

I get the extra bid part, but would it have a meaningful enough effect on ratings to factor into the decision to add a school? What percentage of our viewership does basketball make up in total? Is it even 5%?

Then why don't we just cut basketball all together? Why do people think we can just ignore it because it doesn't have the impact football does?

UConn's departure has a negative impact on the basketball side and a positive impact on football. Basketball is the side that needs a patch to make up for that value, not football.

Add VCU and get it over with.

Just to clarify, when I typed "ratings" I meant various power ratings like RPIs, Net, that sort of thing. Not TV ratings.

(01-08-2020 10:11 AM)Z-Fly Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 09:24 AM)mtmedlin Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 08:51 AM)Atlanta Wrote:  One western school will not bring value to the AAC unless it is BYU. They are essential to any western expansion. Without BYU western expansion makes no sense. App St is a better one off choice to get back to 12 than any western expansion that doesn't include BYU. And adding no one may be a better choice than App St.

That's where we are if $$ value is the criteria.

Nope. Been round and round on this and anyone who understands tv contracts knows that Air Force has plenty of value.

BYU isn’t coming and App state has less than no chance of making it in. Seriously, None. They add no viewership when we already have ECU.

Only part of your statement that was correct is that adding no one is better than App St.

Wouldn't they add their viewers? We don't have the B1G deal.

Their viewership numbers were dismal. Air Force is more than triple.

(01-08-2020 12:18 AM)geosnooker2000 Wrote:  

(01-07-2020 11:39 PM)Attackcoog Wrote:  

(01-07-2020 07:10 PM)geosnooker2000 Wrote:  

(01-07-2020 07:03 PM)mtmedlin Wrote:  If the AAC had wanted any team from CUSA, MAC or the Sunbelt, we would have already taken them. We could have added them anytime... and we haven’t.

There’s is absolutely no advantage to waiting. All of them are under contract, we know exactly what we would need to do to move them and waiting only makes it harder on us.

If we were considering ANY of them, we wouldn’t have asked for a 2 year waiver. We could take them now.... but let’s for some wild and stupid speculation say that we’re using that time to transition, then we would have invited them already to start the process in order to help minimize their costs.

The entire conversation about any of those teams being added is stupid and in no way is supported by any evidence or logical line of thinking.

Along this line of thinking, the only one that makes any sense at all, is Liberty. Because they are independent, they would need extra time to clear their schedule of a conference slate. But I don't think it's that. I think we are waiting on MWC TV deal to finalize. That, and to "talk sense" to BYU. The problem with BYU is, they haven't really had good football seasons lately, so there's nothing for our leadership to point to, and say "See? If you had that record in OUR conference, you would be able to go to XYZ bowl. You would have been able to host a conference championship game."

Liberty has no value either. However, if you replace "BYU" with "Air Force"---your last few sentences could be on to something.

Oh, I'm with YOU. I want AirForce, Boise, and Colorado State for a 3 team all sports western pod. If we only get one, I want AirForce. That's it. End of story. I was just answering the statement in the post above mine. That being:

"If the AAC had wanted any team from CUSA, MAC or the Sunbelt, we would have already taken them. We could have added them anytime... and we haven’t."

I took that to FULLY mean, "G5s that are East of the Mississippi".

Some comparisons of Liberty vs Air Force
2019 Attendance
Liberty 18,272 Max. Capacity 25,000 with plans to expand to 30,000.
Air Force 27,084 Max. Capacity 46,692
AF/Army Game 41,401
TV numbers?

The travel cost argument is amazingly bad. The cost to travel for all member to someone ACD like Buffalo isn’t much different than Colorado. Hell, some of the cheaper tickets are actually to major air ports like San Diego, compared to more remote like Tulsa. It actually cost me the same to travel to San Diego out of Tampa compared to Tulsa....so travel costs are highly over emphasized.

(01-08-2020 10:11 AM)Z-Fly Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 09:24 AM)mtmedlin Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 08:51 AM)Atlanta Wrote:  One western school will not bring value to the AAC unless it is BYU. They are essential to any western expansion. Without BYU western expansion makes no sense. App St is a better one off choice to get back to 12 than any western expansion that doesn't include BYU. And adding no one may be a better choice than App St.

That's where we are if $$ value is the criteria.

Nope. Been round and round on this and anyone who understands tv contracts knows that Air Force has plenty of value.

BYU isn’t coming and App state has less than no chance of making it in. Seriously, None. They add no viewership when we already have ECU.

Only part of your statement that was correct is that adding no one is better than App St.

Wouldn't they add their viewers? We don't have the B1G deal.

Their viewership numbers were dismal. Air Force is more than triple.

(01-08-2020 12:34 PM)mtmedlin Wrote:  The travel cost argument is amazingly bad. The cost to travel for all member to someone ACD like Buffalo isn’t much different than Colorado. Hell, some of the cheaper tickets are actually to major air ports like San Diego, compared to more remote like Tulsa. It actually cost me the same to travel to San Diego out of Tampa compared to Tulsa....so travel costs are highly over emphasized.

Well, you get what you pay for.

(01-08-2020 11:39 AM)geosnooker2000 Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 10:11 AM)Z-Fly Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 09:24 AM)mtmedlin Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 08:51 AM)Atlanta Wrote:  One western school will not bring value to the AAC unless it is BYU. They are essential to any western expansion. Without BYU western expansion makes no sense. App St is a better one off choice to get back to 12 than any western expansion that doesn't include BYU. And adding no one may be a better choice than App St.

That's where we are if $$ value is the criteria.

Nope. Been round and round on this and anyone who understands tv contracts knows that Air Force has plenty of value.

BYU isn’t coming and App state has less than no chance of making it in. Seriously, None. They add no viewership when we already have ECU.

Only part of your statement that was correct is that adding no one is better than App St.

Wouldn't they add their viewers? We don't have the B1G deal.

Too many proper nouns in the post you are answering to understand your meaning. I'm afraid you are gonna have to define who "they" are.

ETA: if you are referring to Appy State, of course they would bring their viewers. The point is, how many could that possibly be? Especially compared to Air Force.

Yes, App State. Wouldn't I have to be a crazy person to reference a team that we weren't currently discussing? I guess my point is, why would ECU matter when discussing App State viewership?

I'm all in on the VCU for all sports but football, since they don't have a squad. I wasn't before, but didn't realize how large their endowment is, in addition to having a medical school. In the end, all that doesn't matter as much to me, but their basketball squad is obviously the main reason.

(01-08-2020 12:12 PM)The Grape King Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 11:10 AM)CoastalJuan Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 10:43 AM)DrBox Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 09:49 AM)CoastalJuan Wrote:  East schools that I'd take over App State (not saying I want any, but I'd take them over App)
Marshall
UAB
Southern Miss
Louisiana (not really East but...)

Of those, only UAB fits the institutional profile of an AAC school, and they have other issues.
In another thread, someone asks what the value of adding another good basketball school is. In basketball, another good school would pump up everyone's ratings and increase the chances of an extra at large.
But the better question is in football - another good school gives our best team an extra chance to lose a game; and that's even tougher considering losing U Conn takes some breathing room.
From what I can tell, the fact that the AAC is so much better than the G4 gives us one thing (besides the superior tv deal): the tiebreaker for the access game. If the records are even, the AAC team goes. If we expand the disparity between us and the G4, will that get us to the point that we get the spot even if our team has one more loss than the next best, or get an autobid to an access game, or become formally recognized as P6? I hope so.

I get the extra bid part, but would it have a meaningful enough effect on ratings to factor into the decision to add a school? What percentage of our viewership does basketball make up in total? Is it even 5%?

Then why don't we just cut basketball all together? Why do people think we can just ignore it because it doesn't have the impact football does?

UConn's departure has a negative impact on the basketball side and a positive impact on football. Basketball is the side that needs a patch to make up for that value, not football.

Add VCU and get it over with.

^^^^^^THIS^^^^^

If a football team that elevates the value and public perception of the AAC is available---then it might be time to add another football team. But as long as the choices are schools like UAB, ODU, Georgia St, etc....then just add VCU (which DOES elevate the value and public perception of the AAC) and stand pat in football (which was already elevated by eliminating its weakest link---UConn foobtall).

(01-08-2020 12:22 PM)geosnooker2000 Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 12:14 PM)Atlanta Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 09:36 AM)jedclampett Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 08:51 AM)Atlanta Wrote:  One western school will not bring value to the AAC unless it is BYU. They are essential to any western expansion. Without BYU western expansion makes no sense. App St is a better one off choice to get back to 12 than any western expansion that doesn't include BYU. And adding no one may be a better choice than App St.

That's where we are if $$ value is the criteria.

That's not even a slightly convincing argument, since you haven't presented any evidence at all for these conclusions, and because it is certainly an exaggeration to suggest that "One western school will not bring (any) value (at all) to the AAC."

The truth of the matter is that one western school (since the AAC would only offer membership to the better MWC schools) would expand the conference's footprint into the mountain or pacific States, and would almost undoubtedly add more value than UConn has added in the past few years.

Everyone would agree that a Boise or BYU would bring greater viewership than the lower-tier AAC FB schools.

However, the same could be said for SDSU and Air Force. SDSU is in a large metro area and would add a slice of the southern California FBS viewership.

Air Force's viewership ratings in 2019 have been quite similar to those of BYU and Boise St.

You folks have completely ignored travel costs & the value associated with having a school WITHIN THE FOOTPRINT of the AAC that has good fan support vs a western school that will bring no fans & add about $3 to 6M annually in combined conference travel $$. You can't just look at TV revenue without considering the lack of fan involvement or travel costs.

Do you understand that every time Memphis plays an away game, the team gets on a plane? Unless we are playing Arkansas State or Ole Miss (or MAYBE Mississippi State)... (NONE OF WHICH ARE IN OUR CONFERENCE), our team gets on a PLANE. Are you seriously going to sit there with a straight face and argue about the extra fuel costs for Air Force..... AIR FORCE... to fly to 4 central and Eastern time zone games per year? REALLY?

Obviously you haven't contracted for 100+ for charter service. It is directly related to air miles traveled not some competitive commercial pricing for a particular route between a couple of airlines. And you haven't considered fan interest - virtually no one from a school east of the MS River is driving to CO during the fall for a FB game or vice versa. I've done exactly that to Philly, New Orleans, Tulsa, Orlando & Tampa.

If we're going west it better include BYU, & 3 others like BSU, SDSU & one other to form a western div or pick one within our current envelope Or add no one.

(01-08-2020 12:59 PM)Z-Fly Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 11:39 AM)geosnooker2000 Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 10:11 AM)Z-Fly Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 09:24 AM)mtmedlin Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 08:51 AM)Atlanta Wrote:  One western school will not bring value to the AAC unless it is BYU. They are essential to any western expansion. Without BYU western expansion makes no sense. App St is a better one off choice to get back to 12 than any western expansion that doesn't include BYU. And adding no one may be a better choice than App St.

That's where we are if $$ value is the criteria.

Nope. Been round and round on this and anyone who understands tv contracts knows that Air Force has plenty of value.

BYU isn’t coming and App state has less than no chance of making it in. Seriously, None. They add no viewership when we already have ECU.

Only part of your statement that was correct is that adding no one is better than App St.

Wouldn't they add their viewers? We don't have the B1G deal.

Too many proper nouns in the post you are answering to understand your meaning. I'm afraid you are gonna have to define who "they" are.

ETA: if you are referring to Appy State, of course they would bring their viewers. The point is, how many could that possibly be? Especially compared to Air Force.

Yes, App State. Wouldn't I have to be a crazy person to reference a team that we weren't currently discussing? I guess my point is, why would ECU matter when discussing App State viewership?

I think it has to do with overlapping viewing areas.

Consider this hypothetical. The Dallas Cowboys, Dallas Mavericks, and Boston Celtics all have games in the exact same time slot tonight. You can pick any two of those three to capture the most eyeballs. Which two do you pick?

(01-08-2020 03:21 PM)Atlanta Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 12:22 PM)geosnooker2000 Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 12:14 PM)Atlanta Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 09:36 AM)jedclampett Wrote:  

(01-08-2020 08:51 AM)Atlanta Wrote:  One western school will not bring value to the AAC unless it is BYU. They are essential to any western expansion. Without BYU western expansion makes no sense. App St is a better one off choice to get back to 12 than any western expansion that doesn't include BYU. And adding no one may be a better choice than App St.

That's where we are if $$ value is the criteria.

That's not even a slightly convincing argument, since you haven't presented any evidence at all for these conclusions, and because it is certainly an exaggeration to suggest that "One western school will not bring (any) value (at all) to the AAC."

The truth of the matter is that one western school (since the AAC would only offer membership to the better MWC schools) would expand the conference's footprint into the mountain or pacific States, and would almost undoubtedly add more value than UConn has added in the past few years.

Everyone would agree that a Boise or BYU would bring greater viewership than the lower-tier AAC FB schools.

However, the same could be said for SDSU and Air Force. SDSU is in a large metro area and would add a slice of the southern California FBS viewership.

Air Force's viewership ratings in 2019 have been quite similar to those of BYU and Boise St.

You folks have completely ignored travel costs & the value associated with having a school WITHIN THE FOOTPRINT of the AAC that has good fan support vs a western school that will bring no fans & add about $3 to 6M annually in combined conference travel $$. You can't just look at TV revenue without considering the lack of fan involvement or travel costs.

Do you understand that every time Memphis plays an away game, the team gets on a plane? Unless we are playing Arkansas State or Ole Miss (or MAYBE Mississippi State)... (NONE OF WHICH ARE IN OUR CONFERENCE), our team gets on a PLANE. Are you seriously going to sit there with a straight face and argue about the extra fuel costs for Air Force..... AIR FORCE... to fly to 4 central and Eastern time zone games per year? REALLY?

Obviously you haven't contracted for 100+ for charter service. It is directly related to air miles traveled not some competitive commercial pricing for a particular route between a couple of airlines. And you haven't considered fan interest - virtually no one from a school east of the MS River is driving to CO during the fall for a FB game or vice versa. I've done exactly that to Philly, New Orleans, Tulsa, Orlando & Tampa.

If we're going west it better include BYU, & 3 others like BSU, SDSU & one other to form a western div or pick one within our current envelope Or add no one.

Not to mention that Air Force is a national brand and several schools have Air Force bases nearby. Or that like the other two Academies sports is for two reasons, to give a good all around education, teach leadership and team.work skills in competitive unpredictable circumstances with a particular set of rules and to advertise their branch of the military. The population base of the midwest dwarfs the MW even counting cali. Everything has negatives and positives and by freeing up an ooc game against Navy AFA can schedule in the west with ease. Hell I am sure Hawaii would love a home and home continuation and that's an extra game on top every other year.

No Olympic sports only addition (VCU) unless accompanied by the likes of Air Force or Army, I know "Army is not interested", but my point stands that the pairing of Air Force/VCU as a replacement for UConn will ad value... Air Force alone will not and VCU alone will not add value (Media $$) either.

SDSU, BYU, BSU, CSU, should be all sports W/Football.