(12-29-2020 09:41 AM)Marc Mensa Wrote: Boise is one of the preeminent programs in the west. Adding them would
...boost TV sets
...generate more interest in marquee conference match ups
...help make the case for P5 inclusion for the AAC.
To me, adding them, and BYU if they’d consider it, is a given for our conference.
I've completely changed my mind based on how Cincinnati was treated this year. Last season I was in favour of adding them because I thought the same things that you are typing. Now, we all know that nothing the conference does is going to make a difference. A win against Memphis, UCF or SMU doesn't help an AAC team. It means that the team they beat, sucks.
North Carolina actually jumped up 4 spots to #8 by beating Syracuse, then jumped 3 spots to #5 by beating Virginia Tech. Two of their losses are to Florida State and Virginia, yet they are ranked #13 going into their bowl game. Any time an AAC team loses they sink like a stone, and Cincinnati gets no credit for beating anyone.
Boise won't help us; they will be competition for NY6. They are a brand, but they are a tiny fraction of the brand they were in 2007. They pissed on us twice, and I went back and looked at conversations I had with different people, and it seems as though we approached them about playing, and they wanted no part of it. Now the shoe is on the other foot. They have a vanishing brand, and they are about to make a lot less money on their tv deal.
You can also argue that the rest of the MWC has finally dragged down their brand once and for all.
San Diego State
- Ended the season ranked 1 time in the last 33 seasons
- #25 in 2016
Utah State
- Ended the season ranked 2 times in the last 58 seasons
- #18 in 2012, #21 in 2018
Air Force
- Ended the season ranked 1 time in the last 21 seasons
- #21 in 2019
San Jose State
- Ended the season ranked 2 times in the last 29 years (including this year)
- #20 currently
Unless they add money, they add nothing except a potential loss that will have the committee dropping the loser 5-10 spots in the rankings.