(07-26-2021 10:44 AM)BKTopper Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 10:21 AM)Kit-Cat Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 10:00 AM)Dawgxas Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 09:47 AM)Kit-Cat Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 09:41 AM)Fighting Muskie Wrote:  If the AAC has to make replacements to get to 10 I have to think that UAB and ODU are in that conversation. Maybe Rice if the private schools are feeling sympathetic to the Owls.

I don't see Liberty and Coastal getting nods just because of one good season.

Rice probably has the best shot because of market/academics.

My feeling is we might see a XII-AAC merger over a AAC backfill.

How do figure that? Maybe in 2025 but no AAC is going turn down 30 million more a year unless there is only one or two teams left in Big 12

The Big 12 would still retain the conference name and AAC teams would backfill

The XII schools are looking to hit the exit for the B1G/PAC/ACC even SEC if the option is available.

AAC would prefer to pick up the scraps of the XII and become an autonomy conference.

The last preference of the AAC membership would be to rebuild a depleted AAC membership with CUSA schools. Like the XII schools would rather merge with the PAC, the AAC schools would rather merge with the XII.

Even if all that is left of XII is Iowa State, Kansas State, and TCU they will still hold all the cards compared to AAC.

That said, I don’t think anybody but PAC12 really wants to further poach the conference. There isn’t anybody left that’s worth it.

All XII has to do is add BYU football only and Cincinnati full member.

Avoid the play on Sundays issue, give WV a travel partner.

Thought process is this:

XII schools are looking for exits so they can play in a 40-50 mil per school conference.

AAC schools are looking to a XII merger to play in a 14-20 mil per school conference.

When you are getting down to "AAC leftovers" and the difference in media money between them and CUSA is going to be like 1 million per school vs. 2 million per school it starts to come down more to travel and academics.

For that reason names like Rice and UMass are going to have a lot more play in the AAC backfill discussion than say Liberty and Coastal though they have at the moment better FB teams. Rice could join Tulsa/Tulane and UMass could work if the AAC is taking other A10 schools in an attempt to strengthen basketball.

CUSA schools might be better served if the AAC went out of business and they would have a chance of improving their TV deal with less competition than actually joining the AAC outright, which in a rebuild situation is not going to be a major upgrade (at least in FB).