Let's reverse the "Boise to AAC" hypothetical situation and say Cincinnati is showing interesting in the Mountain West.

Does the MWC want UC? My take: Yes. Now (and to be fair), that is an odd hypothetical.

And, admittedly, as a UC fan (and as a major appreciator of the city of Cincinnati), I admit I'm biased when I note that the MWC would almost certainly want UC for many reasons (including the overall prestige it would bring to the league). But the point is simple: Boise brings a certain cache that a conference such as the AAC would have to at least consider as an appeal.

It's not easy to have "sexy/cache" if you're a G5. The list of G5 league members is limited. Memphis (hoops/musical city, rather big fan base), Cincy (endowment, academics, hoops/football) (and, yes, I listed the two G5s I like first ... sorry — not really), UNLV, Air Force, BYU, Army, Navy, AppState, Houston, SMU, Temple, Boise (football), Marshall (football), San Diego State (city and football/hoops combo) offer that level of cache and sexiness (not to a P5 league looking to expand but, in theory, to other G5 leagues).