C-USA will not be stable untill BE is stable. If C-USA loses any schools, conf will not be as attractive to Hous.

templefootballfan Wrote:C-USA will not be stable untill BE is stable. If C-USA loses any schools, conf will not be as attractive to Hous.

I'm not sure Houston is all that interested in the MWC. Back when the WAC 16 was formed Houston was invited with Rice, TCU, SMU, and Tulsa, but Houston turned down the offer. I believe they thought C-USA would be a more regional conference for them and so they went that route... I don't see them changing their mind unless maybe the MWC was a BC$ conference, then they would be a lot more motivated...

Hous did look east, but that was with Memphis, Louv, Cin & before Katrina. If C-USA does take another hit, C-USA is going to have tough time replenshing the east division. Making stronger regional conf would be with schools that are projects. I'm sure a deleted C-USA would have Tulsa, SMU & UTEP making overtures to MWC. Hous might have no choice, Hous might think they have outside at SEC, B-12 & maybe BE. But that day may never come.
MWC would have to take advantage widing the gap between themselves & othe non-BCS conf.

templefootballfan Wrote:Hous did look east, but that was with Memphis, Louv, Cin & before Katrina. If C-USA does take another hit, C-USA is going to have tough time replenshing the east division. Making stronger regional conf would be with schools that are projects. I'm sure a deleted C-USA would have Tulsa, SMU & UTEP making overtures to MWC. Hous might have no choice, Hous might think they have outside at SEC, B-12 & maybe BE. But that day may never come.
MWC would have to take advantage widing the gap between themselves & othe non-BCS conf.

Reading posts from Houston fans they are next in line for the Big 12 if their is even an opening. All I can say is.... Rigggghhhhhttttttt... Maybe they were told by some of the Texas Schools they were next in line, but I would bet that the the rest of the Big 12 schools would not be to excited at the thought of a 5th Texas team in the Big 12....

Hous has shot at B-12, if Tex & TexA&M decide to leave for SEC or Pac-10. If SEC wants Tex market bad enough & gets tired of waiting for Tex & TexA&M, maybe SEC takes Hous. Also think Hous would be considered by BE if things break right for Hous.
You can improve teams, attendence & facilities, you can't improve TV market

templefootballfan Wrote:You can improve teams, attendence & facilities, you can't improve TV market

I don't agree with that; just look no further than Boise St as a prime example...
#113 Boise, ID, 251,920 households
When Boise St moved to the WAC, games started being broadcast in this market...
#193 Twin Falls, ID, 62,590 households
With Boise St recent run in the WAC, a few years ago this market...
#77 Spokane, WA, 403,820 households (Washington St's and Idaho's market)
Started broadcasting Boise St's games also.
I'm not sure if the...
#163 Idaho Falls-Pocatello, ID, 120,100 households
carries Boise St games, most of this markets cable companies carry the mtn (Big BYU fan area, BYU Idaho is located in this market).

But it's not like you have to be located in the market for a school to control it... Most Texans will tell you the Houston market is already controlled by Texas and Texas A&M, just like they control Dallas, San Antonio, and every were else in Texas...

I see your point, however I would put Boise St TV market 1.5 million which would be the state of Idaho.

An interesting idea might be for the MWC to go to 10 schools with Texas State added as a travel partner for TCU when they complete their move to FBS.

San Diego State / UNLV
Brigham Young / Utah
Wyoming / Colorado State
Air Force / New Mexico
TCU / Texas State

I know Texas State is not much now but they have big plans and such an addition would certainly get the MWC more exposure and balance in the state.

Krocker Krapp Wrote:An interesting idea might be for the MWC to go to 10 schools with Texas State added as a travel partner for TCU when they complete their move to FBS.

San Diego State / UNLV
Brigham Young / Utah
Wyoming / Colorado State
Air Force / New Mexico
TCU / Texas State

I know Texas State is not much now but they have big plans and such an addition would certainly get the MWC more exposure and balance in the state.

Why would the MWC want to take a chance on a D1AA program that is trying to move up to D1? That would be like saying the Big East should take Georgia Southern who is a Hell of a lot better program than Texas St... When they could take any team from the WAC? Were the Big East could take any team from C-USA (East) or from the MAC. Like, Boise St... who's President has said publicly he wants in the MWC. Texas St would be worse than taking North Texas and I don't the see MWC even thinking North Texas as an option. In fact you will not find many TCU fans who would want either program in the MWC.
IMO, the MWC should invite Boise St, who I wanted over TCU the last go around, but TCU has been a great addition to the MWC.
San Diego St / UNLV
BYU / Utah
Wyoming / Boise St
Colorado St / Air Force
TCU / New Mexico

The only Texas school that I could see the interested in ever in is UTEP and there is number of reasons why... Like;
1) Very good fan support, with pretty good attendance even in down years.
2) A nice TV market (#98 El Paso, TX, 302,470 households) in which UTEP controls the majority of the market.
3) Mountain time zone and are right on the edge of the MWC footprint.
4) They have a pretty good rivalry with New Mexico.
5) They had a a lot of history with the majority of the MWC school from the old WAC days...

Football games UTEP has played against MWC schools;
Air Force- 15 games
BYU- 36 games
Colorado St- 33 games
New Mexico- 76 games
San Diego St- 22 games
TCU- 5 games
UNLV- 7 games
Utah- 33 games
Wyoming- 33 games
Totals games played- 260 / 9 = 28.9 average games per MWC team

Compare that to C-USA schools;
UAB- 2 games
Central Florida- 1 game
East Carolina- 1 game
Houston- 5 games
Marshall- 2 games
Memphis- 2 games
Rice- 11 games
SMU- 15 games
Southern Miss- 3 games
Tulane- 3 games
Tulsa- 16 games
Totals games played- 61 / 11 = 5.5 average games per C-USA team

So in other words it will take UTEP at least 25 more year to even come close to the same kind of history C-USA as they currently have with the MWC schools...

UTEP stated upon joining CUSA that it is very important for the school to be in a league with multiple other Texas teams. The Miners have decided to tie their future course to alliances with multiple other Texas teams and no longer care about what they now seem to consider ancient history. UTEP has also not forgotten the not so nice way that the school was dumped and left for roadkill upon the secession of the MWC from the old WAC.

They might say that, but all I can say is they openly lobbied to try to get an MWC invite in 2004 at the same time TCU, Fresno St, Boise St, and Hawaii did. The MWC said they would give UTEP an invite if they could deliver the Sun Bowl... When TCU got the invite and UTEP was turned away, that was when they went after the opening in C-USA left by TCU's leaving...
So it not like C-USA was UTEP's 1st choice of options, like I said they still have way more history with the MWC schools than anything in C-USA. Their fans might say they are happy in C-USA and they don't like the MWC, but the people in charge are only worried about what would be best for UTEP and not hurt feelings...

Texas-El Paso joins Conference USA
By Chris Roberts | ASSOCIATED PRESS
5:05 p.m. April 30, 2004

EL PASO, Texas – After 36 years in the Western Athletic Conference, Texas-El Paso on Friday accepted an offer to join Conference USA.

It will officially change conferences on July 1, 2005. UTEP joins Tulsa, Rice and SMU, all former WAC members that previously accepted offers to join C-USA.

"We look forward to continuing to compete in the Dallas and Houston areas, where there are large concentrations of UTEP alumni who have enjoyed following our teams," said UTEP President Diana Natalicio.

UTEP athletic director Bob Stull said the move will put the school in a more stable conference and bolster the Miners' recruiting in Texas, where it expends the majority of its efforts.

Stull said UTEP will pay $1 million into a C-USA reserve account and $200,000 per year for the next five years out of its conference revenues as an entry fee. UTEP also will forfeit about $600,000 in WAC revenues for next year. However, Stull said the annual revenues from C-USA are expected to be greater than in the WAC.

"We'll probably be able to break even over those five years," Stull said.

C-USA Commissioner Britton Banowsky said UTEP was asked to join because of its support for the athletic program, which includes a recent investment in a $9 million training facility and good attendance at football and basketball games.

UTEP joined the WAC in September 1967, five years after the conference was formed. The membership offer came one year after the Miners won the NCAA basketball championship under Hall of Fame coach Don Haskins.

The WAC took a serious hit in June 1999, when Air Force, BYU, Colorado State, UNLV, New Mexico, San Diego State, Utah and Wyoming withdrew to form the Mountain West Conference. The possibility still exists that other WAC members will join the Mountain West should it decide to expand.

In 2001, TCU left the WAC for C-USA. However, TCU accepted an offer from the Mountain West to become its ninth member.

In late 2003, shortly after C-USA lost five schools – Cincinnati, DePaul, Louisville, Marquette and South Florida to the Big East – the conference added Central Florida, Marshall, Rice, SMU and Tulsa. Those five schools also officially become part of C-USA on July 1, 2005.

This article appeared in the San Diego Union-Tribune on Friday, April 30, 2004.

Quote:"We look forward to continuing to compete in the Dallas and Houston areas, where there are large concentrations of UTEP alumni who have enjoyed following our teams," said UTEP President Diana Natalicio.

UTEP athletic director Bob Stull said the move will put the school in a more stable conference and bolster the Miners' recruiting in Texas, where it expends the majority of its efforts.

TCU is located in Dallas and IMO the MWC is a much more stable conference than C-USA... True or False?

E-zone Wrote:

Quote:"We look forward to continuing to compete in the Dallas and Houston areas, where there are large concentrations of UTEP alumni who have enjoyed following our teams," said UTEP President Diana Natalicio.

UTEP athletic director Bob Stull said the move will put the school in a more stable conference and bolster the Miners' recruiting in Texas, where it expends the majority of its efforts.

TCU is located in Dallas and IMO the MWC is a much more stable conference than C-USA... True or False?

TCU is located in Fort Worth.

froginaustin Wrote:

E-zone Wrote:

Quote:"We look forward to continuing to compete in the Dallas and Houston areas, where there are large concentrations of UTEP alumni who have enjoyed following our teams," said UTEP President Diana Natalicio.

UTEP athletic director Bob Stull said the move will put the school in a more stable conference and bolster the Miners' recruiting in Texas, where it expends the majority of its efforts.

TCU is located in Dallas and IMO the MWC is a much more stable conference than C-USA... True or False?

TCU is located in Fort Worth.

Dang I'm sorry and should have known better than that... Thank you for being kind... That's kind of like saying BYU is located in Salt Lake, instead of Provo. I should have said the Dallas area (or TV Market) and TCU seems to get better local support than that Pony school in Dallas...

The words of the UTEP president and athletic director carry a lot more weight than anything nostalgic fans on internet message boards might desire. UTEP is now in a conference with three other Texas teams - one in Dallas and two in Houston - which is what their administration says they want. Giving that up for a league which can only offer one school in Fort Worth is apparently not worth it to UTEP. The Miners will become even more entrenched in CUSA if that league adds UTSA in a few years as the Roadrunners would give UTEP a fourth Texas opponent, one from the same university system, and a very intriguing potential I-10 rivalry to build in the future.

Krocker Krapp Wrote:The words of the UTEP president and athletic director carry a lot more weight than anything nostalgic fans on internet message boards might desire. UTEP is now in a conference with three other Texas teams - one in Dallas and two in Houston - which is what their administration says they want. Giving that up for a league which can only offer one school in Fort Worth is apparently not worth it to UTEP. The Miners will become even more entrenched in CUSA if that league adds UTSA in a few years as the Roadrunners would give UTEP a fourth Texas opponent, one from the same university system, and a very intriguing potential I-10 rivalry to build in the future.

Don't kid yourself. Utep would jump in a nano-second. Think about it. No one has wanted the SWC leftovers. They got dumped from the Wac 16. TCU left them behind to join the MWC. The Wac improved when they joined CUSA. The history that Utep has with the MWC heavily outweighs the interest in playing Rice, SMU, and Houston. Those are the three most attractive games for Utep. In the MWC they would have TCU, UNM, BYU, AFA, Utah...There a lot more interesting match-ups in the MWC, especially when you have rivalries with many of the teams.

Utep fans are too proud to admit wanting to go back to a girlfriend that dumped them, but they would in a second. Don't believe the hype.

Cowboy Junky Wrote:Don't kid yourself. Utep would jump in a nano-second. Think about it. No one has wanted the SWC leftovers. They got dumped from the Wac 16. TCU left them behind to join the MWC. The Wac improved when they joined CUSA. The history that Utep has with the MWC heavily outweighs the interest in playing Rice, SMU, and Houston. Those are the three most attractive games for Utep. In the MWC they would have TCU, UNM, BYU, AFA, Utah...There a lot more interesting match-ups in the MWC, especially when you have rivalries with many of the teams.

Utep fans are too proud to admit wanting to go back to a girlfriend that dumped them, but they would in a second. Don't believe the hype.

The quotes I supplied did not come from any fans. They came from the president and the athletic director. They know what they want for their university much better than anyone speculating on an internet message board. The MWC, by the way, sure as heck did not care about its many years of history with UTEP in 1998 or any time since then.

Back to the original question.

I get the feeling Houston is warming up to the MWC and visa versa. A year ago I would have said both sides would have been uninterested, but with BE split talks heating up again and with Houston making some nice facility and on the field/court improvements it is starting make some sense to at least consider the possibility. Lots of variables, but I think both sides would keep the door open at this point, at least privately.