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Pulled this off the AAC board, credit to Pesik:

Quote:AAC commissioner Mike Aresco: "ESPN believes in the growth potential of this league."

“Our Power 6 campaign is going to be energized. It’s not going away, and I want that to be really clear."

Aresco on future expansion: "It's possible we can add some schools down the road. It's not completely out of the question." {But emphasizes they have to reach out and be interested, the AAC does not poach}
"What I don't want to do is destabilize anything."

Aresco says it's "always a possibility" the AAC loses more schools in future expansion. "But we can't worry about that. We didn't dwell on that" during this process.

"We're a conference that's been in big markets. That's been our DNA ... we're in football hotbeds." “We’ve always been a conference in big marketplaces.”

"It wasn’t one-dimensional. Just because you’re in a big market, doesn’t guarantee you’ll have a good program."

Notes: "East Carolina was one of those schools that wasn't from a large market but had a national reputation."

"It all comes down in the end to schools that you think will invest. And not only will invest but are rapidly growing [their schools, markets and fan bases]."

"I’m more convinced than ever that they not only will make the investment, but they have the vision. We didn’t want anybody in this conference … that didn’t want to be at the highest level of college athletics."

“I think these schools will embrace the [P6] vision,”

“What we’re doing here is building for the long term future”

"Our DNA has always been aspirational... nine years ago people didn't really give us a chance to be a force in college athletics, and look what we've done."

Aresco: “Football is the foundation of a conference.”

“We wanted to strengthen that presence in Texas.”

"The DNA of this conference was never to settle for the 'Group Of Five' level."

"This is not my first realignment rodeo. It's not fun."

I think if you're looking at why the 6 were chosen, I think their commitment to invest may be the primary factor. You gotta have the resources and have the will to put them towards athletics.

Quote:We didn’t want anybody in this conference … that didn’t want to be at the highest level of college athletics.

Reading that and knowing we were candidate #1 is a great feeling. We're BACK and we're aiming high. What a great day.

GO BLAZERS

(10-21-2021 12:59 PM)BlazerGreen Wrote:  Pulled this off the AAC board, credit to Pesik:

Quote:AAC commissioner Mike Aresco: "ESPN believes in the growth potential of this league."

“Our Power 6 campaign is going to be energized. It’s not going away, and I want that to be really clear."

Aresco on future expansion: "It's possible we can add some schools down the road. It's not completely out of the question." {But emphasizes they have to reach out and be interested, the AAC does not poach}
"What I don't want to do is destabilize anything."

Aresco says it's "always a possibility" the AAC loses more schools in future expansion. "But we can't worry about that. We didn't dwell on that" during this process.

"We're a conference that's been in big markets. That's been our DNA ... we're in football hotbeds." “We’ve always been a conference in big marketplaces.”

"It wasn’t one-dimensional. Just because you’re in a big market, doesn’t guarantee you’ll have a good program."

Notes: "East Carolina was one of those schools that wasn't from a large market but had a national reputation."

"It all comes down in the end to schools that you think will invest. And not only will invest but are rapidly growing [their schools, markets and fan bases]."

"I’m more convinced than ever that they not only will make the investment, but they have the vision. We didn’t want anybody in this conference … that didn’t want to be at the highest level of college athletics."

“I think these schools will embrace the [P6] vision,”

“What we’re doing here is building for the long term future”

"Our DNA has always been aspirational... nine years ago people didn't really give us a chance to be a force in college athletics, and look what we've done."

Aresco: “Football is the foundation of a conference.”

“We wanted to strengthen that presence in Texas.”

"The DNA of this conference was never to settle for the 'Group Of Five' level."

"This is not my first realignment rodeo. It's not fun."

I think if you're looking at why the 6 were chosen, I think their commitment to invest may be the primary factor. You gotta have the resources and have the will to put them towards athletics.

Quote:We didn’t want anybody in this conference … that didn’t want to be at the highest level of college athletics.

Reading that and knowing we were candidate #1 is a great feeling. We're BACK and we're aiming high. What a great day.

GO BLAZERS

Wow

Quote:Aresco on future expansion: "It's possible we can add some schools down the road. It's not completely out of the question." {But emphasizes they have to reach out and be interested, the AAC does not poach}
"What I don't want to do is destabilize anything."

Did Aresco say this with a straight face?

How you say that and add Rice? Lol

(10-21-2021 01:17 PM)UAB99 Wrote:  How you say that and add Rice? Lol

Right. The only thing Rice has invested in is surprisingly a 6’9 center for women’s hoops.

(10-21-2021 01:24 PM)BlazinBham Wrote:  

(10-21-2021 01:17 PM)UAB99 Wrote:  How you say that and add Rice? Lol

Right. The only thing Rice has invested in is surprisingly a 6’9 center for women’s hoops.

I think that's going to change. A Rice poster on the AAC board mentioned they have plans to invest $100M in facility projects.

(10-21-2021 01:25 PM)hooverblazer Wrote:  

(10-21-2021 01:24 PM)BlazinBham Wrote:  

(10-21-2021 01:17 PM)UAB99 Wrote:  How you say that and add Rice? Lol

Right. The only thing Rice has invested in is surprisingly a 6’9 center for women’s hoops.

I think that's going to change. A Rice poster on the AAC board mentioned they have plans to invest $100M in facility projects.

I’m other words take some money out of petty cash

Three factors seemed to drive this:

-- Commitment to invest.
-- Top 50 DMA
-- Recruiting turf (Texas is No. 1, Florida No. 2., Alabama No. 7, North Carolina No. 8 in FBS prospects produced).

I don't think the Sun Belt schools were seriously considered. Their market sizes, academics, budgets simply do not match up. Some of them are performing well right now, but as we all know, success comes and goes. When you start putting all the factors together, with the 3 I listed at the top, you get to UAB, Charlotte, UTSA, FAU very quickly, and then UNT and Rice if you feel like you need to lock down Texas. Which seems like exactly what happened.

(10-21-2021 01:39 PM)DuelingDragon Wrote:  Three factors seemed to drive this:

-- Commitment to invest.
-- Top 50 DMA
-- Recruiting turf (Texas is No. 1, Florida No. 2., Alabama No. 7, North Carolina No. 8 in FBS prospects produced).

I don't think the Sun Belt schools were seriously considered. Their market sizes, academics, budgets simply do not match up. Some of them are performing well right now, but as we all know, success comes and goes. When you start putting all the factors together, with the 3 I listed at the top, you get to UAB, Charlotte, UTSA, FAU very quickly, and then UNT and Rice if you feel like you need to lock down Texas. Which seems like exactly what happened.

Yeah the commit to invest (which theoretically should produce results) and being in a good TV market seemed to be the deciding factors. Based on budget and location, the only other option was probably ODU.

(10-21-2021 01:12 PM)KevMo4UAB Wrote:  

Quote:Aresco on future expansion: "It's possible we can add some schools down the road. It's not completely out of the question." {But emphasizes they have to reach out and be interested, the AAC does not poach}
"What I don't want to do is destabilize anything."

Did Aresco say this with a straight face?

The response I received from pesik on the AAC board -

“he's been saying it for years, and something i think he probably actually does live by

he's noted before realignment is the worst thing that happens is college football, and doesnt want to go out of his way to create it... almost notes in every interview involving realignment that the interested schools have to reach out first, the aac wont reach out to them

the fact Georgia state wasn't included in this kinda backs that point.. Georgia state new president supposedly isnt interested in realignment and happy with the level where Georgia state is ... if ga state had come to the aac super interested and promised investments in their facilities, they likely jump some folks... ga state also wanting to stay in the sunbelt likely also indicates they arent rearing to to do a ton of investments and put hundreds of millions down.”

Ga State is halfway complete with one of the finest basketball arenas in the country (8,000 cap). That appears to be a nice investment as well as purchasing Turner Field which was a nice get. Not my favorite stadium but its theirs.



They seem content in the Belt and we should stat scheduling them OOC in basketball as well occasionally.

Interesting presser for sure. Not much to complain about.

Go watch the video HiddenDragon posted. The analysis was spot on.