Arkstfan

Absolutely not true. Benson admitted later in the press conference that the BCS would treat the WAC as a group of independents and would NOT have the guarantee of a BCS appearance and would be paid as independents. Under the last deal that was a difference of $87,500 per school less for an independent. Based on the anticipated growth in BCS revenue the difference will be at least $109,000 by the end of this BCS contract and that's not factoring in the league distribution growing by only having four leagues because I don't want to do the math right now. Key phrase regarding auto bids from your post. IF IT DOES PASS. Benson is relying on a convoluted reading of legislation designed to make it harder to change divisions. It is questionable that the members who wanted that legislation would want to see it used to move two or more FCS schools to FBS since slowing the moves from FCS to FBS was one of the main points.

Listen to Karl Benson's press conference today. He admits he has to sit down with ESPN once they have membership resolved. ESPN cut C-USA's TV deal 50% when USF, Cincinnati, Louisville, etc left and CUSA ADDED UTEP, UCF, Marshall (multiple ranked teams and bowls), Tulsa, Rice, and SMU. The WAC is losing every team that has had any notable success and adding non-football Denver, FCS TexSt and never played football UTSA. The WAC will throw a massive beer bust if ESPN gives them one-third of what they were getting.

Listen to the press conference. Karl sounds awful. He takes a lot of heat but how bad can it be that the day you are supposed to get press for shoring up your league, most of the news talk is you lost a bowl game AND Montana said no. Then you call a press conference and in the course of it admit you've been rejected by Cal Davis who finished transition from Division II to FCS just a year or two ago then say you are pursuing a school you should know you have no shot at.

Utah State isn't feasible. Way too much travel. I'm fine with Tech if they find the courage to apply. As for ULM, when Tech said no they said yes and took football only. When we had to add full members to stay FBS, we passed on ULM but Tech didn't ride to the rescue. When the WAC raided the western Sun Belt, Tech didn't ride to the rescue and ULM was essential to not being where the WAC is today. I just have a problem with booting one school in a university system that has been there for us for another member of the same system that has not only not been there at our time of need, they've screwed our members from having post-season opportunities.

The first step is for La.Tech to apply. How do they take that step? They've spent years boasting about separation and the superiority of the WAC, they threw a WAC member under the bus and cost them a bowl just avoid playing a Sun Belt team in a bowl in 2001 (ie. North Texas) scuttling a deal that would have given MTSU and Boise a bowl trip. Tech preferred losing money going to Boise for a beating by Clemson over playing in New Orleans. They threatened to decline an invite to the Independence Bowl in 2008 lest ULL or Arkansas State be invited. Their past AD insulted ULM's academics and had to drive to Monroe with the president to apologize in person to avoid losing ULM games in multiple sports. This is just the official stuff without worrying about the message board crap. Tech officials mocked Waters prediction that the WAC would eventually collapse and Dewayne from Minden took up that theme boasting that the New Orleans Bowl would fold in a couple years and it would be the Sun Belt that collapsed. Who was correct? They've had the same president through all of that. Tech isn't likely to apply because they understand they are painted into a corner that they painted. Their president has to back off a decade of trashing the conference and privately mocking the prediction the WAC would fail. While belittling the league for its limited post-season appearances, they had a hand in the league missing two post-season appearances. Tech can apply to the league we have or they can hang out with the rest of the Big West/Sun Belt/Southland schools of their league and wait for a CUSA invite while declaring that the Sun Belt with more BCS money and more TV money is doomed to fail.

Go for it. More travel cost. Less TV money. Less BCS money. Less NCAA money. NCAA auto bid in basketball IF NCAA approves new rule AND deems it applies to auto bids and not just divisional shifts since it won't be in the auto bid section of the rules.

SJSU and La.Tech are the only schools staying in the WAC that have ever posted a winning record in WAC play.

Last year the Sun Belt received about $187,500 per school in BCS money, if Troy wins its bowl it would have been $225,000. WAC will get $100,000 per school. WAC TV deal was $3 million. Per a person close to the deal, ESPN was paying for (in order): Boise State, Fresno, Friday nights, Hawaii, and Nevada. Which of those remains? The willingness to play Friday nights. Just as New Mexico dumped the WAC, ESPN will cut the WAC TV deal. They will be lucky to get what the Sun Belt got in the most current deal (and will start the renegotiation process soon). CUSA's opening offer for their new TV deal looks to be less than the Sun Belt deal because at this point C-USA is taking the stance that they will no play Tuesday or Wednesday and want few if any Friday games. Unless CUSA has a change of heart, the next Sun Belt TV contract will be larger than the CUSA deal because we will take Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday as well as Thursday nights on ESPNU. I suspect MAC will take the same terms we would. If that happens the largest non-AQ contract will be MWC (and they won't go up in dollars), Sun Belt/MAC, CUSA, WAC

The BCS would treat them as "non-Notre Dame" independents. Each school would get a check for $100,000. Last slot money for the Sun Belt in 2009 was $187,500 per school. With the WAC out of the way, that would increase. BCS rules guarantee one slot to an non-AQ. To qualify you have to be the highest rated non-AQ champion be rated 12 or better. A WAC champion rated #4 once everyone leaves would not qualify for the guaranteed slot and would go in the at-large pool. For example in in 2008 had Ball State remained #12 and been the only non-AQ champ in the top 12, they would have gone to the BCS while a #4 WAC would be in the at-large pool.

Most likely NCAA would deem that since they were FBS when invite issued that's good enough.

I've heard that the WAC pays in the $300,000 to $400,000 range to be in the Humanitarian Bowl.

The blue dog shivers Collapsing friendship dies The death after the storm

Spoken like someone who never made the trip to Moscow, Idaho.

UTSA and TxSt have never paid for that travel. Hell they've not paid the cost of 85 football scholarships yet. They had to have an invite to move to FBS under the NCAA rule. Their options were: Accept and pray they can pay for it OR Give up on FBS football. No other options there.

Hear Johnny is saying join the WAC, we don't need no stinkin' automatic bid.

In a few years they'll be blogging about how dumb it was to start football.

Interesting theory being bandied around. WAC and Big Sky do some sort consolidation going to 16 or 18, by staying in same league with Montana State in all sports except football Montana agrees to move to FBS. Separate entity is created to administer football only FCS league that is administered by new WAC. Also known as its late and folks are trying to figure out what is next.

MaybeMCanales is "the guy" only if someone like Leach, Fran, or Leavitt can't be obtained. None of the three would likely deal directly with UNT unless they were assured the deal but might talk freely to Neinas.

I installed the first message board and was the site's tech guru for a year or so. Harry and I go back a bit. In fact last time I was in DFW he was kind enough to pick me up and tote me to the game where I consumed all the free beer I could get my hands on.

Hawaii called a press conference to say they are close to a deal but haven't done the deal. Ladies and gentlemen, in the category of weirdest college athletic program, your unanimous winner is.... Hawaii.

You aren't paying Neinas to find a coach. You are paying to get more applicants. If someone applies for the job through UNT that becomes public record. Some people won't apply in a public setting because it can hurt their current situation. Apply through Neinas and that fact stays private.

Think Tech is puckered? What about UTSA and Texas State. League is down to 7 football schools. New rule provides you can't move up unless you have an offer from an FBS conference. Takes 8 to be a conference. NCAA might say "well there were enough when you were invited" or might say... humm tough break there fellas.

Hawaii press conference at 11:00pm Central tonight announcing they are joining MWC for football and Big West other sports. WAC loses auto bids in 2012 and is once again one school short of being a legal FBS league.

In comparison to Wrigley Field and Yankee Stadium.

When I was watching the NFL game last night NBC showed Yankee Stadium in football configuration and my first thought was "Holy $hit" almost none of the seats face the field and then I saw how freaking far most of the lower level seats were from the sidelines and realized that lower level sideline seats there will have a worse view than famed half-a-mile-away seats at Fouts. Had forgotten about it until someone posted that freak set-up at Wrigley and knew there was but one fan base that could see that and understand that an outstanding (in comparison) football treasure was about to be lost.