Memphis, Tulane, USF Turn Down 2PAC....Staying in AAC

[GMG_Dallas]

4 minutes ago, Mean Green 93-98 said:

The leadership of these 4 other schools did just that.  The PAC isn't in a position to make anyone a firm offer yet.

 

 

[Matt from A700]

40 minutes ago, Green Otaku said:

The thing that starts to get interesting here is what does the PAC 6 do? Reports are that AFA and others might stay in the MWC and sign a GOR to keep themselves locked in? You would think they would offer Utah St. and UNLV, but what do they do if they don't go? NMSU? UTEP? Tx.St? Could the MWC force a reverse merger?

I'm sure the PAC 6 will find two more schools to join their rebuild effort, but if they don't, and July 1, 2026 gets near, I wonder what the chances would be of the AAC throwing those six schools an invite, really solidifying our conference as a Best of the Rest League.

[greenminer]

UTSA was never officially invited, per @Harry

There's probably some element of truth to the UTSA stuff, they were indeed on the official AAC release statement, but  I'm ready to move on, plant our feet and fix our ship.

[GMG_Dallas]

7 minutes ago, UNTcrazy727 said:

IMO the reports the last couple days made it clear UTSA was not a top target. At least not on the same level as USF, Memphis, and Tulane. I think the AAC put them on the graphic because their name had been mentioned so much. 

If you want to say they're not a top target, that's fine. ESPN listed them as a high profile target but obviously I'm not in the rooms so I can't dispute to what level they were a target. What is quite obvious though is that they're considered higher profile than UNT and that should frustrate all of us and should wake up our leadership. There is zero reason anybody should be ok with ESPN calling UTSA high profile but not us.

[Green Otaku]

11 minutes ago, VideoEagle said:

A merger under the PAC name is what seemed most likely after the PAC 2 won the battle to keep the exit fees. I don’t know why they resisted that. It was always the best deal for everyone.

It was the last attempt from WOSU to keep some semblance of separation and power, they didn't want to accept their G5 fate.

[MeanGreen22]

16 minutes ago, UNTcrazy727 said:

IMO the reports the last couple days made it clear UTSA was not a top target. At least not on the same level as USF, Memphis, and Tulane. I think the AAC put them on the graphic because their name had been mentioned so much. 

Always felt like UTSA was a program they kept in their back pocket in case Memphis, Tulane, and USF said yes. All or nothing when it came to UTSA.

[Green Otaku]

7 minutes ago, Matt from A700 said:

I'm sure the PAC 6 will find two more schools to join their rebuild effort, but if they don't, and July 1, 2026 gets near, I wonder what the chances would be of the AAC throwing those six schools an invite, really solidifying our conference as a Best of the Rest League.

ESPN would have to agree to pay for them. I don't think the AAC has a pro-rata clause to add more members for an additional share, we'd have to split our conference distribution and lower each member's payout. I don't see teams agreeing to that. That also segues into new problems with the PAC now, with the AAC teams out what kind of media deal can they get? Does it even make sense for the 4 MWC schools to leave now? The PAC has no media deal secured, not enough members, and time is slowly running out.

[C Rod]

[ColoradoEagle]

[C Rod]

The PAC is paying $27M per MWC school they poach. They could have taken 10 MWC teams to begin with and the MWC would have dissolved without the PAC owing any money. Now it’s going to cost the PAC another $55M for two more schools and the MWC will be flush with over $165+M in cash. This is hilarious. 

[MeanGreenGlory]

I can understand UNLV wanting to stay west, but I am surprised about Air Force not wanting to join the American. 

Edited September 23 by MeanGreenGlory

[ColoradoEagle]

2 minutes ago, MeanGreenGlory said:

I can understand UNLV wanting to stay west, but I am surprised about Air Force not wanting to join the American. 

More than likely it's just delayed. Their media contract runs through mid-2026. They'll stick around and see if they like the new contract, otherwise put in their two years notice. $10m bought their temporary loyalty.

Edited September 23 by ColoradoEagle

[MeanGreen22]

8 minutes ago, ColoradoEagle said:

CONGRATS UTEP! Welcome to the PAC!

[C Rod]

The PAC really screwed the pooch on this. They could have had UNLV and Air Force 10 days ago when they took the other 4 schools, and secured the league at 8 teams. Now, they're racing against time and the MWC to lockup the MWC bottom feeders at $27M a pop. 😂 

[ColoradoEagle]

[techdawg88]

16 minutes ago, C Rod said:

The PAC really screwed the pooch on this. They could have had UNLV and Air Force 10 days ago when they took the other 4 schools, and secured the league at 8 teams. Now, they're racing against time and the MWC to lockup the MWC bottom feeders at $27M a pop. 😂 

I'm curious about Boise's reaction to the current events.

[C Rod]

5 minutes ago, ColoradoEagle said:

They need to rename the PAC 12 conference to the STATE EIGHT. 

[UNTLifer]

Someone tell me where the money is coming from to refill the 2PAC coffers?  They received this massive buyout when all the other schools left WA St. and OR St. high and dry, but outside of that they have zero revenue, no media deal, etc...  What is the attraction of the 2PAC that is making these MWC schools up and leave?  This all seems extremely short sighted.

Kind of like offering UTSA when they don't have a pot to piss in,  have crap facilities and their one revenue driving program is headed in the wrong direction.  This all before Traylor bolts for greener pastures  

[Green Otaku]

31 minutes ago, C Rod said:

The PAC is paying $27M per MWC school they poach. They could have taken 10 MWC teams to begin with and the MWC would have dissolved without the PAC owing any money. Now it’s going to cost the PAC another $55M for two more schools and the MWC will be flush with over $165+M in cash. This is hilarious. 

I'd bet they had clauses and high penalties in their scheduling agreement if they tried to do that. Even so, from a purely legal perspective I wonder if they get sued into the ground on something like "collusion" or something else since they intentionally colluded to avoid paying exit fees and damaged the remaining schools?

[Green Otaku]

2 minutes ago, UNTLifer said:

Someone tell me where the money is coming from to refill the 2PAC coffers?  They received this massive buyout when all the other schools left WA St. and OR St. high and dry, but outside of that they have zero revenue, no media deal, etc...  What is the attraction of the 2PAC that is making these MWC schools up and leave?  This all seems extremely short sighted.

Kind of like offering UTSA when they don't have a pot to piss in,  have crap facilities and their one revenue driving program is headed in the wrong direction.  This all before Traylor bolts for greener pastures  

CFP money, massive Rose Bowl agreement that runs until 2026 IIRC? Years of muti-bid NCAA credits that accrue interest, the remaining assets of a once P5 conference. They have some money, but they won't be refilling that money at the same level they used to.

[UNTLifer]

1 minute ago, Green Otaku said:

CFP money, massive Rose Bowl agreement that runs until 2026 IIRC? Years of muti-bid NCAA credits that accrue interest, the remaining assets of a once P5 conference. They have some money, but they won't be refilling that money at the same level they used to.

Thank you, and the bold above is my point.  They don't have sustained revenue coming in.  Let 'em die.

[C Rod]

14 minutes ago, techdawg88 said:

I'm curious about Boise's reaction to the current events.

[VideoEagle]

46 minutes ago, C Rod said:

They could have had UNLV and Air Force 10 days ago when they took the other 4 schools, and secured the league at 8 teams.

Are you sure about that? That would have made so much more sense than trying for Memphis et al. I wonder if UNLV and Air Force wanted to wait and see rather than just go for it which made the PAC2 decide to overplay their hand. 

Edited September 23 by VideoEagle

[TripleGrad]

CFB reddit is reporting (via various tweets) that Utah State and San Jose State will be the additional 2 teams in the PACx.

I think UNT is better off in this version of the AAC vs. that version of the PAC.

And we have about 3-5 years to get better positioned for the next rounds.

Edited September 23 by TripleGrad

[El Paso Eagle]

2 hours ago, GMG_Dallas said:

And let's be clear. This is only a victory because otherwise we'd be left behind. This buys us time until the next round of realignment because we're clearly not currently a priority for conferences trying to grow their brand. Hopefully our leadership recognizes that and acts with a sense of urgency moving forward.

This. We have to stop aiming to be "good" and set our sights on being the best in the conference.