What's new
AllBuffs | Unofficial fan site for the University of Colorado at Boulder Athletics programs

This is a sample guest message. Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

  • Prime Time. Prime Time. Its a new era for Colorado football. Consider signing up for a club membership! For $20/year, you can get access to all the special features at Allbuffs, including club member only forums, dark mode, avatars and best of all no ads ! But seriously, please sign up so that we can pay the bills. No one earns money here, and we can use your $20 to keep this hellhole running. You can sign up for a club membership by navigating to your account in the upper right and clicking on "Account Upgrades". Make it happen!

CU has rejoined the Big 12 and broken college football - talking out asses continues

What are Cal’s options? It ain’t any of the other P4 conferences
From what Mhver is saying, Apple still wants the PAC. As long as that's the case. They can eat the AAC and Sun Belt. The GOR from the MAC and the exit fees of the MWC. All they need is 12-16 teams.
 
I'm wondering if, with it's great stature and even greater endowment, Stanford can start to explore a more sane future for college athletics. Admitedly, Stanford is a special case, having virtually owned the Director's Cup since it was created, but winning tons of national championships in Olympic sports, with a predominace in women's sports. These sports don't really need a conference. They all have national championship competitions with seeding mostly based on team ranking, or individual athletes qualifying by performance.

So, Stanford may be in a position to show us a future where football is effectivelyl disconnected from all other sports. Similar to what Notre Dame has done, but in this case not limited to just one conference (I think ND is hooked up with ACC for non-football sports.) This would give Stanford the freedom to schedule other schools in ways that best match the sport, and regional considerations. [E.g.: Cal has maybe the longest championship record of any college sport in its rugby team. They don't play a full schedule of Pac-12 teams. They schedule a lot of schools, and they always win the national championship.]

Most schools need football revenue more than, apparently, life itself. Stanford may be in a position to break the mold and define a new approach to maintaining regionality for almost all of its sports. (And don't get me started about the insanity of sending the women's lacrosse team across the county 12 times a year. Football may rule the revenues, but they don't play many games.)
 
You’re an idio!
Blaming Spider-Man GIF
 
The biggest issue is outside of the MW,
The best Schools in the MT or PAC time zone are in the Big Sky. There are just not a lot of football options in the west coast. That said, you can grab the best of the Sun Belt brands and AAC. Go from there.

Sun Belt has GA State and Louisiana. Wildcard - App State and Marshall

AAC has a lot of Schools that make sense. Everyone but Charlotte, FAU, Wichita State University, Tulsa. Wildcard: East Carolina.

I have North Texas in but they don't have a ton of upside. Not sure they would get an invite. Temple is a bit of a travel concern as well but it's Philadelphia and they have a large alum base so they should be a lock.

In 2025, raid the MW. Every attractive school but I know if Stanford sticks, they don't want Boise.

At the end of the day, I don't know if any R2 can get it. It will be AAU or R1 with the upside of AAU. As far as I see. You got 8 fairly attractive AAC Schools and 2 fairly attractive Sun Belt schools.

For MW, only 6 fairly attractive schools and two are R2s and not favored by Cal and Stanford. Especially Stanford. It's literally UNLV, SDSU, Colorado State, Nevada. Wildcard is Hawaii.

Obviously Gonzaga for non football makes sense.

I don't believe the PAC is dead. It's just going to have to adjust. That's all. The WAC did this over the last couple of years. CUSA just did this last year, more will do it.

I do worry about the Mountain West in 2025. I don't believe they will be able to replace their losses. The American can always take from the CAA and CUSA. Still some decent brands like Delaware, Western Kentucky, Liberty(don't laugh), etc. The CUSA can just steal from the United (WAC). But the MW will have a hard time. So few schools on the west are ready for the jump to the G5. Maybe the Plains like the Dakotas but that's travel hell. While it's unlikely any conference will die in D1 sports, I've seen close calls like the WAC, a couple southern conferences that had to merge and the MEAC.
 
The MWC high exit fees saves them for 2024 but 2025 could be the great exit and their are limited options in the west for expansion
SMU and Tulane have to start that list. I may add Rice and Tulsa to get to 8, and then I need four MWC schools.
 
I've been mum...
I really made an effort when we changed conference thought it would be cool to line up vs SC & UCLA I believed we could compete...total biff.
Watching SC become the modern day version nebraska...been there and I couldn't revisit the past.
If this makes sense to you then maybe you've arrived at the point you've realized you're not going to get back the last XX years as a fan.
One issue I truly hope will come out of this move back to the B12....CU will add some sports that the state can provide athletes.
Women's Softball
Men's Baseball
Women's Gymnastics
Pick a sport any sport ie..swimming & diving, Hockey, any that will add value to the brand going forward.
Last...2024 Ralphie should make every away game..she'll be hit no matter where she runs.
Retro unis, remind them who we were before...is there a truer "Return to Dominance"?...marketing gold.
GIF by Tomi Ferraro, Sportz
 
SMU and Tulane have to start that list. I may add Rice and Tulsa to get to 8, and then I need four MWC schools.
I'll say the top 4 has to be SMU, Tulane, Rice, and USF. Tulsa should get an invite but the top 4 schools in the AAC are obvious. All of them are part of the top 5 schools remaining in the G5 with SDSU which is part of the MWC in terms of brand quality overall. Obviously Rice football brand is on the low end for now but they can easily change. At the end of the day, they were much better when they were P5 in the Southwest conference.

Crazy outside the box schools were brought to my attention which was HBCUs. Mainly JSU and Southern. While I don't believe any of them can make the jump to P5 facilities or money wise but I will say, they can get subs like no other. Damn near a 1 mil subs or more. Add Southern to that. They can too. Those are national brands within the Black community (48 million popl). The issue is, both are only R2s, limited upside but they can sell massive subs and both have a national fanbase.

I have them on the low end with schools like UC Davis, Cal Poly, Sacramento State, and, Pepperdine(non football). Basically the reaches but maybe you could think about them.

8 schools in the AAC
Several wildcards

4 schools in the MTC
Several wildcats

2 schools in the Sun Belt
Two wildcards

MAC GORs making raiding impossible

CUSA has no fairly attractive brands

3 Big Sky wildcards

2 SWAC wildcards

Overall, the PAC needs to be patience.
 
GK has been for the last year, and telling all the teams that as well. They are now at 4.
They were being patience early which hurt but in reality, ESPN blew up the PAC spot and Fox didn't like dealing with the PAC so it was things out of GK hands.

I don't believe a merger is a good idea with the MW because so many MW teams lack value. It's better just to raid the the AAC and Sun Belt and then raid the MW for 2025. So yes, you can raid the MW this year for 2025 entry but there are only 4 brands that even make sense from P5 sports. Then again, I know why Oregon State AD was the former AD at Utah State. So it's a respect thing but in reality. You gotta do what you gotta do to keep the P4 together if the other P5s don't want none of you.

The reality is, if you are on Apple TV, you are selling subs. Teams have to either big money like SMU and Rice or big student popl like GA State, USF, and Temple plus be R1 or AAU to make Stanford and Cal happy and willing to make serious investments in research to become AAU status.
 
My guess is that WSU and OSU simply join the MWC, with aid from their respective state governments to level down the AD budgets over time.

Stanford and Cal can make the most money with the least long-term commitment by going independent. CU, Arizona and others have OOC games with new conference members that we need to replace, so there may be scheduling opportunities there. They can play other sports with the West Coast Conference.
 
@skibum can elaborate on endowments, but funding their own football program through donations to their general endowment that were not earmarked for it seems like it’s not going to happen
yeah.. don't ask Liver about endowments.... he isn't very well endowed (from Hippie PhillyBuff's sister).
 
My guess is that WSU and OSU simply join the MWC, with aid from their respective state governments to level down the AD budgets over time.

Stanford and Cal can make the most money with the least long-term commitment by going independent. CU, Arizona and others have OOC games with new conference members that we need to replace, so there may be scheduling opportunities there. They can play other sports with the West Coast Conference.
That would be a financial killer. It's not the last option, it's not an option. Since they still have A5 status, they have options.

How?
 
Can the sec, and the tv masters who are driving all of this, cede the entire west to the B1G? I guess the answer for now is yes but I can’t imagine it’ll stay that way (assuming we’re headed for the P2)
 
That would be a financial killer. It's not the last option, it's not an option. Since they still have A5 status, they have options.

How?
A5 status doesn't really mean much. The PAC-12 A5 status will be in tact through the 2023 season and then it will be automatically revoked when the 6 teams leave. Even if 6 AAC teams were to join with the 4 that are left, the PAC will lose A5 status due to a clause in the requirements that not enough teams have the perceived resources that the A5 requires. The way I read the "bylaws" is that a majority vote is required to revoke A5 status at any time. All that is needed is the B1G, SEC, and Big 12 to say... I am not letting the former AAC teams decide my rules, and its over.

I think all of this is moot anyway. There won't be an A5 anymore, there will be 3 and 1/2 conferences vying for the 12 team playoff money until Congress steps in.

College football as we know it is OVER after 2023.

They should really advertise what college football is by calling the system "BCS" again....

Bull
Caca
Sh!t
 
Last edited:
This is interesting.... the remaining 4 teams may have a large payout if they stand still for a year. Man, this HAS to go to litigation- or at least a settlement. Lots of work for lawyers. I have to get my hat thrown into the ring!


Payout????
 
If the former Pac-12 is waiting until 2025 to absorb the MWC, what do they do for 2024? How do they even function? I can’t imagine there’s a TV deal. Can they even call themselves a conference?
 
If the former Pac-12 is waiting until 2025 to absorb the MWC, what do they do for 2024? How do they even function? I can’t imagine there’s a TV deal. Can they even call themselves a conference?
Rice, Tulane, SMU, UTSA in 2024 to get to 8.

Raid MWC in 2025.
 
Back
Top