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Is SUU leaving the Big Sky for the WAC?

The WAC is supposedly looking for more members. They want to restart football. It’ll be an FCS conference if it happens.
 
HookedonGriz said:
https://twitter.com/lance_hartz/status/1312079856499224576?s=21
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Can anyone summarize the key takeaways for those of us unmotivated enough to sign up or otherwise breach the paywall?

TIA
 
CDAGRIZ said:
Would be a shame if NCU jumped ship to the WAC, too.
A real shame.
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I think the WAC is planning to poach a few of our bottom dwellers. By that I mean the schools with the worst facilities, lowest budgets, and lowest chances of doing anything about it. I can think of several programs they might target. I think they are planning to have at least 6 FCS football plaing additions. If they can't pull this off, they will likely fold up shop. I think they will go after west coast schools first. I think that NCU would be a last resort. I'm not sure that anyone really wants them. I can see them going after SDU, SUU, DSU, CD, Sac, Polly, and maybe PSU.
 
oldrunner said:
CDAGRIZ said:
Would be a shame if NCU jumped ship to the WAC, too.
A real shame.
Click to expand...
I think the WAC is planning to poach a few of our bottom dwellers. By that I mean the schools with the worst facilities, lowest budgets, and lowest chances of doing anything about it. I can think of several programs they might target. I think they are planning to have at least 6 FCS football plaing additions. If they can't pull this off, they will likely fold up shop. I think they will go after west coast schools first. I think that NCU would be a last resort. I'm not sure that anyone really wants them. I can see them going after SDU, SUU, DSU, CD, Sac, Polly, and maybe PSU.
Click to expand...
Isn't Dixie St. already in the WAC?
 
The WAC is weird, for sure.

What I find interesting is how many Big Sky schools are already affiliate members (per Wikipedia) ... in sports that the BSC doesn't sponsor: Sac State (baseball), UI (women's swimming), NAU (women's swimming), and UNC (baseball and women's swimming).

If the WAC does put together a football program at the FCS level, New Mexico State will be caught between a rock and a hard place. There are those who would rather just drop the sport altogether rather than go FCS. Do not know how prevalent that feeling is, but they were certainly vocal about it when UI dropped back to FCS.
 
oldrunner said:
CDAGRIZ said:
Would be a shame if NCU jumped ship to the WAC, too.
A real shame.
Click to expand...
I think the WAC is planning to poach a few of our bottom dwellers. By that I mean the schools with the worst facilities, lowest budgets, and lowest chances of doing anything about it. I can think of several programs they might target. I think they are planning to have at least 6 FCS football plaing additions. If they can't pull this off, they will likely fold up shop. I think they will go after west coast schools first. I think that NCU would be a last resort. I'm not sure that anyone really wants them. I can see them going after SDU, SUU, DSU, CD, Sac, Polly, and maybe PSU.
Click to expand...
I'd add NAU to the list; more likely than PSU.
 
I think it is becoming pretty obvious that WAC football is going to happen.  Why would a conference pickup 3 football playing schools (Dixie State, Tarleton and SUU), if it weren't going to sponsor it?   Plus WAC member Utah Valley is starting football with UTRGV seriously considering it.

The question becomes what division will they play in?  I am guessing FCS.  With the D2 move ups and a mediocre team like SUU, I don't see how they can pull off an FBS move.  NMSU is going to have to decide if they want to stay FBS independent or be a strong contender in a decent FCS conference.  I predict NMSU will drop down to FCS and play in the WAC conference.

I also predict that NAU will follow SUU into the WAC.

So the Big Sky will consist of: EWU, Idaho, Idaho State, Montana, Montana State, Portland State, Sac State, UNC and Weber State with UCD and Cal Poly as football affilates.

The WAC would look like this with 7 football playing schools:  Dixie State, Utah Valley, SUU, NMSU, NAU, UTRGV and Tarleton State.  The WAC also has the non-football schools of Cal Baptist, Grand Canyon and Seattle, so there would be 10 members total.  Chicago State is out there but I anticipate them ceasing to exist or dropping sports totally in the next couple years.  There are rumblings of West Texas A & M wanting to make a move.  They look like they would fit nicely into the WAC.

I had thought UNC would be a candidate for the WAC but am thinking they will stay in the Big Sky.  Considering they just signed their baseball program, which the WAC sponsors, into the Summit makes me think they are not considering the WAC.  Besides the Big Sky kind of needs them and Weber State for the numbers.
 
IdaGriz01 said:
The WAC is weird, for sure.

What I find interesting is how many Big Sky schools are already affiliate members (per Wikipedia) ... in sports that the BSC doesn't sponsor: Sac State (baseball), UI (women's swimming), NAU (women's swimming), and UNC (baseball and women's swimming).

If the WAC does put together a football program at the FCS level, New Mexico State will be caught between a rock and a hard place. There are those who would rather just drop the sport altogether rather than go FCS. Do not know how prevalent that feeling is, but they were certainly vocal about it when UI dropped back to FCS.
Click to expand...

I highly doubt UNC moves to the WAC. They were in it for baseball, but left after this season because the Summit League offers better and more budget friendly traveling.
 
I seem to recall reading the WAC wanted to offer a split division in for football, some FCS some FBS., with FCS members building to move up to FBS? Does anyone else recall that?
Frankly I would be happy to see NAU, Poly, Davis, SAC and UNC bail for the WAC with SUU or for any other conference for that matter!

BSC with:
UM
MSU
UI
ISU
EWU
PSU
WSU. Would Webs want to go to the WAC?

IF Webs left, maybe CWU would / could move up from DII to be a travel partner to EWU? Might even look to WOU to move up from DII to be travel partner for PSU. That wouldn’t be to bad of a mainly northwestern states conference. Which could easily be a bus conference if absolutely necessary.

We may see even bigger shake ups with COV19 transforming the face of college sports.
 
OrgonGriz said:
I seem to recall reading the WAC wanted to offer a split division in for football, some FCS some FBS., with FCS members building to move up to FBS? Does anyone else recall that?
Frankly I would be happy to see NAU, Poly, Davis, SAC and UNC bail for the WAC with SUU or for any other conference for that matter!

BSC with:
UM
MSU
UI
ISU
EWU
PSU
WSU. Would Webs want to go to the WAC?

IF Webs left, maybe CWU would / could move up from DII to be a travel partner to EWU? Might even look to WOU to move up from DII to be travel partner for PSU. That wouldn’t be to bad of a mainly northwestern states conference. Which could easily be a bus conference if absolutely necessary.

We may see even bigger shake ups with COV19 transforming the face of college sports.
Click to expand...
Weber will go nowhere, travel partner for ISU, both charter members. UI the ideal travel partner for EWU. CWU could still be added and partner with PSU. The ideal conference would be nine members for a balanced 8 game conf. schedule. Like before Fullerton. UNC likely to stay.
 
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