The MWC has Nothing to Lose by Adding New Mexico St

I feel bad for the Aggies, I really do.  They have the chops to be an FBS program and they are better than their instate rivals up the interstate.  Unlike Idaho, they actually have the facilities to be in FBS.  I don't see why the MWC doesn't just let them in.  The MWC is committed to an 8 game conference schedule in football due to Air Force's Out-of-Conference obligations to rival service academies Army and Navy so the addition of an 11th football member would not jeopardize the schedule; the MWC would simply schedule 8 conference games among its 11 members much like the Big Ten did for two decades.  In basketball is where adding the Aggies makes the most sense.  With the loss of San Diego St and BYU the MWC has lost much of its basketball prowess.  Sure New Mexico and UNLV are still around but this is a league that was truly in a position where they eclipsed the Pac-12 for basketball eliteness.  New Mexico St brings respectable RPI and would help the MWC hold its status as a 3 bid conference.  Basketball scheduling is also where having the Aggies around would really help.  With 9 members, one school is left idle every night of basketball or is left to find an OOC foe.  Bringing in a 10th school would eliminate that issue and potentially offer the convenience of travel partners should the MWC take that path.

There is the school of thought that would be hesitant to shake up the MWC because when the Big East Across America Experiment fails the MWC would be in the position to reabsorb Boise St and San Diego St and be at a convenient number of 12 for football and thus nice, neat divisions of 6.  My response to this is this: "why let Boise St and San Diego St dictate MWC realignment policy when they aren't even members any more and we have no idea when and if the Big East thing will fail?"  If and when they do come back and the MWC needs to figure out its alignment the MWC could simply dip into FCS for a 14th or approach BYU.  Maybe by them Montana will be willing to come up and leave its a little brother behind (they can keep the annual rivalry game for nostalgia's sake)

It just doesn't seem right to leave New Mexico St dangling in the wind without a conference and without any geographically reasonable alternative out there.