Cal State Bakersfield and Utah Valley to the WAC

It's been some time since I have written a blog article but that is mainly because there has been little movement in the college sports world as everyone is either watching and waiting to find out what the Big East does regarding its future television contract and membership or they are waiting for the stalemate the CAA is facing with its desired expansion candidates showing little interest in joining a basketball conference spanning from Boston to Wilmington, NC and possibly further.

Well yesterday the WAC, yes the WAC still exists, added Cal State Bakersfield and Utah Valley to its ranks bringing total membership to a whopping 6---the others are Idaho, New Mexico St, Denver, and Seattle.  This is a great thing for the Roadrunners and Wolverines but I doubt much of the rest of the NCAA landscape took notice.  The decision to keep the WAC going through at least the 2013-2014 academic year, and possibly the 2014-2015 one as well appears to me nothing more than a stall tactic.  Despite Craig Thompson telling them it isn't happening, New Mexico St and Idaho are holding out for some dramatic change involving a MWC member defecting to the Big East for football thus garnering one of them, likely NMSU a slot in the more prestigious and stable MWC.  My belief is that the two schools have a gentleman's agreement to try out FBS independence for two years to see if A) they can make it work and, B) to hold out a little while longer for the MWC to let them in.  Once one (NMSU) gets an invite, the other (Idaho) will bid them adieu and promptly join the Big Sky and downgrade to FCS.  This seems logical as Idaho has actually been talking to Big Sky officials and got permission from their board of regents for permission to make the move.  At which point, the WAC would be no more.  My guess is there thinking is that they can make independence work so long as there are the two of them--one cannot make it alone without the other and while Idaho could move to the Big Sky immediately they are holding out hope and trying to help out New Mexico St.  The Vandals are not doing this purely out of altruism however: both Idaho and New Mexico St stand to collect paychecks for playing guarantee (body bag) games against major conference foes.  Idaho will get paychecks from Ole Miss and Washington St in 2013 and Florida in 2014.  New Mexico St similarly, will collect a handsome sum in 2013 for putting teams on the field against Texas and UCLA.

Denver and Seattle are also content with keeping the WAC alive a little while longer.  Neither has any where to go at the moment so a conference schedule, albeit a small and weak one, and access to the NCAA Men's basketball tournament is preferable to being on their own.  Denver, Seattle, and the pair of football schools also have a financial incentive to keep the WAC alive because they can reap whatever television monies that are due to the WAC as well as collect any exit fees from the departing schools.  Denver and Seattle are playing a waiting game of their own with the private school league WCC.  The West Coast Conference seems content with 10 but Seattle and Denver are still hoping that the respective television markets they reside in, even if they are only delivering a tiny share, will catch the attention of the WCC.  There is also the matter of BYU and should they ever go to the Big 12 it could provide an opportunity for one of those schools to get into the WCC.

That #12 slot in the Big West is also still sitting there too.  It could go to a MWC-to BEfb defector or be filled by another program like Cal St Bakersfield or Sacramento St

In short, there is nothing to dramatic or revealing about the WAC expansion announced this week.  In fact, their won't be anything conclusive until the Big East finally makes a move.  If 2014 rolls around and nothing has happened and we still have the same 6 schools residing in the WAC when the WAC's two-year waiver with the NCAA regarding their membership falling below 7 is up expect them to call up the Grand Canyon University Antelopes to prolong the life of the conference a little longer.  Grand Canyon is already positioned itself to where it can make a move it simply needs an invite now.