So … I guess we are rooting for Oliver and to have an invite by the end of 2022?
I think our path to the Pac-12 is clearer than you’re giving it credit for. The Pac-12 allegedly has a couple of criteria for consideration that keep getting bandied about:
- No religious affiliation
- Carnegie VHRU designation
Every school in the Pac-12 fits that description, and they’re allegedly focused on keeping it that way. Assuming that’s accurate, there are only a few schools West of the Mississippi they can consider that aren’t already in a P5:
- Colorado State
- Hawaii
- Houston
- Nevada
- UNLV
- New Mexico
- North Texas
- Rice
- UTEP
I think it’s fair to say that among that list, UH is clearly the most desirable. The only school that comes close, IMO, is Colorado State, and they’re close enough to CU that I think it rules them out. If the Pac-12 wants to expand, and they can’t get at least 2 P5 schools, it seems pretty obvious that they’ll be adding UH, especially if they want to go to 16 like some reports indicate.
UH and UNLV
Aldine , hang in there. I appreciate all your thoughts on this in wake of tremendous opposition. I firmly believe your correct on what’s happening since you talked to our AD and are in the know. Once this is over around 2024 and we get the invite we need to set up a tailgate and have a party in your honor for all the heat you take on this.
Keep the faith!
I think we’d be the first to get the call up to the Pac-12 among existing G5 if they expand. But I don’t really see them expanding and pulling from the G5.
You saw that the Big 12’s tv partners had absolutely no interest in letting the Big 12 get a proportional increase in revenue for adding any G5 school even though they had a contract in place requiring them to do just that. I don’t see any G5 adding close to proportionate value when the Pac negotiates their first tier rights next round. The value added to the Pac-12 network would be the only hope but that seems like way too big of a gulf to overcome. And then you’ve got all the extra travel and whatnot.
But idk, weird things can happen. Maybe ESPN could offset what they pay a Pac-12 with us in it by nuking their deal with the AAC after we left or something.
They are NOT a conference who is going to try and add schools 3 years before a TV contract is up.
Correct! There are no P5 conferences that are desperate for new teams like the the Big 12 was. Therefore conferences will look into adding schools during their TV contract negotiations.
It will be the TV networks telling the conference if a particular school in a particular TV market is valuable to them.
TV contracts are usually agreed on 1-2 years before it expires. The SEC recently agreed on their new TV contract 4 years ahead of the expiration in 2024 and the SEC is not going to add any new schools.
If their TV partners wanted them to expand right now and thought we’d add value they’d do it and give the conference more money.
I think the ACC raid of the Big East was like 5 years before the ACC’s deal expired.
I’ve read an article by the Chron before in which he had nothing but great things to say about us. The only thing that could be misconstrued as negative was when he said UH was a great university with rich history in academics and athletics, but we were always being made fun of by UT, A&M, and other schools and were always being put down as “Cougar High.” But he was simply trying to make a point to people outside the state that UH was a terrific school that was being unfairly put down by fans of other schools.
That is not funny.
How do you know? You and I have no clue(s) what the PAC wants to do next. Stop making assumptions.
You can surmise from what has happened so far
So far someone upthread said the Pac presidents wanted to expand and Larry Scott did not. That is completely opposite of fact and reality. The pac presidents actually fought against expansion but Larry Scott was given the authority to expand and went ahead and courted the big 12 and ended up with Utah and Colorado.
The pac did not reach out to us to give us a list of requirements in facilities and academics. We approached them. When our AD at the time tried to say the opposite, he had to issue a public retraction.
So, no, the pac was not interested in us even though they could have added us at any time.
The pac owns their own network so adding us was not dependent on any contract.
The sec added Missouri and atm despite not being able to negotiate with the networks. Missouri and aTm were valuable enough to show potential increase when the contract finally did come up for negotiating.
We apparently are nowhere near that valuable to warrant the pac adding us.
So, no, we don’t know what goes on behind pac closed doors, but we see the results of those closed door meetings.
The problem isn’t UH.
The problem is that there isn’t a clear #2 imo. Let alone #3 and #4 that are necessary as well.
A PAC 14 doesn’t work, if the PAC expands it has to be to 16.
From the list above , they could add Houston , Nevada, UNLV and then Tulane. Lots of Cali people are moving to Nevada and Texas so this would give them the good tv markets.
On the issue of who contacted who first, I think your right that we reached out first but they still took the time to advise us on what to do and we’re doing what they told us. The Sec for ex wouldn’t waste time advising us so it’s a sign
Ridiculous talking PAC expansion from 9 years ago like it was YESTERDAY. It wasnt… From PAC perspective or ours.
What you KNOW about the current situation wouldnt fill the head of a thimble. and your summation has about the same value.
Aldine
I don’t make broad definite statements but I do observe actions. On more than a few occasions you’ve stated something as fact, only to be proven wrong, even on this thread. Yes, we both don’t know anything for sure, but we also can’t take talks between UH and the PAC as any indication of what they might do. So far, there’s nothing that indicates the Pac would even consider UH.
And there’s no evidence that it wouldn’t, either.
It’s very clear that the PAC is struggling financially. It has to do something. I don’t think anyone disputes any of this.
What are its options? It has to expand. It has to get in new markets. It has to get into the central time zone.
How is it going to accomplish that? I don’t know either. But I know it will happen. I know we look as good or better than most of its other options. I’m optimistic.
I am a big Cougar fan and graduated in 1968.I will not write in complete sentences to save space.
Definition of Gadfly -A person who persistently annoys or provokes others with criticism. I think Gadfly is maybe Ole Rog, who hates UH sports. Please do not respond to him as this is what he craves.
No conference will make a move before UT makes a move. The conferences know
that UT wants nothing to do with us and would not go to conference with us in it.
Here are the Low Hanging Fruit that conferences took:
A&M, now the top college sports team in TX, for their SEC network & Texas population
Missouri- they needed 2 teams
Maryland-wanted to go to the Big10 for the Money & have the Baltimore & Washington DC market
Rutgers- NYC helps the B10N and tons of alumni and cable dollars
TCU & WV- B12 needed 10 teams to keep their TV contract
All are AAU except TCU & WV
I would trust Flugaur more than a gadfly
I think Flugaur has an educated guess as why would he show any interest in Houston? UH people will not subscribe to his service, what is his motive as we are not that important to the B10 area?
I have a question-why has UH dropped
UTSA from our 2024 & 2025 schedules & moved BYU to 2028?
We only have 1 nonconference game 2024 & 2 for 2025.
I ask because I would like to know.
One more thing, I know this is ancient history but Mich St & Purdue were not AAU members before they joined the B10.
Over & Out
What you say is true but Purdue was a founding member in 1896 and MSU joined in 1949.
Add SMU instead of tulane imo