Espn reports Utah State is in

I know we've already gone down memory lane with this loser in another thread, but a case could be made that the only reason that USU is now in a position to be desired by any conference is because of.....Gary Andersen.  I find that kinda funny....

Back to the subject of this thread, I am actually just a little bit excited about adding USU, mainly because of some education that AggieLarry has previously provided us.  I didn't know that Utah and Utah St. went through a similar split as us decades ago, with USU getting left behind while Utah left to stretch its wings in the WAC (lol).  Considering the academic prowess of USU that's similar to us, and their obvious desire to invest and suceed in athletics, I kinda like the idea of sponsoring an upstart, hungry program, and giving them a leg up to see if they might be able to match the trajectory of their former rival.

Bvrbooster stood in front of his bathroom mirror and said my name three times.

Hey guys.  Lots to address.

I'm happy that USU in in the PAC.  I think that was inevitable.  Thanks for the kind words about USU.  I hope my visits here have made some of you more comfortable with being conference mates.

Having said that, I'm not particularly happy about how this came about, and where it's heading.  I think the PAC was impatient, and used a sledgehammer when a pillow would have gotten better results.  I don't think Memphis, Tulane, or UTSA were ever in the picture.  Tulane and UTSA weren't going anywhere without Memphis.  Memphis figured that IF the ACC blew up, they'd be very high on the list of replacements for FSU and Clemson, so why join prematurely a lower ranked conference (sorry, gotta be honest) that's on the other side of the country.  So, the best option was always going to be merging with 9 or 12 of the MWC, depending on how you worked it.  Now, the current actions have caused the MWC to circle the wagons, so the most attractive remaining programs are off the table.  That leaves who?  New Mexico State?  Drag Idaho back up from FCS?  UTEP?  The sad thing is, the deal to hold onto UNLV has created a situation far worse than Boise's sweetheart deal to keep them in the MWC, which was a festering sore for the rest of the conference for years.  The ultimate breakup of the MWC is now, in my opinion, inevitable, but not in time to help the PAC with your/our current situation.

And may I say, no one ever went broke betting on the greed, arrogance, and perfidy of Boise and San Diego State.  Trust me, you will eventually grow to hate them.

Oh, and to address some other posts.  Yeah, it is ironic that Gary Andersen was part of the triumverate that resurrected USU football (University President Stan Albrecht, AD Scott Barnes, and HC Gary Andersen).  When he was sober and kept his pants zipped, GA was a good coach.  The problem is, he couldn't, wouldn't, didn't.  Then, when a wealthy booster bullied AD John Hartwell into taking him back, he almost destroyed the program.  Just recently, we've had another tailspin.  Now former HC Blake Anderson is a really nice guy, but you could tell there were problems.  For the last three years, we've had one of the most penalized teams in FBS.  No discipline on the field, and as so often happens, none off the field.  We've been plagued by title IX issues.  I hope we're getting that straightened out.

So, new men's basketball coach, who has brought in three 4* recruits in less than a year.  Soccer is nationally ranked.  Women's basketball has a new coach.  I think things are heading in the right direction.

On a personal note, after twenty-two years in Salem, it looks like I'm moving back to the Logan area.  I hope to see some of you at the games.

Oh, and Henry Skrimshander mentioned that we'd played in 11 bowl games in 12 years, but "no major bowls". Well, duh! You may remember, the MWC champion played the SIXTH PLACE team from the PAC. As you're about to find out, if you're not in a P4 conference, unless you're undefeated, conference champion, and have the highest strength of schedule in the G6, and elbow your way into a NY6 bowl, you're going to be playing Pigsknuckle State in the Bob's Muffler Shop Nobody Cares Bowl. The bowl system is rigged for the P4. The 8th place team from the B1G playing the 10th place team from the SEC would get a better bowl than the champions of the MWC and AAC playing each other. It isn't fair, but that's life. You learn to deal with it.

Hello aggielarry - I was a bit surprised we had not heard from you yet about USU joining the PAC-12. Been watching for it… Figured you were collecting your thoughts. Your input is always welcome, to me and most others that post here.

When MWC raised the game prices hugely for 2025 - I don’t think the PAC-12 had any choice to do what they did… That put them between a rock and a hard place. This certainly is a mess, but hopefully it winds up okay in the long run. Becoming conference mates with the best 4 of the MWC is preferable to a full merger for most of us. But now we need at least one more team…

Good luck with your move back to Logan, Utah. I recently moved from Western Oregon, where I lived all my life except 4 years in the US Army - to Central Florida. What a change! So for those reasons only- the PAC-12 expanding eastward would be welcome. (Besides that - it does not make much sense - unless it would help the conference make more money).