🏈 This BYU move is VERY interesting to me...

[TerryP]

...and I don't see them trying to become the Notre Dame of the West...but rather, the Yankee's of college football.

Considering the money that surrounds the Mormon community. Considering the following that religion has for BYU...

They've started their own network for football, basketball, baseball...

Smart, no, make that SMART move on BYU's part...

Wonder if our local Ute fan will drop in on this conversation...???

 

[TerryP]

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=5473151

Sorry...there's the link to the story if you haven't seen it yet....

 

['65 Cobra]

I think it's a stong move on their part and shows that there are still some independent thinkers out there who aren't going to be pressured into following the crowd into potential "super-conferences." I respect them for that.

 

[UAgrad93]

I agree with you Cobra. I have always liked the BYU program as far back as I can remember. Being a former quarterback, I liked to see a team sling it around and BYU was that team. They have always run a clean program. I think they can do well as an independent.

 

[planomateo]

i've been wondering when the LDS's were gonna get tired of only making $2m in tv revenue from the MWC. As Terry says above...how many Mormon's are in the US and will pay for that network? dunno, big gamble if you ask me, but big payout too.

MWC conf just took a hit, a big one. both Utah schools leaving...yikes.

 

[61_Shasta]

Well, I'm not a local Ute fan but just a couple of thoughts. The reaction in Utah to the move is all over the board. There are a lot of questions that so far don't seem to have answers. BYU does have a very large HD production studio built on campus but at this point they don't have the cameras or the truck as far as anyone knows. Hard to say where it goes from here. Also BYU-TV at this point is a non-commercial station but with enough money thrown at that problem it will go away.

In addition there is question as to desirability of schedule since part of the deal (reportedly) is that four of the games would be against WAC opponents which would weaken their strength of schedule as most of the WAC teams such as Utah State, Idaho, La. Tech, pretty much blow. So from the looks of it they're likely looking at four WAC teams, maybe two of the service academies but filling in the rest of the blanks could be a question. On the other hand I've seen two things with my girlfriend having previously worked for an LDS church owned chain of department stores. First the LDS church is led by mostly successful businessmen. If it doesn't make monetary sense they don't do it. Secondly the second the venture doesn't make money it is gone.

One of the last questions comes in their tradition and this could be a good question for Alabama fans. Does BYU carry enough "name" for Alabama to consider scheduling them?

 

[rammerjammer]

Back in the mid 90's Bama played a home and home series with BYU. Both were good games.

 

[61_Shasta]

That flushing sound you heard coming from the west was BYU's hope of going independent going down the toilet. Understand that MWC commissioner Craig Thompson may just be the most inept commissioner in the history of commissioners but his move yesterday was brilliant. The game plan was for BYU to go indy in football and move to the Western Athletic Conference for all other sports. In other words the league most of America already think they're in.

Earlier this year the MWC picked up Boise State from the WAC but the WAC was still a viable conference. Last night Thompson announced that Fresno State and Nevada-Reno of the WAC would be moving to the MWC essentially decimating the WAC and likely ending its viability as a D-1 conference. No one can figure out what BYU's next move is other than to stay put in the MWC with its horrible TV contract with The Mountain West network which nets them a whopping $1.4 (now $1.15) million per year. Yes, per year.

This didn't quite go as they thought.

 

[rick4bama]

Western Athletic Conference at one time BYU was in this conference. Well will all the moving teams are doing these days I can not keep up with it.

 

[planomateo]

while we are on the subject of expansion, how about this article about Utah and Colorado not locks for the PAC-10.

But, he’s also a realist. “The goal is to bring in more money, but that won’t go to the nonrevenue sports,” he said. “It will be spent by football and basketball, mostly football. They’ll hire more coaches, pay the coaches more. The new commissioner [Larry Scott] has already paid for a private jet to fly the conference coaches to the East to meet with media. As if that will make a difference. The basic problem of time zones remains. The Eastern media won’t see many of the Pac-10 games, and they won’t care.”

I share Chancellor Young’s sentiments. This has been a bad idea from the get-go.

Scott’s original idea was to entice Texas to bolt from the Big 12 and lead other Texas and Oklahoma schools into a separate wing of what would be the “Pac-16.” But, Texas had no incentive to leave the Big 12. It was only using the Pac-10 as a bargaining tool with the Big 12.

Now, the Pac-10 is left with the worst of two worlds. Adding Utah and Colorado will do nothing to enhance its TV viability. Figuring added travel costs, “It may be a net loss,” Young said.


Read more at the San Francisco Examiner: http://www.sfexaminer.com/sports/Di...not-all-positive-101138474.html#ixzz0xBNYNPI5

 

[psychojoe]

while we are on the subject of expansion, how about this article about Utah and Colorado not locks for the PAC-10.

Now that would shake the world again. I suppose the Utes could go back to the Mountain West, but Colorado seems to have burned their bridges.

 

[61_Shasta]

I was at the press conference where the announcement was made at Rice-Eccles stadium Larry Scott said that the presidents and chancellors of the Pacific-10 had voted to give him the authority to extend an invitation to join the PAC-10.They've announced that the next meeting is to discuss divisional alignment.

And as I add this it's confirmed. Understand that the Deseret News is owned by the LDS church and is as biased toward BYU as the day is long. If Rock is reporting this then the deal is done. http://www.deseretnews.com/blog/41/10009807/Rockmonster-unplugged-Utah-Meets-Pac-10-Opposition.html

To give you an idea of the relationship between Utah and the D-News: http://utefans.net/message.php?id=1051488 (Dick Harmon is a columnist for the Deseret News)

Just my $0.02. I did like the Smart/Not Smart portion of ESPN radio today. Picking Alabama in the National Championship game? Smart. BYU successful going independent? Not smart.

 

[Tider27]

No offense to BYU but no college kid wants to be limited to the point of absolutely no fun off the field. At Alabama we're mostly business, but at least they get to have SOME fun.