THERE is a storm of the century moving toward the University of Hawaii that may arrive before the next millennium. Gimme shelter?
There’s none to
be had in WACAt this moment, the Western Athletic Conference doesn't have a television contract for football and men's basketball next season, and doesn't have a bowl deal for its football champion.
League commissioner Karl Benson is doing his best to rectify both, but it's proving a difficult sale. ESPN politely shut the door in Benson's face. The sports network already has a six-year, $41 million deal in place with the breakaway eight, known these days as the Mountain West Conference.
Last summer, Hawaii administrators and athletic department officials tried to tell everyone that it would be OK, that the Rainbows were in the right league. But nothing could be further from the truth.
Without television or a postseason parade, teams in this league won't be able to market their programs and, eventually, won't be able to recruit the kind of talent that sells tickets.
Benson is trying to work a deal with Bowl Games of Hawaii. He wants to send his league champion here for football, and have the men's and women's basketball tournaments held at the Stan Sheriff Center.
''We want Hawaii to become a destination that is similar to what we had in Las Vegas,'' Benson recently told the Star-Bulletin. ''We think this is a great destination point for the fans around the league.''
On the surface, that idea looks like the calm waters of Waikiki. But six feet down, there may be too many sharks to keep it afloat. For one, if ESPN isn't interested in a television deal with the WAC, how excited can network executives be about a WAC team being locked into the Oahu Bowl?
Granted, the network had a solid 3.5 rating for the Air Force-Washington matchup in the inaugural Christmas Day game. But that was a Falcon team that was nationally ranked and had only one loss.
And remember, Air Force isn't around anymore. The Falcons are in the conference with other football standouts, such as Brigham Young, Colorado State, Utah, Wyoming and San Diego State. If push comes to shove, you get the feeling that ESPN prefers to show a team it already has a contract with, and it isn't the WAC.
Hawaii is also a difficult travel destination, especially during Christmas. Even with rabid fan bases, major schools such as Colorado and Washington have a hard time selling tickets for the Aloha Bowl on such short notice.
The only team in the WAC that could generate similar interest is Fresno State. And you wonder how much longer the Bulldogs will be around given the current state of affairs.
The basketball tournaments won't be as difficult a sell because fans can plan ahead of time to come to Hawaii. But what does it say about the university when Benson prefers Bowl Games of Hawaii officials over those in the athletic department to handle the event?
Confidence in those running UH is low. And it should be. The department is operating at a $1 million deficit. Those in the breakaway eight didn't feel Hawaii's football and basketball programs were attractive enough to overcome the costs of coming here.
They also didn't believe the people in charge at UH could get it turned around, which leaves UH in a league that is on the brink of collapse. Texas Christian and Southern Methodist are already looking at Conference USA, and you get the feeling Fresno would join the Mountain West if somebody would only ask.
Which leaves you wondering: What's going to happen to the program here? Thanks to the isolation policy that developed after former UH athletic director Stan Sheriff died, Hawaii's options are limited.
It's either go down with the ship, join the Big West, or be an independent. Not exactly the best of choices, but that's what happens when you don't prepare properly for the storm of the century.
Paul Arnett has been covering sports
for the Star-Bulletin since 1990.