WAC makes
its moveThe conference works
quickly to add New
Mexico State and Utah State
The landscape of the Western Athletic Conference made a decided shift to the west yesterday with the official acceptances by New Mexico State and Utah State to join the far-flung league.
Whether this was just a subtle slide or something that will register on the Richter scale remains to be seen. What is apparent is that the WAC is being proactive, taking the offensive rather than waiting around for other conferences to make a decision.
The announcement came less than a week after Rice, Southern Methodist and Tulsa made it known that the three are moving to Conference USA as of July 2005. The vote by the WAC board of directors was a unanimous 10-0 to add the two Sun Belt schools after three days of teleconferences and one-on-one calls.
"That we were able to get a consensus this quickly is a pleasant surprise and I think it sends a positive message about the conference," said WAC commissioner Karl Benson during yesterday's media teleconference. "It puts us in a very good position should we need to act again.
"This process is not over. This is stage one. The board of directors will meet again on Monday (by teleconference) and there might be more members on the way."
With the departure of Rice, SMU and Tulsa, the WAC was down to seven schools. Adding New Mexico State and Utah State brings the number to nine, one less than what Benson considers his ideal.
"I've always said that 10 was a very good and practical number to accommodate both football and basketball," Benson said. "The opportunity still exists to go to two divisions if we have 10 or 12 teams. We will wait and see what happens to the east and to the west of us."
To the east are changes being made by Conference USA and the Sun Belt, to the west is the ever-present speculation that the Mountain West Conference wants to lure from one to four WAC teams over to the eight-team league. The WAC's "Breakaway Eight" of Air Force, Brigham Young, Colorado State, UNLV, New Mexico, San Diego State, Utah and Wyoming formed the Mountain West in 1999.
One question mark is current WAC member Louisiana Tech, the only school remaining in the Central time zone. The WAC board of directors has given a vote of confidence to LaTech and said that the conference has an obligation to accommodate the Bulldogs' time zone and geography issues.
There has been speculation that LaTech could move to the Sun Belt or to Conference USA. If the Ruston, La., school stays in the WAC, Benson said there would be a move to add a "connector school" that would link LaTech to New Mexico State and UTEP. That school likely would be North Texas.
Yesterday's addition of NMSU and Utah State brings to a close more than 40 years of frustration for the two schools. Both applied to be charter members of the WAC in 1961 but were turned down; the two schools have since made overtures every time the WAC opened itself to expansion.
The last time was in 2000, when Boise State and Louisiana Tech were invited instead. The familiarity with New Mexico State and Utah State helped with the quick decision this week.
"Bringing in Utah State and New Mexico State adds a lot more western to the Western Athletic Conference," Utah State president Kermit Hall said. "It's where we should be."
Benson said that the two new members were given no assurances that the WAC would have the same makeup in 2005 as it currently does, sans the three defectors. Both schools also had to "buy into" the conference for a sum that the commissioner would not reveal except to say it was comparable to what Boise State and Louisiana Tech paid three years ago. Boise State ended up paying an entry fee of $600,000 by forfeiting $200,000 of conference revenue for three years.
Benson said he is tired of hearing speculation that the WAC will lose current teams to the rival Mountain West. He knows there has been informal contact by MWC officials to their WAC counterparts, including University of Hawaii president Evan Dobelle.
"I certainly understand why the Mountain West is interested in WAC schools," Benson said. "I'm worn out by the speculation. We will address that if it happens.
"The WAC name has had standing power. It has recognition, value and respect. I think that adding these two schools in states with former WAC members will make the WAC-Mountain West rivalry even greater."
Out of the remaining Sun Belt schools the WAC is considering, Idaho and North Texas look to be the most logical. While Benson wouldn't confirm that Mountain West schools are also on the radar screen, he did say that several I-AA schools had approached the WAC about membership.
"We won't consider them until they meet I-A requirements," he said. "North Texas has continued to show improvement, particularly in football, and could be a valuable addition. Idaho has long been on our list. They were on it in 2000 and are there again this time. Depending on what occurs around us, they will be given strong consideration if we add another team in the West.
"The decision made today was what we believed to be in the best interests of the WAC. Today is 'Aggie Day' in the WAC."
The Star-Bulletin's Dave Reardon contributed to this story.
New Mexico State Aggies
Location: Las Cruces, N.M.
Enrollment: 23,112
Colors: Crimson/White
Stadium: Aggie Memorial (30,343, grass)
Fieldhouse: Pan American Center (13,071)
Annual athletic budget: $8.3 million
Famous athletic alumnus: Rich Beem
Men's sports: baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, swimming and diving, tennis
Women's sports: basketball, cross country, golf, softball, swimming and diving, tennis, track and field, volleyball
Utah State Aggies
Location: Logan, Utah
Enrollment: 21,000
Colors: Navy Blue/White
Stadium: E.L. Romney (30,257, grass)
Fieldhouse: Dee Glen Smith Spectrum (10,270)
Annual athletic budget: $8 million
Famous athletic alumnus: Merlin Olson
Men's sports: basketball, cross country, football, golf, tennis, track and field
Women's sports: basketball, cross country, gymnastics, soccer, softball, tennis, track and field, volleyball
UH Athletics
WAC Web site
