If I Ruled the College Football World

I'll be straight up and honest... I'm not a fan of Texas A&M joining the SEC.  I can understand both sides of it... A&M sees the University of Texas Longhorns create its own TV network, and stand in front of bajillions and zagillions of dollars and decide that Texas is going to have all the money, which to A&M just ain't fair.  As far as the SEC is concerned, with the addition of Texas A&M, they'll have an arm into the largest state in the Great 48.   Of course, the SEC is saying they are happy with 12 members, but do you think Texas A&M would be ready to sever ties so quickly with the Big XII if the SEC wasn't a huge, huge possibility.  You don't break up with Kate Upton, unless you know you have a more than better shot with Brooklyn Decker, even if Brooklyn Decker has said she's quite happy where she is.  Do you get me?

I don't like it.  Nothing about Texas A&M says "Southeastern" to me.  Sorry.  Don't buy it.  Then again, nothing about "Vanderbilt" says "Conference of champions".  And now, I read Oklahoma is looking around?  The Big XII can, and probably will, survive if A&M bolts.  There are several teams from non-AQ conferences that would be willing to join up, and they might even find a few disgruntled BCS teams that are unhappy with where they are.  But if Oklahoma bolts, its over.  Texas will possibly go independent (another bad idea, in my own (un)humble opinion), and the conference will buckle, sending every other team scrambling for a home.

The Big 10 will welcome in Missouri, Iowa State and possibly one, or both, of the Kansas teams.  The Pac 10 will lap up Oklahoma State quickly, and maybe even Texas, if the SEC doesn't take Texas first.  That leaves Baylor looking for a home, and Texas Tech trying to squeeze into the SEC or the Big East.  Thus, the era of the Superconference is upon us.

And I just think that's a bad idea.  So here's my idea... let's just take one offseason, maybe in a few years, maybe before the start of the 2014 season, and let's just revamp our conferences.  No, I'm serious.  Let's pretend all the school presidents get together, along with the coaches and the athletic directors, and they meet up in Atlanta, Georgia (hey, if its good enough to produce the BCS national champion five years running, its good enough to host a College Football Revamp Summit) and they hash this stuff out.

By the way, my conference realignments pays no attention to money, which is probably the first problem, but also I don't move any current BCS conference team down to a non-AQ conference, though I do move some teams up.

So here's what happens... starting with...

THE BIG EAST

Staying put... Louisville, Rutgers, Syracuse, Cincinnati, UConn, West Virginia, South Florida and Pittsburgh.  Your right, that's the entire 8 team current lineup of the conference.  But let's add four more, give this conference a championship game and give the Big East some credibility.

What happens when the Vandy of the Big East (Syracuse) plays the
Vandy of the SEC (Vandy)?  They score.

Here's who they pick up...
Vanderbilt...  Let's be real.  This is where they can compete.  They'll go from an SEC doormat to a mid-card Big East member.  Can you imagine dropping a schedule that includes Georgia, Florida and South Carolina, and picking up one that includes Syracuse, Rutgers and UConn?  Go 'Dores.

Notre Dame...  Listen, they have had their day, their decade, their generation to be high and mighty.  But this is now, in a college football climate that doesn't care about the tradition of Knute and the Irish.  Especially when the Irish have stunk it up for the better part of 15 years.  Notre Dame, you need the Big East, and the Big East needs you.

Boston College... They should have never left.  The Golden Eagles were like the McLovin compared to the cooler guys of FSU and Miami when the ACC came calling.  The ACC didn't want BC, they just wanted someone to even up the divisions, and BC said, "Okay, we'll come."  Go back, BC.  Go back.

Miami... Let's be real here too--this ACC/Miami partnership has been a disaster.  They were supposed to, along with Florida State, be the Michigan & Ohio State or the Texas & Oklahoma of the ACC, as in, the dominant forces that, with a few odd years, would be constantly battling to the end for a championship.  But nay.  Its been one problem after another.  Miami should go back.

THE ACC

Ah, but now that we've stripped them of two of its members, what do they do?

Well, first, they lose Virginia Tech, which we'll get to later.

This leaves them with 9 members, that being Clemson, Florida State, Maryland, NC State, North Carolina, Wake Forest, Georgia Tech, Duke and Virginia.  What if we add...

Navy... currently independent, it makes perfect sense to join a conference, especially being located right there in Maryland, central to the ACC geography.  They are year in and year out a fairly decent team, and this would benefit not only the Midshipmen but also the ACC as a whole.

And with 10 members, they lose their conference title game... which is okay.  I can't remember the last time I saw an ACC title game that was even interesting.

THE BIG TEN

First, I have no problem with The Big Ten having more than ten members.  In fact, I am used to them having 11, now they have 12, and I really don't have a problem with them getting 14.  I know, I know, slippery slope to a super conference, but hear me out...

Everyone in the conference stays put, especially with the Nebraska move, it makes a strong conference.  But let's add two more...

Missouri... Just makes sense, really.  I think they fit better here, both geographically and rivalry wise.  I'm glad they didn't come to the SEC.

Iowa State... This sets up a perfect rivalry between the Hawkeyes and the Cyclones, and not just in-state, but also, inter-conference.

THE MOUNTAIN WEST

Well, TCU is jumping over to The Big East in 2012, but in my conference lineup, they stay put.  And they want to stay put, because in my lineup, The Mountain West is solid enough to at least warrant BCS consideration.

We know that next year, Hawaii and Nevada are jumping to The Mountain West next year, leaving behind the Western Athletic Conference.  Fresno State is also leaving the WAC for Mtn West, but not in my system.  Put them aside for now.

So, remaining in the Mountain West are Colorado State, New Mexico, San Diego State, Wyoming, UNLV,  and Air Force, with the return of TCU, the new addition of Boise State, and the upcoming Hawaii and Nevada.  That's 10 teams.

I'm going to go on a limb and say the WAC will fold, which is fine, because... well, frankly, its useless.  So the Mountain West absorbs those teams, including San Jose State, New Mexico State, Utah State and Idaho.

Yes, I know, I know, you've got several crappy teams here, but really this was more about keeping TCU where they belong, giving Boise State somewhere where they can be challenged, giving Hawaii more presence and chunking the WAC.

THE PAC 12

This one is simple.  There are 11 current members that stay put--USC, UCLA, Stanford, Oregon, Oregon State, Washington, Wash State, Utah, Arizona, Arizona State and California.

Colorado goes back to the Big XII where they belong, but joining the PAC 12?

What happens when Pat Hill brings his 'stache to The Pac 12?  The Pac
12 gets a little more awesome.

Fresno State.  That's right, Fresno State.  I frikkin' love this idea.  Their motto is "anytime, anywhere" and they are moderately successful playing in the WAC, which we know is going away.  Give them the money of a BCS conference and who knows what they will do, right?  Okay, we do know... they'll average about 4 to 6 wins per year, but still, wouldn't it be awesome to see what they might do?  And heck, Colorado is going to win about 5 games per year for the foreseeable future, and the Fresno Dawgs are much more fun.

THE MAC

Stays intact, and by the time 2013 rolls around, when The Summit happens, UMass will be a full member.  I mean, do you know enough about The MAC to discuss realignment and expansion?  Did you even know they were the only conference to have 13 football schools?  Me neither.  

After all the moving and switching I did, the only independent team I had left was Army.  I guess the MAC would take them, but that would give them 15 teams and somehow, 14 is fine, 15 is too many and then we start all over.


THE SUNBELT

The teams in now are Florida International and Atlantic, their bands, Arkansas State, Louisiana Lafeyette and Monroe, Western Kentucky, North Texas and Middle Tennessee State.  Troy drops them like a bad habit, leaving an 8 team conference

CONFERENCE USA

All the teams stay the same, including East Carolina, Marshall, UAB, Central Florida, Southern Miss, Memphis, Rice, Tulane, Tulsa and UTEP.

Con-USA loses two members, that being Houston and Southern Methodist.  But the teams they gain?

In my plan, these two teams really never have to
play each other again.

LA Tech... Who in the blue blazes decided it was a good idea for LA Tech to join the WAC?  Its like the "Grocery Bag Conference", as in, they just hold the bag under all the other conferences and whichever teams filter through, they catch in their bag and go with it.  At first, I had LA Tech in the New Sunbelt, but Con USA needed 12 teams, plus it helps distance them from the other two LAs, that being Monroe and Lafeyette.

Troy... This is where they should be.  Heck, they are 2-0 in Big XII games at home.  They need to move beyond the Sunbelt and get into a conference with a title game.  One that me and my best mate Wookiee could attend.  It would rule.

THE SEC

Again, an easy conference, because they keep everything status quo, with Auburn, Alabama, LSU, Mississippi State, Ole Miss and Arkansas on one side, and Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Tennessee and South Carolina.  Vandy defected and is now in The Big East, and is enjoying 6 and 7 win seasons on a regular basis.  But filling that final spot?

Virginia Tech... Yeah, I know, VA Tech?  Really?  But seriously... it gives the SEC another market, it gets VA Tech out from under Miami and FSU and lets them really test Frank Beamer's teams with the best in the SEC East and replacing Vandy with VA Tech on a schedule would be another nail in the awesomeness house that the SEC has built.

THE BIG XII

This is the conference I had the most trouble with.  I went back and forth, I had both Air Force and Boise State in here at one time or another, I dabbled with the idea of Utah coming here, I even thought of TCU joining the Big XII... but decided on adding four teams to bring it up to 12 total, making it... The Big 12.

Remember, we lost Missouri and Iowa State to The Big Ten earlier.

So, let's keep Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Baylor, Texas, Texas Tech, Kansas, Kansas State, and yes, Texas A&M here.  Let's add the following...

Southern Methodist... They are still rebounding from the death penalty from the 80s, and frankly, I think they'll benefit immensely from this move.  They want back in, too, and I think they would be a great addition.

Houston... I figure Case Keenum will stay for another 3 to 8 years, so they'll continually be good.  I think Houston is like Baylor, one of those teams that when they are on, they are on.

Colorado... Another "shoulda never left" team.  They are going to get eaten alive in the PAC.

Brigham Young... Yes, they are independent.  But they shouldn't be.  BYU needs to be in a conference, and I think they are a little too big for the Mountain West.  Stick 'em in the Big XII, the Mormons will join the Sooners, and it will be good times all around.

So there ya go.  This is a perfect way to solve all the BCS mess and the NCAA problems, to get LA Tech playing games not in Pacific islands, to keep A&M where they belong, to get Vandy to a place where they can actually win back to back games and to rid us of the ACC title game.

THIS will work.  I promise.

The Summer of Blogging, Day Sixty Eight