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Utah is the only team that has any notoriety out of that half dozen. Cal and Stanford don't have any leverage, IMHO. Cherry pick from those six and add some teams from the Mountain West. Then you have some sort of PAC West conf. or whatever they call it.
Stanford has the most national championships of any school. They had a good basketball team for quite a while and their football program was good until recently.
There is something called the directors cup showcasing the most successful sports programs by school. Stanford has won it 26 times out of the 29 years its been awarded. Texas has won it twice and UNC once.
I could be completely wrong about the ACC. If they could appease those that might be disgruntled (FSU), then they have the potential to remain a strong conference. Their problem is that ridiculous TV contract.
Back in 2021 when the Big 12 was on the verge of separating, the Pac 12, ACC, and Big 10 should have acted. The hateful 8 as they were referred to would have gladly accepted places in other conferences! WVU has been begging to get into the ACC for a couple decades now! They missed their opportunity, and now the Big 12 is the third strongest conference behind the SEC and Big 10.
Stanford has the most national championships of any school. They had a good basketball team for quite a while and their football program was good until recently.
There is something called the directors cup showcasing the most successful sports programs by school. Stanford has won it 26 times out of the 29 years its been awarded. Texas has won it twice and UNC once.
The problem with Stanford is the lack of fan support. They couldn't even sell out their football stadium during the Andre Luck years. Recently, they have offered nothing in terms of TV viewership or fan engagement.
They have good Lacrosse and Golf teams as well as Tennis. 10 national championships since 2000 in those sports. Certainly they are better overall than Vanderbilt, the Mississippi schools or Missouri. And you could add South Carolina to that list.
Did you type that with a straight face? lol. Anyway, Duke basketball is their big revenue generator. Vandy is like Stanford. They get good jobs when they graduate but not traditionally known for athletics or athletic revenue. There is going to be an interesting landscape with these new conference members when the dust settles.
So you'd take Wyoming, Nevada, and Idaho over Colorado State and Air Force? Idaho and Wyoming bring nothing to the table wrt television markets, and Idaho plays football in a glorified high school gymnasium. Fort Collins and Colorado Springs are in a region of roughly 5 million people anchored by the Denver TV market (#16 in the nation), and Air Force has consistently had the best football program of the service academies for the last 30 years.
I just threw a quick list together. Add those in too. My point was its possible to put together a group of schools that won't be as good as the Pac-12 was but not that far off. The Pac-12 is 20 years removed from a football championship and 26 years removed in Basketball. All the hype of Oregon sports with their Nike money has produced zero football or hoops titles. Gonzaga is a powerhouse in hoops and SDSU was in the finals this past year. As you stated Air Force has a good football team. Boise state has been a national power for decades. So you have the potential of 3 or 4 ranked teams in both sports. And Gonzaga being one of the best hoops programs in the nation.
Duke might have a shot if the Big 10 wants to keep some East Coast slots available. Duke is in a fast growing part of the country, has a rich academic tradition, and is completive in most sports (except football). I can't imagine the SEC ever wanting them because of the difference in culture. The SEC isn't looking for another Vanderbilt, and would drop the one they have if they had the chance! Not all of the Big 10's expansions in the past have been motivated by on-field success. Look no further than Rutgers and Maryland. More so about TV market size.
Did you type that with a straight face? lol. Anyway, Duke basketball is their big revenue generator. Vandy is like Stanford. They get good jobs when they graduate but not traditionally known for athletics or athletic revenue. There is going to be an interesting landscape with these new conference members when the dust settles.
I was responding to the statement that they are only good in their basketball programs. Stanford has had one of the top women's basketball teams for decades. Not a big money maker. Stanford has tough admissions even for athletes so its hard to compete with football and mens hoops.
Utah is the only team that has any notoriety out of that half dozen. Cal and Stanford don't have any leverage, IMHO. Cherry pick from those six and add some teams from the Mountain West. Then you have some sort of PAC West conf. or whatever they call it.
As others have pointed out, Stanford is the king of the Olympic sports, of course those are non-revenue producing sports in contrast to basketball and football.
Stanford has won 134 NCAA team national championships in 20 different sports, the most of any Division 1 school in the NCAA!
I guess one thing going for Cal and Stanford is the Bay Area TV market.
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