The Big West announced this week that they've extended memberships to UC San Diego (currently D-2) and Cal State Bakersfield (currently WAC).
https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/bigwest/bake-to-the-big-west-too-t21478.html
That puts them at 11. Dennis Farrell had said he'd go for 12. If I take the conversation in that link as a marker of previous conference discussions, then there are many who think Seattle U is a possibility, something they see as expanding the conference footprint and opening up more TV possibilities. The discussion doesn't seem to stop at 12, BTW... though it probably shouldn't assume that New Mexico State is fait accompli. That gets the conference nowhere.
So all that stuff I've said in the past about the Big West being out of the question? It appears conditions may have changed, or are changing.
There's a catch...
Baseball. Soccer. Volleyball. Those are the conference's marquee sports, they want to see all the schools playing them. Portland State will have to upgrade volleyball (we know the past, which was D-2) and get going on baseball and men's soccer. Here's the chance to have the Dirtbags in town; Hillsboro Stadium could use a few spring dates.
Portland State needs some serious (if not major) financial upgrades to go there. This is where axing football MIGHT help, though I don't even think there's a 1-to-1 ratio of the end of football leading to improvements in other sports. There has to be support for the other sports.
So does Portland State want to be Seattle's traveling partner? (This assumes Gonzaga doesn't leave the WCC to join a bigger conference, which would all but cement Seattle's place in the WCC. Gonzaga has made noise about "keeping all options open.") Or is it time to truly commit to making it work in the Big Sky?
https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/bigwest/bake-to-the-big-west-too-t21478.html
That puts them at 11. Dennis Farrell had said he'd go for 12. If I take the conversation in that link as a marker of previous conference discussions, then there are many who think Seattle U is a possibility, something they see as expanding the conference footprint and opening up more TV possibilities. The discussion doesn't seem to stop at 12, BTW... though it probably shouldn't assume that New Mexico State is fait accompli. That gets the conference nowhere.
So all that stuff I've said in the past about the Big West being out of the question? It appears conditions may have changed, or are changing.
There's a catch...
Baseball. Soccer. Volleyball. Those are the conference's marquee sports, they want to see all the schools playing them. Portland State will have to upgrade volleyball (we know the past, which was D-2) and get going on baseball and men's soccer. Here's the chance to have the Dirtbags in town; Hillsboro Stadium could use a few spring dates.
Portland State needs some serious (if not major) financial upgrades to go there. This is where axing football MIGHT help, though I don't even think there's a 1-to-1 ratio of the end of football leading to improvements in other sports. There has to be support for the other sports.
So does Portland State want to be Seattle's traveling partner? (This assumes Gonzaga doesn't leave the WCC to join a bigger conference, which would all but cement Seattle's place in the WCC. Gonzaga has made noise about "keeping all options open.") Or is it time to truly commit to making it work in the Big Sky?