It was January in 2013 and Big East Commissioner Mike Aresco was trying to save a conference. TCU came and went in about a week and found a home in the Big 12. The Catholic schools who didn't play football had plans to take their basketball and start a new league. UCF was joining the Big East but would the league even be around before playing their first game?
Aresco had an idea, take the league across the country. He went after Boise State and San Diego State. A plan to stretch the football part of the league across the country seemed to gain traction. But Boise State balked. The Broncos wanted more than an even slice of the pie. In order to leave the Mountain West, Boise State wanted some concessions like helping with travel costs, especially if all sports were coming. But the Mountain West knew a departure of Boise State and San Diego State might signal the end for its league. They came back to the Broncos and offered a greater piece of that TV pie. It also allowed Boise State to sell the media rights to its home games- a game changing move that Mike Aresco knew he could not match. And so Boise State's flirtation with the Big East.
Shortly after that move, San Diego State returned to the Mountain West as well and Aresco scrambled to keep a league. In the end, the Catholic schools negotiated to keep the Big East brand but Aresco kept most of its cash and renamed his league the American Athletic Conference.
That football season, UCF won the first ever AAC title and then beat a heavily favored Baylor team in the Fiesta Bowl. It was the last year of the BCS and the last time the conference had a guaranteed spot in a major bowl game.
The American has had great seasons by Houston in 2015, winning the Peach Bowl and UCF in 2017 and 2018. And while it has established itself at the best conference outside of the Power 5, it remains a distant 6th in revenue, media attention and respect.
Back to Boise State and a return to an old feeling. In early September, the Mountain West was still among the conferences who had decided to not play in the fall. Broncos coach Bryan Harsin, according to a report by BoiseDev/Idaho Press, reached out to his athletic director and school president and said the decision by the league should make the school reassess its conference affiliation. He talked about the success of Boise State's program in the past and how they took risks and have benefited from those risks and how in order for the football program and athletic department to grow it should look elsewhere.
Two weeks later, the Mountain West reversed course, like the Big Ten and Pac 12, and chose to play a shortened season. The Broncos are 4-1 and have one game still to play after not playing the last two weeks because of canceled games due to the virus.
What if Boise State is serious about reviewing its conference affiliation? Would the AAC have a genuine interest.? Boise State and other Mountain West Conference members are set to make about $4+ million a year in a new deal the league signed with CBS and FOX. Boise State has made additional money because of the deal they cut to stay in the league. Teams in the AAC are set to make about $7 million per year in their new ESPN/ESPN+ deal. But the American is on ESPN and no one argues that has a value. The belief in college football has long been- "if you are not on ESPN, then they rarely will mention you unless you are the Big Ten."
The AAC has 11 football members after UCONN opted to leave the league for the Big East. For now, they are able to play a conference title game with current membership but may need the NCAA to formally change the rule requiring 12 teams to play a title game unless you play a full round-robin conference schedule, like the Big 12.
Boise State would make a solid 12th team because of its football success and would add another team that has consistently been ranked in the top 25 or close to being ranked. They have built a brand over the last two decades and their style of play would fit with UCF, Cincinnati and Memphis- the most successful schools since the league was created. But does it bring the conference more media money or would ESPN, in a budget crunching year, offer no new dollars and therefore members would have to accept less than the current model. And if you take Boise State football do you have to take all sports? While Navy is football only in the AAC, Wichita State is the other 11th member in all sports other than football.
Does Aresco think that bigger is better and could he look at a scenario of growing to 14 teams for football? What if he added a combination of Boise State, BYU, Army or Air Force? BYU has a strong TV deal as an independent and would likely ask for a special TV deal to join any league.Army brings viewers across the country, but are they consistent to stay at or near the top 25? Air Force has won 10 or more three times in the last eight seasons but can they compete consistently. Plus, all of those schools would need to find homes for all their sports.
There is no expansion that would double the TV money the AAC currently makes and timing could not be worse if Mike Aresco went asking for more money. There is appeal to a league with those other schools but it doesn't make you part of the current Power 5 leagues. It only distances you further from the other Group of 5 leagues. It may help the AAC in being part of any planned split from the current model if the rumored "breakaway" ever happens.
Aresco has some leverage because despite the goals of UCF, Cincinnati, Memphis, Houston and SMU to find an invitation to a Power 5 league, no one believes that is coming any time soon. But Aresco also feels some pressure. He led his members into believing they were looking at a new media deal worth at least $10 million a year and fell well short. Some league members are not happy with the new media deal and feel the league is falling further away from the P5s.
If there is interest in Boise State it would come with no special treatment in relation to TV games and no additional monies for team travel if they came with all sports.
My guess is the current members of the AAC would oppose any idea of full membership because they are currently cutting travel costs whenever possible and the idea of sending teams in non-revenue sports to Boise, Idaho would have no support. If the Broncos were willing to be a football only member, and perhaps finding a home for its other teams in a conference like the Big West or WAC, there might be some appeal. Wins over Boise State would boost the resume of the AAC's top teams in years they get into playoff discussion. But the problem is discussion is as far as the league's best team usually gets.
Will Aresco listen if Boise State calls? We may find out sooner than later.
Final thought: Hormel produces 44,000 cans of spam every hour.
Photo Credit: Getty Images