They Really Do Think We Are Nothing!

[50's PONY]

Posted on Wed, Jan. 28, 2004

Frogs must hop on this West-bound train
By Gil Lebreton
Star-Telegram Staff Writer

The answer should be yes. Undividedly yes.

When the invitation formally comes for TCU to join the Mountain West Conference, the school's Board of Trustees should not hesitate for a minute.

A chance for a brighter tomorrow awaits the Horned Frogs in the MWC.

Athletic director Eric Hyman was hired in December 1997, and charged with the task of making TCU a nationally prominent program. Staying in Conference USA would only make that more difficult.

In the end, this isn't about in-state rivalries, or traveling to road games in Houston, or the glory of being the biggest, baddest frog in the homely little pond.

In case you were too busy listening to [deleted] Vitale and didn't notice, football drives the bus in college athletics these days. Unless you're the depleted Big East Conference, clinging to the basketball rim for dear TV life, football pays the bills. It brings the headlines. It stirs the hearts -- and often the checkbooks -- of the proud alumni.

And in its defection-riddled state, Conference USA isn't the same league the Frogs joined three years ago.

ESPN recognizes that as well as anyone. After the network pushes to rewrite its current eight-year, $80-million broadcast deal with C-USA, the league's TV contract will be a fraction of what it once was.

The conference will be exchanging, in part, Louisville, Cincinnati and South Florida for Tulsa, Rice and SMU.

TCU's strength of schedule, had it stayed, would become an annual albatross. A weak schedule, in turn, makes for a dim TV attraction. Would your network want to telecast East Carolina and SMU on a Tuesday night?

There has already been talk about Conference USA going to Fox Sports and a regional TV package. Nothing "nationally prominent" about that.

Yet, few issues have divided the Horned Frog faithful like this one. It's understandable. TCU wandered in the football desert for so long, now that they've gotten a sip of winning, Frog backers don't want to give it up.

Allow me to share, though, a page from an old notebook. The speaker was concerned about what life would be like for the Frogs in the new conference. There would be better athletes to face, he said. More skill, more speed.

The speaker was Dennis Franchione, circa 2000. He was worried about TCU leaving the Western Athletic Conference for C-USA.

The odds will be longer, no doubt, of going 11-1 in the Mountain West. But which bully in the new neighborhood can't the Frogs hope to beat -- Air Force, Brigham Young, Colorado State?

TCU has been playing at Mountain West level, let me suggest, for at least four seasons. The rewards will outweigh the risks.

No, there is no Bowl Championship Series guarantee that will come with the TCU move. But if you think the Big 12 or the Southeastern Conference is going to come calling for TCU in a couple of years, you're dreaming.

Best-case scenario: When the BCS contract expires after the 2005-06 season, the Big East Conference will no longer have its automatic bid. That bowl spot, instead, could go to the non-BCS-conference team rated highest in the BCS rankings.

The non-BCS team that plays in the strongest league should have the advantage.

Yes, the move to the MWC will require an adjustment, if not a TiVo or a good alarm clock. There have been indications from the mountains, though, that TCU's place in the Central time zone will be considered. A 6 p.m. kickoff or tipoff in Utah isn't all that daunting for a fan -- or newspaper -- back in Texas.

From all indications, the athletic department has done its homework. The pros and cons of joining a new conference have been weighed for months.

TCU's football future is uncertain, but the horizon looks a lot brighter than the neighborhood in the rear-view mirror.

Without a doubt, the Horned Frogs should tell the Mountain West Conference yes.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gil LeBreton, (817) 390-7760 [email protected]

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[EastStang]

Let's see, Old CUSA Army 0-13, Cincy 5-7, Louisville 8-4. New conference USA. SMU 0-12, Rice 5-7, Tulsa 8-4. Am I missing something? They lose big time in basketball, but that is not the point of Gil's article. Televisions: Tulsa=Louisville. Cincy=Houston. Dallas=West Point. Orlando=Tampa. Again, there is little change. CUSA and the MWC had approximately the same ratings for 2001-2002. TCU won't raise that number. I sure hope TCU has an ironclad guarantee from ESPN that they won't be lowering the MWC contract. If they do, oops.

[Greenwich Pony]

Well, this is interesting. Yes, the ESPN contract is going to come down. $80 million doesn't make sense. Even with my beloved SMU in the league, as an advertiser, I wouldn't pay that kind of cabbage for the coverage of the new league. It is basketball almost as much as football that drives that contract, the loss of Louisville and Cincinatti do make a big difference in hoops, even though Tulsa is coming in, and the metropolitan coverage is better. In football, the loss of Louisville and Cincinatti don't make as much a difference. They are also schools with larger alumni bases than the incoming schools. Marshall is a big help in football, along with Central Florida. With conference coverage and new teams, depending on who replaces the Froggies (Temple would be the best for basketball and coverage reasons) ESPN should come in at somewhere near $40 million, more with Temple (yes they suck at football, but they have strong basketball, large alumni and bring respectable numbers in Philly). That's about what the advertising package would bring.

On the other hand, adding Boise and TCU may help the MWC's football product for awhile, but they don't add anything for basketball really, and neither TCU nor Boise bring enough in terms of viewership to be realistically included in the BCS, nor would I pay significantly more for contract as an advertiser either. I think I read that they have a $40 million contract. I think ESPN could reasonably go to $45, and perhaps maybe $50, if they are very generous. Of course, the MWC package would be divided by fewer schools; but then the travel bill will be more. Yeah, the CUSA has a few long trips, but by splitting into divisions, especially the western division will save more due to proximity.

<small>[ 01-28-2004, 08:26 AM: Message edited by: Greenwich Pony ]</small>

[Mike Damone]

Louisville, Cincinnati and South Florida for Tulsa, Rice and SMU.

This shows what propaganda they've got over there. Gee-what will make this situation seem worse than it really is? Let's leave off the best team being added-Marshall. Pathetic journalism.

[OldPony]

Most think Louisville and Cincy are better football teams than SMU, Rice, Tulsa. Marshall isn't quite as well respected either. CUSA has suffered a downgrade folks. The Big East didn't go after the bad teams. TCU will hurt itself though. They will lose about the same amount of games and may end up with a slightly higher RPI but it still won't be high enough and their crowds will dwindle compared to playing a more regional schedule. And the horse they rode off on.....

[MizterTea]

why are people taking this personnally - this is not about SMU this is about them tcu suckas...

SMU could have staying the WAC and tried to lure Houston and Yulane over - tcu STILL would have taken this deal. This is more about the teams leaving than a desire to "escape" the new teams.

[The Q]

Originally posted by Mike Damone:

This shows what propaganda they've got over there. Gee-what will make this situation seem worse than it really is? Let's leave off the best team being added-Marshall. Pathetic journalism. [/QUOTE]
Once he has an idea in his head, Ol' Gil has never been one to let facts get in the way of his cheerleading.

[Dooby]

BTW, TCU's future basketball RPI just dropped by about 10 points as Rick Majerus is anouncing his retirement for health reasons.

[EastStang]

No more all you can eat buffet breakfasts at Shoney's for the Utes.

[Peruna_Ate_My_Rolex]

Originally posted by The Q:
Once he has an idea in his head, Ol' Gil has never been one to let facts get in the way of his cheerleading.

<img src="http://home.swbell.net/bigdog24/pics/gilcheerleader.jpg" alt=" - " />

[Charleston Pony]

in fairness, with only ONE winning season since our return to football in the "post death penalty" era, SMU has been pretty close to NOTHING on the gridiron. With one SWC championship and only 2 post season appearances in men's bball during that same 15 yr time frame, we haven't added much more in hoops, either.

The FACT is that it's way past time for SMU to start contributing to whatever conference we play in. We were an embarrassment to the WAC and a big part of why nobody wants to be associated with us. Give Copeland and Turner credit for selling our program to CUSA, but you can bet our future conference mates are waiting to see if there really is a commitment to winning at SMU.

It appears that SMU, Tulsa and Rice are all making some progress in improving their athletic programs, but we are a long ways from competing at a top 25 level. That's what it's going to take before any of us will be considered a valuable member of any conference. USM, Marshall & Memphis will do their part in giving CUSA some programs worthy of national attention and I'm confident ECU and UCF will regain their competitiveness, but the western division of CUSA will have a lot to prove.

The MWC is banking on TCU maintaining their position as a top 25 caliber football program. Given the fact that both our schools will be competing for talent in the DFW metroplex, I like Bennett & Co's chances of selling those DFW kids on SMU and CUSA, where they will play some road games within driving distance. I'm not convinced either conference is going to see a lot of national TV games, unless they are played on those Tues-Wed-Thurs-Fri night slots.

We just need to improve to the point we are beating TCU again head-to-head. That will be a starting point in SMU's return to prominence.