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Nothinhg real new but decent recap...

http://beyondthearc.nbcsports.com/2010/ ... eagues.php

Still, as Dan Wolken writes, the Mountain West and commissioner Craig Thompson may be forced to do a complete revamp even if BYU does decide to stay put. With the Cougars, the league is stuck at 11 teams, which doesn't help for the football championship game. Adding a 12th wouldn't even guarantee a BCS autobid given the lack of punch among the 12. But a conference with 16, 18 or even 20 teams would be impossible to ignore, especially if it contains bigger schools like Houston or Memphis and targeted TV markets like SMU.

It suggests MWC needs to control its own destiny. After playing hardball by taking Fresno and Nevada, the MWC appears in position to keep BYU (unless the Big XII changes its mind.)

So they can (1) continue to be the best of the non-BCS, (2) move to 14 or 16 teams or (3) have a year end bake-off with CUSA and persuade the BCS to accept the winner into the magic circle?

Reno Article suggests Utah State should join MWC, while Houston is preferred by others. Neither solves the problem of getting to an auto-bid, but moves the conference to a natural 12. So, increase membership or concede the reality that the only path to BCS is to partner with CUSA?

http://www.rgj.com/article/20100822/COL ... 9/SPORTS02

If UH is smart, they hold their water, let MWC invite USU and then they'll never be an auto-bid conference. Because once Boise joins, there could easily be a round robbin of one loss teams in that conference with drek at the bottom. That would mean it would almost have to agree to a joint BCS play-in deal with CUSA or risk defection by TCU (which joined to get the shot at the BCS and now would be in the red-eyed step-child division and get BYU and AFA -the two biggest draws at home every four years instead of every other year).