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Boise State officials, including President Bob Kustra, are expected to answer questions about conference realignment and a potential move to the Big East from members of the State Board of Education on Thursday afternoon.

The eight-member board, which oversees the state’s public colleges, must give Boise State permission to change conferences from its current Mountain West affiliation. The board could delegate that authority to Kustra, perhaps at Thursday’s meeting.

The Big East is expected to invite Boise State’s highly ranked football program as part of an effort to rebuild the league, which has been stung by defections from longtime members Pittsburgh, Syracuse and West Virginia and member-to-be TCU.

The conference’s presidents Tuesday authorized Commissioner John Marinatto to extend official invitations to specific institutions. The Big East is expected to invite Boise State, Air Force and Navy for football only and Central Florida, Houston and SMU in all sports.

The board could ask many of the same questions that Boise State is wrestling with as it considers what to do, including:

- The status of the Big East membership, its BCS automatic qualification status and its television contract moving forward;

- Where the Broncos would house their other sports programs, which would not be invited to the Big East and not be welcome in the Mountain West;

- What impact a move would have on the school’s student-athletes, fans and budget.

Boise State’s move also could have a deep impact on the state’s other FBS member, Idaho, and its conference, the Western Athletic Conference.

Mountain West Commissioner Craig Thompson told the San Diego Union-Tribune that if his league were to lose Boise State and Air Force, then it could reach into the WAC for Utah State and San Jose State.

"Those are two institutions that would definitely be on the radar screen," Thompson told the newspaper.

That move could decimate the WAC, Boise State’s former conference, and leave one less destination for the Broncos’ non-football sports.

"What we’re doing is cannibalizing each other," Thompson told the San Diego Union-Tribune. "I wish we could convince all parties to call a timeout, go to your respective corners and take a deep breath. Then let’s all come back, sit down at a table and see how this might work."

Such a pause is unlikely, but Boise State officials might offer some insight into their thinking about conference realignment Thursday.

Read more: http://www.idahostatesman.com/2011/11/0 ... z1cfi5b1VZ

The conference change is anticipated to occur July 1, 2013. With more than one
year advance notice the University will not pay the $5,000,000 exit penalty to the Mountain West Conference and will, instead, only forfeit the annual conferencewide distribution for the 2012 season.

PonyPlayer4 wrote:2012 please

McMurphyCBS Brett McMurphy
Boise president: "SMU, UH, Air Force likely to join BIg East. League also in discussions w/1 or more universities in West" to replace WVU
2 minutes ago

UCBearcat4ever wrote:Kustra: AFA has not indicated it is ready to make that move