Conference shuffle: UNLV doesn’t really have much choice
The irony of the ongoing realignment of major college sports conferences is thicker than an offensive lineman. Universities everywhere, built as institutions of principle, thoughtful deliberation and careful research, are rushing headlong to abandon longstanding, productive relationships and regional rivalries for the promise of more television revenue — albeit it at the risk of competitive irrelevance.
Unfortunately, in a climate that’s poised to make San Diego State compete for a football conference title with Connecticut while Texas and Texas A&M will play in separate leagues, due deliberation and standing up for principle will leave you locked out of the dance. UNLV President Neal Smatresk gets it without liking it, and that’s why, as chairman of the Mountain West Conference Board of Directors, he pushed so hard for a merger with what’s left of Conference USA.
The merger, announced Monday, will affiliate 16 schools in football and 15 universities in other sports when the relationship starts in the 2013-14 academic year. The league, which could get a new name, might very well expand to include up to 24 universities that can’t get an invitation to join the cartel of six BCS superconferences.
UNLV and the remaining Mountain West and Conference USA programs are in this position for one reason: They lack big-time football, the sport that generates the most revenue for athletic programs. Despite that shortcoming, this new conference should be able to do better in the way of attracting broadcast partners than the current Mountain West, which barely registers a regional following.
UNLV’s entire athletic program is rising under Director of Athletics Jim Livengood. It is able to meet its considerable expenses, it’s attracting more donations and sponsorships and it’s weaning itself from tax subsidies, with the eventual goal of self-sufficiency. Preserving or expanding TV revenue — and improving its football fortunes — will get the school there faster.
Mr. Smatresk was wise to move so quickly to stabilize these conferences. Will it last? There’s no reason to think so, because tradition clearly doesn’t matter in college sports anymore. The deal buys UNLV and these other schools little more than time to make themselves look more attractive for the next conference shuffle.