I’m not going to dive into all the legal stuff regarding the AAC grant of rights, etc. But if SMU leaves, that puts the AAC back to 13 teams. Who are the most likely expansion candidates for the AAC if SMU joins the PAC 12? It’s not as easy to pick up teams as it was even just last season – you’re scraping the barrell at this point, but there are certainly some intriguing candidates.
I think the first option here is Liberty. They just hired former head Chant Jamey Chadwell from Coastal Carolina, they have an enrollment of 95k+, their endowment is reportedly $1.7B, and Lynchburg, VA is directly between Charlotte and Washington DC. They’ve got the recruiting ground, they’ll have a HUGE alumni base, and this program has shown the desire to spend on their athletics programs in ways that a lot of small schools have not. This would be a big time get.
Now, if something were to get in the way of this, or if the AAC decides that they don’t want to be involved with a religious institution, there are some other schools that could make sense as well…
Toledo has been a member of the MAC since 1950, their enrollment is only around 18k, their endowment is around $550M, but they’re in a talent rich football centric area, tucked in the corner of Lake Erie between Detroit & Cleveland, and only 140 miles from Columbus. They’re the best team in the MAC, and an AAC deal would allow them to stop having their head coach flirt with leaving to become a Power 5 offensive coordinator, which has been rumored for 2 straight seasons. Travel might be an issue, as Toledo is not close to any other current AAC schools – over 500 miles from Charlotte & Philadelphia, nearly 700 to Memphis, and over 850 to Tulsa… all of which are their closest neighbors. Of course, that pales in comparison to USC & UCLA in the Big Ten… but the AAC ain’t offering Big Ten money.
What about Buffalo? Academically, that would be quite the get – endowment over $1B, enrollment over 30k, and would be the conference’s 3rd AAU member, along with Tulane and Rice, who is just joining this year. The SEC only has 5 AAU schools (and that includes Texas, who isn’t even there yet). Buffalo just joined the FBS in 1999, and have participated in 6 bowls, and have played in the MAC title game 3 times. They invest in their athletics programs, and have continuously made good hires – as evidenced by Turner Gill in the late 2000s, Lance Leipold in the late 2010s, and basketball coaches Bobby Hurley and Nate Oats. On top of that, the school is less than 400 miles from Philadelphia and Annapolis. You still run into the geography issues you do with Toledo, but at least you’ve got schools within 400 miles.
Would the AAC want to try and steal a Mountain West school? UNLV is my last interesting proposition here. The AAC has shown a propensity to want schools in big metropolitan areas, which helps with eyeballs, branding, sponsorship opportunities, etc. UNLV would be right up their alley. Now, the issue there is, again, geography. The closest AAC schools to UNLV would be well over 1200 miles away… but flights into Vegas are a lot easier to come by than getting to Buffalo or Toledo. Toss in the recruiting footprint, another time window, and a big student enrollment – along with potential gambling sponsorship dollars, and you could have something interesting on your hands. Now… would it make sense for UNLV? That’s for the Rebels to figure out, but it’s certainly an exciting option.
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16 Comments
If the MWC didn’t leave before for the AAC they won’t now. AAC did a good job rebuilding but it’s obviously not as good as a conference.
Honestly I doubt they would do anything if they lost SMU, they were comfortable at 11 teams before and I bet they would be comfortable with 13 considering they did good getting tv markets.
Georgia State, Liberty, Buffalo, Northern Illinois. Would be my picks
Based on how the previous round of realignment, The AAC went after schools in Big Markets and I could see them do so again. So I could see them most likely get Georgia State for that Atlanta market.
You should have mentioned La Tech and perhaps some Sunbelt Conference schools.
JMU is a rising star.
W&M is worth a look to promote to FBS direct to AAC. JMU and W&M would be instant rivals.
Those would be my top3 picks.
LaTech
JMU
W&M
And those 3 work with Liberty as well. Maybe look at FIU for an odd number.
How about North Dakota State, another star waiting to jump to the FBS.
It baffles my mind that they would start their recovery from losing iconic programs like Southern Cal and UCLA with a private school from North Texas that even The people in Dallas don't give a shit about.
SMU is a religious institution
Thank you for being the first I have seen to bring this up.
I 100% agree the first choice should be Liberty. For all the reasons you mentioned I am surprised they did not pick them up last time.
I think ESPN is blocking the AAC from picking up any schools in the Sunbelt or MAC and all the MWC schools said no last year so I think it is either Liberty or stay at 13.
Texas State and Georgia State are the favorites.
Better get about 4 schools.
App st
Liberty
Middle Tennessee
Marshall
Cause SMU, Tulane, and Memphis will leave soon. More moves are coming. And the tulsas, UABs, ECUs, tenples, will be with USM,TROY, FAUs and schools like that forever.
Have read that Toledo'
s University President is interested in the AAC. This was before talk of SMU possibly going to PAC-12.
FIU and Southern Mississippi are great candidates. FIU is in Miami and has a large enrollment. Southern Mississippi is between UAB and Tulane.
Utep already has history with most of the aac schools.
If you're going to grab a mwc school they should go for Air Force. MW is going to lose member(s) to the PAC. AF has built in rivalry with navy and its not too far from Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas for Olympic sports.
Can’t believe you overlooked Marshall.
I feel like the Sun Belt will soon be the pinnacle G5 conference and poach Conference USA.