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San Diego State is now a card carrying member of the Pack 12 Conference story broke right before midnight last night I spent an hour and a half in the middle of the night networking with people to try to find out some of the financial pieces of this equation and why it happened now how it happened right now big day in Aztec history I think or is it not uh there's an awful lot of history here San Diego state has always wanted to be in the quote Pack 12 they did a great job becoming one of the flagship schools in the Mountain West Conference was just celebrated Beyond its 25th year and now they're walking away and it's all about money and it's all about location and it's all about growth and potential downroad there's lots of different ways to to view this I'm I'm going to just look at some of my notes because I just came from the Aztec press conference everybody can be excited I guess and I say I guess because this is not the Pack 12 this is not the pack 10 this is not what was the pack eight I'm not going to be negative I'm just going to tell you this sure feels like Mountain West Conference 2.0 I don't see a big difference there with the Aztec Boise Fresno Colorado State joining Oregon state Washington State I don't see a big difference there to what we have here which is the Mountain West Conference which they dominated now the asex are of the opinion and the press conference was long and the press conference was very pointed of the opinion that this is about the future that this is the potential to grow this thing that you should not view this as cup half empty because Lee it's not the Pack 12 or the pack 10 or the pack 8 but if you was a cup half full cuz there is enormous potential to grow the conference with brand new Media Partners and that's why they think this timing is right here are the specifics the four teams that are vacating have to pay an $18 million exit fee I got it confirmed today the Pack 12 is going to pay a piece of everybody's exit fee of the four schools cool pack 12 will pay the Mountain West Conference 43 Mill milon doll a release fee to allow the Aztec Boise State Fresno Colorado State to leave I didn't like this San Diego State is forfeiting all of its NCAA basketball unit money that they've gotten the tournaments over the next five years they stay in the Mountain West Conference the Aztecs are giving that up wow San Diego State gets full voting power on all business going forward in in the Pack 12 Conference San Diego State will also have input at the table on the next two schools are going to add or if they go to four or whatever the expansion number is going to be it's not going to happen next week it's going to be maybe a year year and a half from now confirm that San Diego State did talk to the Big 12 the Big 12 expressed interest in the TV Market size but was only willing to give San Diego State a half share medor rights John David wicker told me this morning if we had gone in there would be below water we would not be getting the type of Revenue money that we needed to compete with the Oklahoma States and the Iowa States and all those guys why would we do that we'd be looking up from the bottom of the standings of those guys because we wouldn't have the resources to compete and we weren't going to go just to say we're in the Big 12 travel expenses added on would have been very different and money how they going to compete there that's why they did not further pursue the conversation the Big 12 they didn't like the layout they went to the Pack 12 because they're get full boat share of whatever the new TV contract is and that contract might be with Fox which wants a West Coast presence might be with CW which is now expanding its portfolio of Intercollegiate Athletic conferences so they think this is the right time to be on the ground floor to grow this thing and John David wicker and the president both admitted to to me this morning San Diego State was at death's doorstep when the Pack 12 imploded the Mountain West had all these problems nil took over the transfer portal ran a muuk they were in huge trouble but what they decided was to put their nose to the grindstone and they were going to work through each of the crisis and throw covid into the mix each of those crisis and find a game plan and a solution that would get them there he said we're not going to grieve about it we're not going to be pissed off about it we're just going to go to work and deal with it four years later they are now a member of the quote Pack 12 Conference so they're going to have six teams to start they got another year to go add two more that might be Cal that might be Stanford who wake up and realize going to the Atlanta Coast Conference wasn't a good decision I don't know if UCLA gets brains beat out on the Big Ten and says we made a mistake Maybe we should go back home to the West Coast but they're going to add two maybe it's somebody from the American Athletic Conference you know it's too bad BYU isn't available any longer because BYU would have been a nice geographical legendary fit but that's where they are right now so I guess I'm asking San Diego State fans friends alums and I'm gonna ask you too John good day day to be excited or is it anti-climatic because yeah it's the Pack 12 brand but hell it's not the Pack 12 and it's not the pack 10 and it's not the pack 8 and maybe I should apologize in front I feel like the glass is half empty yes maybe the glass will be half full going forward down road with all those creative things that JD wicker talked about that they hope to put in place to grow this thing at a faster pace so John you tell me where you are emotionally here with the data I gave you or where you are emotionally in terms of what the Pack 12 used to be and maybe what they could be with the Aztecs and Bo and Fresno and CSU part of this you could be kind of grumpy sometimes and maybe you are a little bit there's a lot to digest here I have a million questions but to answer specifically what's my emotions right now I'm thinking all right San Diego is getting a little bit more legit you know as a sports community and this finally happened they've been talking about asz seex going the Pack 12 and whatever version of the pack whatever and now it finally happens so I'm right now still you know a little cautious is this going to be like the Big East thing and it's going to blow up on us you know and and then I have questions about who else should come and other questions about the Mountain West but generally speaking I'm feeling optimistic and I think if I'm a player on any of the sports programs at Sano State you have to be thrilled because this is bringing everything up a notch or two we can argue how much higher and you don't have to go to Wyoming anymore so those are all big wins I ask the president is there any ache in your heart that the flagship program in the Mountain West has turned its back on all these other people and left for money are you any different than what USC and UCLA did in the middle of the night and I thought this was really eerie this stuff happened between 11 and 12 last night and I found out about it of course that kind of looks like the middle of the night money grab and I just asked you know does your heart ache and and her response was we have great relationships with the Air Force Academy and with Wyoming and the ones that have been left behind and we will work with them but at the end of the day we had to take care of ourselves and that that's where the the quote we were death's doorstep at one point that's why this happened it was financially driven and it's it's driven in a belief that there's a better future ahead as this thing starts at Square One and they're going to rebuild it because there's much more media interest because there many more media players out there does that answer your question that's part of it but I I don't think you can ever shame an organization or an individual for going for the money okay like because that's what they're worth I mean that's their value in the marketplace and and so you know if you get a new job and they're paying you more I'm not going to shame you for it I'm going to congratulate you and the same thing here with San Diego State is it a quote money grab no it's just getting what they think they deserve and uh now they're going to have more dollars to fund the program more dollars maybe for nil I mean just all these resources are going to make the program better that's good for the Aztecs that's good for Oregon State and Washington State too oh definitely where are you gonna go get other teams yeah this is other part of my angle here because it's interesting that they left off UNLV which I thought should have been in it because that's a pretty decent media Market I was surprised they weren't included but yeah who's left I mean I I've heard some people chattering on social media well in basketball maybe we add St Mary's and Gonzaga that's a clever idea um but beyond that there's not a whole lot of options at least in the two Pacific and and the mountain time zones like you you'd have to go to SMU or something right yeah Concur and that be in Central Texas but that's not West Coast that's that's the Midlands and I I don't know that that works by going into the American Athletic Conference and trying to cherry-pick somebody MH yeah somebody told me today Texas San Antonio why what what national clout do they have right so um in terms of Vegas there's a lot of Chaos in unlv's leadership oh I think there's a big issue about UNLV academics and yeah they're located in Sin City which has now become a destination point for events but do they draw well do they draw big uh no not since Jerry tanian left yeah it's been a long time that's a long time ago so that's I the academic thing is one of the reasons uh that they're not part of this mix I don't quite understand why the Air Force Academy which has enormous credibility why they could not be part of this mix but maybe it maybe it's a dollar situation maybe they wouldn't be competitive in the big picture of that time they hope they grow this into a a bigger Time conference um you know and the rest of the Mountain West people they may be players but they're not players at that next level yeah so I mean like who who else is left I mean you you you'd really have to start to dig deep you know are some of the maybe uh some of the schools in the big West you know could potentially take a step up like a UC Santa Barbara hey why not a UC San Diego you never know I think the most fascinating thing and this will take time to dig out is your idea and this is not the first time this is surfaced just go cherry pick Gonzaga St Mary's University of San Francisco and put them as a basketball only member perfect yeah I mean that make ton of sense and the dawn USF Dawns they have a great history so so yeah that's where we are right now okay let's get somebody who's a San Diego State fan friend in Alum I want you to just go into the chat box here give us a reaction like dislike uh cup half full cup half empty did they miss the boat on this because this is not your dad's USC or your grandfather's Oregon Washington pack 10 pack 8 thumbs up thumbs down what just happened or were they better served a state where they were really good and they did have a lot of Archen enemy teams that they played that you could identify with Boise Fresno Wyoming to a degree Vegas Etc New Mexico's gone so somebody join us in the fans Forum there's got to be a San Diego State fan friend and Alum I want you in the chat box to join us with an opinion on the SC John yeah so geez I was about to ask you this important question and I can't remember what it was turn with that I'll slap you in the back of the head yeah I my my brain's fried let's your brain's fried what about my brain so that's where we are you know for I've been here forever covering the Aztecs broadcasting the Aztecs through good times bad times oh I know it's back in 1990 at the height of the Marshall Faulk era back when they were drawing and I was broadcasting in front of 48 to 52,000 on Saturday nights for three years running I thought San Diego State had arrived and I thought they're going to knock at the door and they're they're ready to go through the door and become a member of the pack 10 never ever happened because the Trojans and the Bruins blocked them out now they've arrived but my heart says this is anti-climatic they've arrived but none of the none of the Marquee names are there for them to partner up with and to compete against I just I just have a strange feel about it not that it's going to fail but I don't I I don't feel the excitement that San Diego State tried to sales pitch me at the press conference this morning it's so much better than the Mountain West I mean it's the Mountain West was just sort of like a little sister League you know it was never at the level now granted I don't know if this pack 12 thing is going to be a power five conference hopefully it will the thing I wanted to ask and Danny on the chat kind of reminded me of that we're we'll get him involved in fans Forum will call and Stanford come home is that a possibility I've been told that this is going to turn into a boondoggle and again they went to the ACC and a reduced amount of media money they did what San Diego State said we're not doing we're not going to the big 12 and take a a share of the money and get our ass kicked and take on all those expenses and how are we going to compete they went that way I've been told that it might be after 2025 maybe there's a release Clause to get them out of the ACC maybe this's going to be a debacle and they'll come back I think that's the seventh and eighth member at least that'd be out there yeah that one makes a lot of sense and those are great progam well great history and the the sports programs are a little shaky lately okay all time San Diego State fans we've never had Aztec fans jump on board here in the fans Forum I know there's a lot of people following us right now on social media give us your response to that storyline we go from College athletics by the way the Aztec go play at Cal the Aztecs now have an issue because the quarterback Danny O'Neal is continuing to wear a knee brace and is not doing very much in practice we may have a new quarterback in Berkeley for the Saturday game javance Johnson AJ Duffy or quarterbacks 1 a 1B behind Danny O'Neal and Cal's a pretty good team they lead the world in pass interceptions Justin W Cox has done a phenomenal job flipping the Golden Bears they won at Auburn they won in front of 88,000 War Eagle fans at Jordan Harris St cow won at Auburn I didn't see that coming nobody in the world saw that coming so the Aztec Aztec are going to Berkeley to meet these guys who are coming off a win at Auburn right on yeah this is a great Showdown and they they they came up short against Oregon State I always thought the Cal game was a more achievable win but yeah after winning at Auburn holy crap who could have seen that okay we go from College athletics next topic