News is breaking tonight that will change the landscape of college athletics again. Conference USA and the Mountain West Conference have stated they will be merging the two conferences to form a 22-member conference.
This is very big news for both the conferences, the teams, and the Big East. Two teams in the Mountain West, Boise State and Air Force, have talked to the Big East and rumors have it that they will be offered by the Big East sometime next week (UCF and Navy will also be offered, according to sources).
The megaconference that C-USA and MWC are putting together is huge, 22 teams, crossing 5 time zones. There is no name for the conference, no divisions, or talk of a possible television deal, but the merger is just the beginning and more news will come as the days go on about the merge.
So what does this mean for the Big East? Right now, it seems they are staying the course of adding more teams such as Boise, Air Force, and others. A conference call is again scheduled for Sunday that could possibly lead to a vote to raise the exit fee for football teams, up around $10 million. The teams voted before on a proposed increased exit fee, but they couldn't get the votes necessary to make it happen.
The vote is a big key to the entire puzzle. If they are able to get the exit fee increased, it will make it easier to invite and get teams to join the Big East, like Navy. Navy has stated they want the exit fee increased, so getting the votes is a big key to the fate of the conference.
So where does that leave USF? Waiting around like the rest of the conference. The move by C-USA and MWC is huge and does change things. For those who said the distance to Boise was too much, try Hawaii to Orlando if the current model stands. The new super-conference also stated that if Boise and Air Force leave, they cannot keep other athletic programs stay in the new conference, so something else to watch. We will have to see what happens as the days go on.
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