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Colandrea Highlights....

Great to have a coach who is known as a guy who develops NFL level QBs. An above average to great QB can make a mediocre team good and a good team great. Hope CDM’s eye for QBs hasn’t diminished and this kid flourishes under him into a legit NFL draft pick. It would not only make UNLV competitive at a high level but put UNLV on the map for high end QB recruits. Not expecting CDM to last here more than two years but I sure hope he taps the potential of UNLV & the LV market such that it becomes a revenue machine that can pay him (or his successor) a salary that competes with most P4 programs.
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CSU/USU suing MW over exit fees

Exactly. In 23 we had our best season in 20 yrs and it only jumped 1k from the previous season. They made their move early this football season and we didn't exactly start the year with great attendance numbers and our Houston game kinda had an embarrassing viewership considering.
We were left out at that time because the numbers supported to NOT invite us. At least not initially the first group.

Wyoming was probably excluded because of travel costs/ growth potential. No clue on Afa, but they might have been excluded from the original just because its a service academy.

Going off of the 4 AAC schools averages for that same timeframe, its easy to see why they would have wanted them over any of us. Completely remove the 2024 averages and only look at the 2023. Its clear that they thought that the AAC 4 would pull similar numbers to the pac

SchoolConference2023 attendance average
Fresno StateNew pac39,969
South FloridaAmerican37,944
Boise StateNew pac35,867
Oregon StatePac36,969
MemphisAmerican29,782
UNLVMountain West29,616
UTSAAmerican28,876
Washington StatePac28,023
Colorado StateNew pac26,509
TulaneAmerican25,021
San Diego StateNew pac24,832
Air ForceMountain West23,661
WyomingMountain West23,163
Utah StateNew pac19,282
UTEPC-USA18,160
renoMountain West16,998
San Jose StateMountain West16,804
New MexicoMountain West15,982
HawaiiMountain West11,251

Compare those to the 2024 numbers. No one was expecting the AAC schools to decline, and UNLV to boom. I thought OSU and WSU would be in decline. But WSU is not in decline, its in freefall along with the 4 named AAC schools.

SchoolConference2024 averagesyear to year % compared with 2023
Fresno StateNew pac40,6001.58%
Boise StateNew pac37,2353.81%
Oregon StatePac 35,799-3.16%
Colorado StateNew pac33,08224.80%
UNLVMountain West32,20336.10%
South FloridaAmerican31,424-17.18%
Air ForceMountain West26,226-11.45%
San Diego StateNew pac24,770-0.25%
MemphisAmerican24,552-17.56%
TulaneAmerican23,980-4.16%
Washington StatePac 22,413-20.02%
WyomingMountain West21,937-5.29%
UTSAAmerican21,059-27.07%
UTEPC-USA19,3936.79%
renoMountain West17,4192.48%
San Jose StateMountain West16,058-4.44%
New MexicoMountain West16,0010.12%
HawaiiMountain West12,96315.21%
Utah StateNew pac16,992-11.88%

CSU/USU suing MW over exit fees

School2023 averages2022 averageyear to year %5 year average5 year to year %
Air Force29,61626,9269.99%26,73910.76%
UNLV23,66122,1127.00%19,72119.98%
Wyoming23,16319,70717.54%20,76711.54%
UTEP18,16019,134-5.09%17,3484.68%
reno16,99814,90514.04%17,313-1.82%
San Jose State16,80416,4222.33%15,14510.95%
New Mexico15,98214,9666.79%16,965-5.80%
Hawaii11,2519,21022.17%16,978-33.73%
Fresno State39,96939,0672.31%33,22820.29%
Oregon State36,96931,49817.37%32,88212.43%
Boise State35,86735,1212.12%33,2137.99%
Washington State28,02326,1857.02%28,0030.07%
Colorado State26,50926,891-1.42%27,778-4.57%
San Diego State24,83229,892-16.93%28,250-12.10%
Utah State19,28216,95413.73%19,353-0.37%
Here is that same list for 2023 and 2022, which is what the Pac would have been using when they started talking.
Exactly. In 23 we had our best season in 20 yrs and it only jumped 1k from the previous season. They made their move early this football season and we didn't exactly start the year with great attendance numbers and our Houston game kinda had an embarrassing viewership considering.
We were left out at that time because the numbers supported to NOT invite us. At least not initially the first group.

Colandrea Highlights....

He will be playing at UNLV against G5 or MWC competition, I also agree Mullen knows more about him than we do and has a soft spot for him for some reason. I am inclined to let the coachd have his QB much like Sean Payton has with Bo Nix, seems to be working out just fine at the NFL level! 😉
Drew Brees isn't that much taller. Drew was 6'0 with insoles support.

CSU/USU suing MW over exit fees

School2023 averages2022 averageyear to year %5 year average5 year to year %
Air Force29,61626,9269.99%26,73910.76%
UNLV23,66122,1127.00%19,72119.98%
Wyoming23,16319,70717.54%20,76711.54%
UTEP18,16019,134-5.09%17,3484.68%
reno16,99814,90514.04%17,313-1.82%
San Jose State16,80416,4222.33%15,14510.95%
New Mexico15,98214,9666.79%16,965-5.80%
Hawaii11,2519,21022.17%16,978-33.73%
Fresno State39,96939,0672.31%33,22820.29%
Oregon State36,96931,49817.37%32,88212.43%
Boise State35,86735,1212.12%33,2137.99%
Washington State28,02326,1857.02%28,0030.07%
Colorado State26,50926,891-1.42%27,778-4.57%
San Diego State24,83229,892-16.93%28,250-12.10%
Utah State19,28216,95413.73%19,353-0.37%
Here is that same list for 2023 and 2022, which is what the Pac would have been using when they started talking.

CSU/USU suing MW over exit fees

Yeah… stupid Google AI was conflating San Diego State with South Dakota State. The San Diego Tribune however lists home attendance at 18,183 avg for the first 5 games of 2023… so who the hell knows. Based on the individual game numbers this past season it’s right at about 25,000, so yes you’re correct.

I didn’t include them though as “fat” for obvious reasons. Is USU the best of the “fat” that was in the MW? I don’t think they are any more or less capable than any of the other fat teams of having a decent season. Add to that the fact that I’m not sure what exactly their media market share is. At least with your UNMs, WYOs, and UNRs you have an idea of what the value of their media market is because they’re not playing third fiddle to two big brother teams.

I’m not arguing that they won’t have a more valuable league on a per team basis. What I am arguing is that those teams that provide that value in the PAC would have provided the same value to the MW, and collectively they would add even more value in the MW than they will in this new PAC.

Their percentage of fat WILL be lower… I just think they would have overcome that with the strength of a combined conference and maybe some tweaks that incentivized the better performing teams.

Another thing to think about is what happens when they start beating up on each other? If there’s so much parity then it’s bound to happen. What happens when your teams don’t bring back any quality wins in the OOC, or a couple of them do and then go lose to CSU or USU in a blizzard?

The Boise v UNLV championship was the highest rated championship ever for the MW, because both teams had created the stakes for it.

Will the PAC be better than the MW? Yes.
Will they get more money than the MW? Yes.
Will the PAC be better than a merged league?No.
Would the PAC teams end up better off in a merged league competitively? I don’t know, but I think yes.
Would they be better off financially? I don’t know but I’d suspect no unless they’re somehow able to cheat the penalties, and I don’t think they can or will cheat them completely.
School2024 averages2023 averageyear to year %5 year average5 year to year %
UNLV32,20323,66136.10%20,96353.61%
Air Force26,22629,616-11.45%26,832-2.26%
Wyoming21,93723,163-5.29%21,2773.11%
UTEP19,39318,1606.79%17,07113.60%
reno17,41916,9982.48%17,3680.30%
San Jose State16,05816,804-4.44%15,6652.51%
New Mexico16,00115,9820.12%15,9230.49%
Hawaii12,96311,25115.21%14,380-9.85%
Fresno State40,60039,9691.58%35,09515.69%
Boise State37,23535,8673.81%34,1619.00%
Oregon State35,79936,969-3.16%33,3257.43%
Colorado State33,08226,50924.80%26,66824.05%
San Diego State24,77024,832-0.25%25,347-2.28%
Washington State22,41328,023-20.02%27,211-17.63%
Utah State16,99219,282-11.88%19,188-11.44%
There you go. 2024 attendance averages (not including bowl games), 2023 attendance averages, the percentage of change year to year, and what the 5 year average/ trends look like.

CSU/USU suing MW over exit fees

Utah states had the biggest negative delta this past season with attendance. They lost their coach in a scandal and just hired a really good one. It is safe to say that they will likely get the same crowds they were getting or better soon.

These numbers show that SDSU has been averaging around 24K and these are 2 of the worst years they have had in a long time. Which brings me to this point outside of Boise, and maybe CSU, all of the other defectors had down years for them, but still had decent attendance.


I see the the new PAC as having 1 team of "fat" currently in Utah State, but averaging 18-20k per year if they return to form is pretty good. Remember last season was a bit of a down year from what they are used to.

I agree that the Hawaii numbers are a bit deceptive. I think they have more fans spread across the islands and a good amount in the Vegas valley considering how many show up to the island show down game here. But they have been a partial partner in the past for a reason. So It's hard to call them fat or big positive.

But SJSU is good, but fans don't care. They have zero penetration in that very good market. Their ceiling is especially low from a media perspective. A perennial bowl team that won the conference in the past 5 years and they near the bottom of the list in attendance every year. SDSU being terrible and averaging nearly 25k? Very strong.

So taking out the majority of the top markets, and and the worst the best bottom team vs taking all of the fat and averaging it out, I still think there is a decent difference there. How much? I don't know if there is a good estimation, but I think our bottom is pretty bad and moves the needle substantially. I think attendance is a decent way to compare, but it is really more about eyeballs on TVs. Some teams have more lurkers or nationwide fans than others. Safe to Say Boise has the best brand and probably leads the way there. I would think actually CSU is up there as well just because is one of 2 large state schools in a pretty big state, a state bigger than every other state in our conference by a large amount (besides California of course).

The up front costs do make a difference, and right now, yes it does seem like it will take a good amount of time for them to break even. But if the poaching fees get thrown out and they pay only a portion of the negotiated exit fees, then it may not take long at all.
Yeah… stupid Google AI was conflating San Diego State with South Dakota State. The San Diego Tribune however lists home attendance at 18,183 avg for the first 5 games of 2023… so who the hell knows. Based on the individual game numbers this past season it’s right at about 25,000, so yes you’re correct.

I didn’t include them though as “fat” for obvious reasons. Is USU the best of the “fat” that was in the MW? I don’t think they are any more or less capable than any of the other fat teams of having a decent season. Add to that the fact that I’m not sure what exactly their media market share is. At least with your UNMs, WYOs, and UNRs you have an idea of what the value of their media market is because they’re not playing third fiddle to two big brother teams.

I’m not arguing that they won’t have a more valuable league on a per team basis. What I am arguing is that those teams that provide that value in the PAC would have provided the same value to the MW, and collectively they would add even more value in the MW than they will in this new PAC.

Their percentage of fat WILL be lower… I just think they would have overcome that with the strength of a combined conference and maybe some tweaks that incentivized the better performing teams.

Another thing to think about is what happens when they start beating up on each other? If there’s so much parity then it’s bound to happen. What happens when your teams don’t bring back any quality wins in the OOC, or a couple of them do and then go lose to CSU or USU in a blizzard?

The Boise v UNLV championship was the highest rated championship ever for the MW, because both teams had created the stakes for it.

Will the PAC be better than the MW? Yes.
Will they get more money than the MW? Yes.
Will the PAC be better than a merged league?No.
Would the PAC teams end up better off in a merged league competitively? I don’t know, but I think yes.
Would they be better off financially? I don’t know but I’d suspect no unless they’re somehow able to cheat the penalties, and I don’t think they can or will cheat them completely.

CSU/USU suing MW over exit fees

I think which market at particular team does matter, but less than it ever has before. Previously, most conferences had their own "channel" and by getting a team located in a particular market that would expand the brand because that channel would be available by default and more games may be watched than before.

But that means little now. Most college games are available everywhere. Fewer people actually watch traditional cable and satellite than ever, so when they search "college football" on their boxes, adding a team to a market doesn't move the needle much at all.

What matters is how many fans watch these games on TV. Market does help in terms of potential to a certain extent, but there is enough historical data to show that SJSU does very little for that market. UNLV is the other side, with good (not great) crowds showing up for football. There is potential there. But is has come around slowly.

Which is why we have been left out. People think it was a stupid move or we were blocked by other jealous teams in the conference, but I don't believe it. Why snuff out a team that will increase your bottom line, when all of expansion has been 99% been about that.

Our historical data hasn't been good enough. Now if they would have waited and done it now, would we be there? More likely. For sure they would have rather had us than Utah State.

CSU/USU suing MW over exit fees

Utah states had the biggest negative delta this past season with attendance. They lost their coach in a scandal and just hired a really good one. It is safe to say that they will likely get the same crowds they were getting or better soon.

These numbers show that SDSU has been averaging around 24K and these are 2 of the worst years they have had in a long time. Which brings me to this point outside of Boise, and maybe CSU, all of the other defectors had down years for them, but still had decent attendance.


I see the the new PAC as having 1 team of "fat" currently in Utah State, but averaging 18-20k per year if they return to form is pretty good. Remember last season was a bit of a down year from what they are used to.

I agree that the Hawaii numbers are a bit deceptive. I think they have more fans spread across the islands and a good amount in the Vegas valley considering how many show up to the island show down game here. But they have been a partial partner in the past for a reason. So It's hard to call them fat or big positive.

But SJSU is good, but fans don't care. They have zero penetration in that very good market. Their ceiling is especially low from a media perspective. A perennial bowl team that won the conference in the past 5 years and they near the bottom of the list in attendance every year. SDSU being terrible and averaging nearly 25k? Very strong.

So taking out the majority of the top markets, and and the worst the best bottom team vs taking all of the fat and averaging it out, I still think there is a decent difference there. How much? I don't know if there is a good estimation, but I think our bottom is pretty bad and moves the needle substantially. I think attendance is a decent way to compare, but it is really more about eyeballs on TVs. Some teams have more lurkers or nationwide fans than others. Safe to Say Boise has the best brand and probably leads the way there. I would think actually CSU is up there as well just because is one of 2 large state schools in a pretty big state, a state bigger than every other state in our conference by a large amount (besides California of course).

The up front costs do make a difference, and right now, yes it does seem like it will take a good amount of time for them to break even. But if the poaching fees get thrown out and they pay only a portion of the negotiated exit fees, then it may not take long at all.
All you have to do is watch an sdsu home game and you know there is no way they are getting 24k in attendance. They are lucky to be getting 10k if that. They do some funny math at SNAPOUTOFIT stadium.

CSU/USU suing MW over exit fees

Of the first 6, I ranked CSU lowest, but maybe it’s Fresno State? No real point was being made there other than saying that the overall balance was fairly equal with Boise being on top and CSU or Fresno being at the bottom of that group.

If you look at attendance numbers over the last couple years… SDSU, USU, SJSU, UNM, and UNR have all averaged 16,000-18,300 per home game. Hawaii is the bottom outlier at about 13,000.

Of that group I’d toss out SDSU as being a “bottom feeder” because their market IS better and their “brand” is “ok”.

The others all feel about the same to me and any single one of them COULD have a good season and boost those numbers. So if you’re gonna call UNM, SJSU, and UNR “fat”, you gotta include USU as “fat” as well.

I’m not including Hawaii on that list because they were only a partial member and were being paid as such.

So USU is “fat” even though they could have a good season, just like the others, and you have to add another team in ALL sports, who is gonna be PURE FAT.

That makes 25% of your teams “fat”, that you were, oh by the way, trying to shed. I think Gonzaga at a full share is actually a drag on overall revenue, but that’s harder to quantify, so illyleave them out of the equation.

Saying they took our four best markets/teams (of which UNLV would actually be one) is irrelevant to my point. I’m not arguing the PAC isn’t better, I’m arguing they’re worse off than what they would be had a merger taken place.

In a new MW/PAC with 14 teams you’d have those same 4 as “fat”, which is about 28%. I think WYO is kind of neutral and Hawaii is also kind of neutral because their market is decent and they’re only getting a partial share. But if you include those two and say the new conference has 6 “fat” teams you’re up to 42% vs 25% fat.

Admittedly 17% is a pretty decent difference… it’s the difference between $5 mil per year and $5.85 mil per year.

But now look at the cost…

The final cost remains to be seen, but it’s going to be a decent amount, even after things likely get negotiated down. Even if it gets negotiated down to a third it takes 7 years to overcome the difference. And that doesn’t include any poaching fees that are ultimately paid by the PAC 2.

Now look at a comparison of what the new PAC would look like versus a new PAC/MW conference. That conference would be far and away the best G5 conference and I would think more valuable on a per team basis.

Add to that the fact that you could have structured the payouts of that new conference as such to reward the better teams, which would easily overcome any difference in who is “fat” and who is not.

Again, it’s neither here nor there at this point, and there’s a lot still to play out. But it definitely feels like a “cut off your nose to spite your face” situation to me.
Utah states had the biggest negative delta this past season with attendance. They lost their coach in a scandal and just hired a really good one. It is safe to say that they will likely get the same crowds they were getting or better soon.

These numbers show that SDSU has been averaging around 24K and these are 2 of the worst years they have had in a long time. Which brings me to this point outside of Boise, and maybe CSU, all of the other defectors had down years for them, but still had decent attendance.


I see the the new PAC as having 1 team of "fat" currently in Utah State, but averaging 18-20k per year if they return to form is pretty good. Remember last season was a bit of a down year from what they are used to.

I agree that the Hawaii numbers are a bit deceptive. I think they have more fans spread across the islands and a good amount in the Vegas valley considering how many show up to the island show down game here. But they have been a partial partner in the past for a reason. So It's hard to call them fat or big positive.

But SJSU is good, but fans don't care. They have zero penetration in that very good market. Their ceiling is especially low from a media perspective. A perennial bowl team that won the conference in the past 5 years and they near the bottom of the list in attendance every year. SDSU being terrible and averaging nearly 25k? Very strong.

So taking out the majority of the top markets, and and the worst the best bottom team vs taking all of the fat and averaging it out, I still think there is a decent difference there. How much? I don't know if there is a good estimation, but I think our bottom is pretty bad and moves the needle substantially. I think attendance is a decent way to compare, but it is really more about eyeballs on TVs. Some teams have more lurkers or nationwide fans than others. Safe to Say Boise has the best brand and probably leads the way there. I would think actually CSU is up there as well just because is one of 2 large state schools in a pretty big state, a state bigger than every other state in our conference by a large amount (besides California of course).

The up front costs do make a difference, and right now, yes it does seem like it will take a good amount of time for them to break even. But if the poaching fees get thrown out and they pay only a portion of the negotiated exit fees, then it may not take long at all.
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