Utah gets Pac 10 invite.

[IBleedMaroonDawg]

Who need Texas?

 

[ckDOG]

Tell us C34, if being the best of the rest is so much better than simply being in a BCS conference, then why is Utah ditching their comfort zone and joining the premier conference on the west coast? They are winning, right? They've been to a BCS bowl before, right? They are the poster child for being successful outside of a BCS conference, yet they've decided to join a better conference?

I don't understand this nonsense. Explain.

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http://www.sltrib.com/D=g/ci_15313890

A few key segments:

This recognition can only be a matter of pride for the people of Utah," said Machen, predicting Pac-10 membership would enhance the U.'s ability to recruit students from the West Coast and to tap its alumni who live there.
Longtime Utah engineering professor Larry DeVries contends that athletic triumphs in the Pac-10 can translate into institutional success on many levels.
"When you're successful athletically, donors contributes," DeVries said. "They also build a cancer center. They build a lot of things. Success breeds success. The success reflects on the university."

By moving from the Mountain West to the Pac-10, the Utes jump from a so-called "mid-major" conference to one known as the "Conference of Champions," which will add to the national credibility the Utes have earned on their own with their two BCS bowl wins.

Off the field, the Utes will profit from increased exposure by being in a BCS conference and will earn a considerable raise in TV revenue.
As a Mountain West member, the Utes earned just $1.2 million annually in TV revenue. Teams in the Pac-10 currently receive between $8-10 million, and that figures to climb when the conference negotiates new television contracts as a 12-team entity.

For now, the Utes aren't worrying about the details and are instead celebrating the move to a ritzier address.

Finally, Utah's Pac-10 invitation ends the school's battle with the BCS.
Utah attorney general Mark Shurtleff filed an anti-trust lawsuit and Sen. Orrin Hatch spearheaded congressional hearings after the unbeaten Utes defeated Alabama in the Sugar Bowl but never got a shot at playing for the national championship.
That all changes with Pac-10 membership. The conference is guaranteed at least one BCS berth annually and has a realistic chance at playing for a national title if one of its teams finishes the regular season unbeaten.

 

[dawgatUSM]

He says leave the big conference to win, and try to make up the financial gap by winning (which would NEVER happen)

Utah is leaving a conference they could dominate for a much more powerful conference with a much bigger paycheck.

 

[57stratdawg]

Really to suggest that leaving the SEC would be good for MSU in anyway has no merit.

Back to Utah though. It seems like a great move for all parties involved. I'll be interested to see if Utah is behind Oregon any. I think they'll clearly be behind USC (even after these new rulings) as far as talent goes. But I think Utah could be the 3rd best team in the Pac-10 when they finally get in.

 

[Todd4State]

They were winning as many as 8-9 games a year at one time, and you see what that has gotten them.

If we were in a lower conference, I think that's about what we would be- another USM with a better basketball program. I don't want that, and I don't think anyone else does either.

People that say that we should drop down because we haven't been competitive need to realize that we are just now stepping out of the 20th century as far as having an AD. I think we now have a very good product in football- from the scoreboard, to the uniforms, and gameday atmosphere. We have just never really utilized what we could do until now. On top of that, we're recruiting pretty well, and i think that we have a good coaching staff that will win, and when that happens, the roof is going to blow off.

Our basketball program is at worst a NIT program in bad years, and goes to the Dance in good years. We're not UK, and maybe our schedule isn't the best in the world, but we win in general, and have a stable program that a lot of people in the SEC would like to have, no matter how you feel about Stansbury.

And as far as baseball, whether Cohen can turn it around or not, I definately feel a lot better about where we are now as opposed to two years ago from a talent standpoint. If Cohen can't straighten this out, we fire him and bring in a good coach who will have some talent to work with based on what just happened in the MLB draft with our recruits. On the other hand, if Cohen can turn it around, that's awesome and what was expected.

Bottom line is this- there is no reason that we can not compete in the SEC. We may not win the SEC every year, or even have winning records in all three sports every year, but there is no reason that we can not compete with anyone else in the SEC on the field, and not just compete, but have some measure of success.

 

[mstateglfr]

<font size="5">"Finally, Utah's Pac-10 invitation ends the school's battle with the BCS.
Utah attorney general Mark Shurtleff filed an anti-trust lawsuit and Sen. Orrin Hatch spearheaded congressional hearings after the unbeaten Utes defeated Alabama in the Sugar Bowl but never got a shot at playing for the national championship."</font>

So anyone want to take bets that suddenly Shurtleff and Hatch will not be near as active or vocal now that Utah is part of a BCS conference?

Gotta love an inconsistent position.

 

[patdog]

Another example is just look at how desperately Memphis has been trying for years to get into a BCS conference. Even to the point of reportedly trying to bribe someone, anyone, to take them by promising $10M of FedEx support per year.</p>

 

[The Big Slick]

BYU by far has much a richer history which includes a Hesiman and National Championship. Utah gets an invite to the Pac-10 and BYU gets to be dominated by Boise State and TCU in the Mountain West.

 

[Harry Doyle]

I am liking their chances because no one really sticks out in the Pac 10. Oregon is having disciplinary problems, and I don't think Locker is enough to carry Washington all the way.

 

[patdog]

Utah has 2 BCS bowl wins. BYU has never even played in a BCS bowl. For the last decade, Utah has won more games than BYU has. And Utah has a much better basketball history.</p>

 

[jb1020]

I think thats a major reason they did not get the invite. They can get away with it in their current conference, the PAC 10 told them if they have to play on Sunday they will play on Sunday. They have no one to blame but themselves.

I'm sure the Utes and Cougars will still play football, thats a pretty big rivalry, at least for the area. They're only separated by 45 miles or so, and they have a true hatred for each other.

This will be huge for the Utes. I think they will end up being a top team in the PAC 10, maybe instantly. They have great fans, they can be a little fair weather, but the step up in competition should change that. I lived there for a few years, but seldom made games simply because they were playing Colorado State, or if it was a big game - Wyoming.

 

[Optimus Prime 4]

[No message]

 

[patdog]

They had to know that if the Big-12 schools to the PAC-10 didn't happen that Utah was probably gone since it had been very strongly rumored for at least a year that the PAC-10 was going to add Utah and Colorado.