BYU Leaving MWC, Becoming A Football Independent

BYU is leaving the Mountain West Conference to return to the Western Athletic Conference in all sports but football, where they will compete as an independent. BYU plans to play four teams from the WAC in football every year, so they can keep their rivalry game with Utah State, but wants the scheduling flexibility being an independent would provide. The move was made over dissatisfaction with the Mountain West Conference's poor television revenues from the conference television network, which work out to under $2 million per team each year. Add in the prospect of rival Utah joining the Pac-10 and reaping possible television revenues of $15 million a year, and BYU needed to take action to make sure they weren't at a severe recruiting and financial disadvantage. Becoming a college football independent allows BYU to leverage their own television network, which they already have in place, and work out their own deals with ESPN and Fox Sports to televise their games. There is a possibility BYU can make sure every single one of their football games is televised in some fashion. The trick will be making sure all networks add the BYU channel to their programming, so they school can reap the financial benefits.

BYU leaving the MWC also takes them out of a non-AQ conference, and puts them on their own when consideration for a bowl comes around. Being an independent allows them to negotiate their own deals with bowls, but I don't think there is going to be any rush by the BCS to make rules accommodate BYU's inclusion like they did with Notre Dame. In fact, I could see the BCS adding a new rule requiring all independents to play at least eight BCS conference teams if they want to be included in the BCS standings, and possibly play in the BCS championship game. This would prevent BYU from loading up on cupcakes in their schedule, in order to earn a cheap undefeated season, and try to play BCS buster.

The most important thing to note about this event is the manner and reason why it is happening: A school is not happy with their television revenue, decides they can make more by themselves on their own network, and makes the decision to go independent in football, while retaining their conference affiliation and rivalries in all other sports. I could see texas making a similar decision in the coming years, a move that could lead to the breakup of the ten-team Big 12 that we thought was imminent just a few months ago. If texas kept the conference affiliation in other sports, or kept their core rivalry games with A&M and OU on their schedule, I don't see much resistance to the move. Such a move would ultimately allow A&M to move to the SEC, which is what I would like to see happen. I don't think texas or BYU can make as much from their own television networks as they would be able to in more lucrative conference television deals, but that may be a lesson those programs will have to experience before they learn it.