MullinMayhem wrote:By bringing in WSU, the AAC is definitely more credible as a conference but again they are 1 team. UConn has never been the same, Brown is gone from SMU, Memphis is not Memphis anymore, Temple hasn't really done much. Really the only legit teams nationally are WSU and Cincy. WSU will do well but let's remember they will not get automatic blowout wins anymore since they upgraded their conference. They will be tested against UConn, SMU, Memphis, Temple, Cincy, etc. even though I just said some of those are not world beaters, they are a clear step up from what they used to face in the MVC. Plus, not sure why no one mentions this, but Greg Marshall will be snatched away very shortly to a big football school. Who's to say WSU will be the same under another coach? Look what happened to VCU when Shaka left....they are still decent but nowhere near what they were. Keno Davis had Drake ranked not too long ago, then he left for PC and they just fell back to being nobodies.
Above all else though, the biggest weakness regarding the AAC is that EVERY school that wants to focus on football wants out and have no allegiance. UConn, Cincy, Temple, UCF, ECU, Houston, and Memphis would leave at the drop of a hat for an F5 conference. Hell, UConn would leave in a second for the Big East if they would just come to terms with the fact that they will never be great in football. That's what happens when you have a mish mosh of schools with no central value. Ours is private schools focused on basketball. People know the Big East. They know the success and the tradition. They know the schools (and Creighton and Butler are making names for themselves). No one knows what the AAC is or who's in it. I actually come across many people who don't even know UConn is in the AAC. ESPN was recently tipping their caps to the Big East as the top to bottom best conference thus far just as in previous years. You will never hear that with the AAC.
Several things...
1- there is absolutely NO guarantee at all that Marshall will leave Wichita. Coaches don't have to leave their schools in basketball- several don't. See Gonzaga, Mark Few as a prime example.
2- For Wichita even if they lose some in the AAC, they're going to get rewarded with far better seeding. Remember last year when they go 17-1 in the MVC. What did that get them, a 10 seed? Going 14-4 in the AAC will get them a far better seed in the tournament. And that's huge.
3- Since Brown left SMU, SMU is 34-5. Temple has had injury problems but sure looks good this year so far(with Josh Brown back after a medical redshirt). We'll see about UConn this week in the PK80.
4- There's got to be a place for the teams to go from the AAC. Until that happens, the AAC is going to be great. Folks were saying give it a year or 2 and the AAC will be gone. Here we are on year 5. UConn won't leave the AAC because they aren't going to kill their football.
And the other thing- the AAC is the prime beneficiary of the A10 struggling this year. A10 is right now #10 in KP. If they finish there, that would be their worst finish since 2007 there.