First Reaction to the news?
McCormick: Memphis made the safe choice. While fans may be disappointed, the money never made sense for the Tigers. Memphis would’ve reportedly had to pay upwards of $20 million to get out of the American Athletic Conference, and the competition is arguably the same in the AAC as it is in the Pac-12.
New: I was honestly stunned. Everything I had seen and heard told me that Memphis moving to the PAC-12 was all but guaranteed.
Harper: When I heard the rumors, I was excited… at first. Then once I started do some digging, I found out it was not everything it sought out to be. Yes, that conference, football wise, is better than the American. However, there were so many concerns financially. Do I think it would have helped Memphis? Yes 100%. Am I upset or mad that it did not work out? No.
Harrison: When I first heard the news, I really did not care for it. I thought about the players and fans and how they would have to adapt to a whole other time zone since most of the conference being on the west coast.
Did Memphis make the right decision?
McCormick: The Tigers made the right choice. There is too much uncertainty with the Pac-12 for it to be worth Memphis’ while. Firstly, they have no media rights deals in place, and they do not have enough teams to maintain a conference at this point. Not to mention, the Pac-12 reportedly asked for a five-year grants-of-rights deal from its new members, meaning that if the ACC or Big 12 opened, Memphis would have to wait five years to leave for another conference.
New: From a strictly athletics perspective, this was the wrong choice. I understand what happened with the money and that it was the driving factor behind the decision, but the PAC with the AAC 4 (Memphis, Tulane, USF, and UTSA) would've been an extremely deep conference for most major sports.
Harper: Yes 1,000%. Look, if this were the forsaken “last chance,” Memphis AD, Ed Scott, would have hopped on the train no matter what. The school believes they can find something better.
Harrison: I believe it was the right decision. Yes, fans may not want to be in the AAC anymore, but you have to think, is that a good fit for the athletes attending the university? Also, the PAC 12 really does not have a clear direction. Memphis must do their job and dominate the AAC in a small conference just as a school like Gonzaga does in basketball, for example.
After seeing the Pac-12's moves after Memphis’ decision, do you feel better or worse about the situation?
McCormick: The Pac-12 seems to have had no real plan for this expansion. Without the AAC schools, the league is now looking at more Mountain West universities. It seems like there could have easily been a merger between those two conferences without all of this mess. Memphis is still in prime position to make the jump when an opportunity approaches.
New: After seeing the drama with UNLV and the addition of Utah State in the PAC-12, I that Memphis made a smart move staying in the AAC. Even though it’s a lose-lose, staying in the AAC seems to be the lesser of two bad financial situations.
Harper: I personally feel better, but I did not expect Memphis to join in the first place. If they went, the financial problems would have been salt on the wound, especially with what’s happening with the basketball program.
Harrison: I feel better right now because the PAC 12 does not really have a clear direction. I think Memphis is fine where they are.
What do you expect for Memphis in future realignment?
McCormick: Memphis will stay in the American until a real power conference makes its next move. Whether that is the ACC, the Big 12, or even a different option like the Big East potentially, Memphis should not panic to leave the American. What was abundantly clear in this saga is that Memphis is one of the most desirable schools left on the market.
New: Unless the ACC or the American collapses under itself, I don’t see Memphis making a move to another conference if it’s not an obviously better situation.
Harper: Memphis will stay in the American for another 5-8 years. Until then, Memphis should strive to be the Gonzaga of the American. They should dominate in football and basketball.
Harrison: I expect Memphis to eventually get somewhere, but they have to start taking over the conference. I think more conferences will be of interest if Memphis wins multiple conference championships on top of the other things the university brings. I’ve been disappointed lately in thinking Memphis was going to take over once UCF, Cincinnati and Houston left, but I think they found more success when those schools were in the AAC. Memphis is 100% capable of going to a power 5 conference and it will come eventually.
