I live in Colorado. I listen to sports talk radio. I watch sports on television. I read the papers.
From that first-hand perspective I can unequivocally tell you that the Air Force Falcons should not be a target on the Big 12's radar. (Radar, airplanes, eh? eh?)
Air Force is a great academic institution. One of the tops in the nation, and we should all respect the commitment the cadets who attend the Academy, but their sports are sub-par, unconventional and simply don't draw attention, even within their own state. If the Big 12 is looking to add teams to increase their numbers, then sure, look at AFA, but we're not the WAC, Sunbelt or C-USA. We're the Big 12, dammit, and if we want to remain a powerhouse conference we need to look at quality over quantity.
The Big 12 used to be the Big 8, so we know it's possible to compete at high levels with our dwindling membership. The Big East has eight football schools, and while their football product doesn't compare to ours, they are a BCS conference and occasionally ruffle some feathers on the gridiron. Our football and basketball products are good enough that we are in the national spotlight already. Adding a team just to add a team makes no sense whatsoever.
And I don't mean to pick on the flyboys in Colorado Springs. I have gone down there and had fun at an AFA football game, but there is ZERO talk about them in Denver. Zero. When CU bolted for the Pac-12, the conference lost the Mile High City, admitting Air Force won't bring it back.
Because of the conference's prestige, the inclusion of AFA will create a buzz with the local media, but when they are talked about, either on the radio, television on in the papers, it is as an aside after rants on CU and talk about the Colorado State Rams. AFA just doesn't get the publicity needed to warrant inclusion in the conference.
When last call is announced at bars, guys scramble to find single women to take one final shot with. This isn't last call. We have plenty of time to find the most attractive woman at the bar, not the most readily available.
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