[Mick]

In short, ACC or B1G membership would require agile, able leadership and we don’t have it.  Regretfully, I look for inaction to default to a half assed Independent stance while we start to look at the problem. While we dither, I fear our good recruits and players not near graduation will hit the portal.  Not talking about just Football and basketball but women’s volleyball and basketball, softball and baseball as well. Absent a bug infusion of endowment funding, the so called Olympic sports go away as well.

I don't think either ACC or B1G membership is in the cards. ACC is too far (legitimately) and B1G is both too far and candidly, they don't really want us...not really. The Big 12 doesn't mesh well, either academically or geographically, and the SEC even less so.

Stanford doesn't have the football cachet that Notre Dame does...it has more cachet in literally every other arena, but not football. The only other independents are Army or two comparative nonentities (UMass and UConn). I think this is the nuclear option for Stanford, and I don't see it happening.

And there's a lot of money at stake to continue the Pac-12 for at least one more year. I think they may be backed into that option. Longer term, the MWC makes more sense. I realize it's not a Power 5, but the remaining Pac-12 teams can lift the ocean, so to speak. They can lift the value of that conference, the competition will be local (better for the student athletes).

I think we are well on the way to mediocrity. Fortunately, I have been wrong before.

Too late...

[Mick]

In short, ACC or B1G membership would require agile, able leadership and we don’t have it.  Regretfully, I look for inaction to default to a half assed Independent stance while we start to look at the problem. While we dither, I fear our good recruits and players not near graduation will hit the portal.  Not talking about just Football and basketball but women’s volleyball and basketball, softball and baseball as well. Absent a bug infusion of endowment funding, the so called Olympic sports go away as well.

I don't think either ACC or B1G membership is in the cards. ACC is too far (legitimately) and B1G is both too far and candidly, they don't really want us...not really. The Big 12 doesn't mesh well, either academically or geographically, and the SEC even less so.

Stanford doesn't have the football cachet that Notre Dame does...it has more cachet in literally every other arena, but not football. The only other independents are Army or two comparative nonentities (UMass and UConn). I think this is the nuclear option for Stanford, and I don't see it happening.

And there's a lot of money at stake to continue the Pac-12 for at least one more year. I think they may be backed into that option. Longer term, the MWC makes more sense. I realize it's not a Power 5, but the remaining Pac-12 teams can lift the ocean, so to speak. They can lift the value of that conference, the competition will be local (better for the student athletes).

I think we are well on the way to mediocrity. Fortunately, I have been wrong before.

Too late...