As if we don't have enough going on right now, how does some realignment drama sound?
In September, when the Mountain West was shut down for the fall, Bryan Harsin fired off an email to Boise State AD Curt Aspey and president Marlene Tromp urging them to leave the Mountain West Conference.
“That leads into the conference conversation that we need to address again and for as long as it takes to put a plan together to move,” Harsin wrote in an email obtained by the Idaho Press. “NOW is the time! The longer it takes the longer we stay in the MW. I am 1000% convinced we need to make this move for football and if that means other sports too in the long run it will be what’s best for this University.
“I understand there are risks and budgets and travel costs that's all real to me. I also know that's exactly why Boise State is the program it is today because we took risks necessary to grow our program.”
Aspey responded by saying he had made overtures to the West Coast and Big West conferences, though no move was imminent.
Boise State would be an awkward fit in both leagues, at best. In fact, other than assuaging hurt feelings and possibly letting the Broncos call the shots, it's hard to see how the school would be better served in either league.
The Big West is comprised entirely of Cal State and University of California system schools, plus Hawai'i. The West Coast is made up entirely of private institutions, though it does have big brands (Gonzaga, BYU) and a presence in San Diego, San Francisco and Portland.
It's interesting that Aspey never mentioned the Big Sky, which holds a lot of Pacific Northwest state schools, including rival Idaho.
Neither league would be a fit for Boise State football, but the Broncos were once members of the American (back when it was the Big East) and the AAC would undoubtedly take them back in a heartbeat.
In the meantime, Boise State could win its fifth Mountain West football championship next week. Talk about awkward.