It appears as if it’s only a matter of time until the Mountain West Conference loses Air Force to the Big East.
“Our interest is high in the Big East. That’s fair to say,” Air Force athletic director Hans Mueh told the Denver Post on Saturday.
In fact, according to Mueh, they even turned down the Big 12 in order to join the Big East.
“We were approached by the Big 12, and I told them we’re not a good fit for that conference,” Mueh told the paper. “In the Big 12, geography makes sense, the economics make sense, but recruiting makes no sense for us. I can’t recruit against Texas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State.”
“That’s why I turned down the Big 12. I can’t do that to my kids, because they’ll get beat up. I’d love the extra $12 million or whatever it would be per year from the TV money. And I know how I’d spend the money. I’d build a new soccer stadium, and I’d build a new baseball facility, all in one year. But I can’t do that.”
Air Force wouldn’t fill the shoes of TCU, who is expected to leave the Big East before even officially joining the conference for the Big 12, but it would certainly be a move in the right direction to keep the Big East afloat.
The real loser in all this is the Mountain West, who already lost BYU and TCU and now looks like they are going to be left in the dust by Air Force.
