The Mountain West Conference: A Sad Look at What Might Have Been

College football has experienced some significant changes over the last decade, and no matter how you slice it, most of those changes can be traced back to BCS headwaters.

The current BCS system amplified an already existing atmosphere of the college football haves and have nots. It created uncontrollable avenues of revenue that multiplied greed to blinding levels and fostered a climate of animosity and entitlement.

Good men, good schools and good intentions have increasingly been sacrificed at the altar of the Bowl Championship Series.

In the past few years we have seen questionable choices involving conference associations, scheduling decisions and determining which teams were worthy to play in the "big" games.

Were teams chosen because they were most worthy to play or because they could bring the most fans to a city? Were teams more qualified left out of the mix because of the bottom line? Everyone knows the answer to those questions.

Now the BCS says that they will bring changes to the system. Perhaps they too have seen that this environment they created is in serious need of a colossal enema.

Whatever the case, it is nice to hear that change is coming. However for some, it is too little too late.

The Mountain West Conference is one that will never recover from the recent history of college football. Recently ESPN reported that the proposed merger of the Mountain West and Conference USA was going forward. The merger will be the end to the Mountain West experiment and bring dramatic changes to a once rising star in college athletics.

But, before all the blame is put on the BCS system, it is important to note that there were probably many things that could have been done by the conference itself to save its place at the table. As it stands now, the conference is on the verge of dissolving.

When this happens it will be a sad day for many who had high hopes for the MWC.

Had the Mountain West acted in a more progressive manner and added the teams, television and exposure it needed, this conversation would not be happening.

Imagine a conference with the following teams:

Boise State, BYU, Utah, TCU, Air Force, Fresno State, Hawaii, Nevada, Wyoming, San Diego State, Colorado State, UNLV and New Mexico?

Sure, a few of those teams are really bad in football, but at least eight of them have decent to excellent programs.

A conference with those teams would have easily outweighed the Big East and maybe even the ACC when it comes to football. Add to that a championship game every year in Las Vegas and you would have increased exposure and attention.

Not only that, but had the conference decided to accept a television offer from ESPN, the nation would have been able to see the quality of the conference easily and on a regular basis. Instead, Craig Thompson and the rest of the minds of the Mountain West decided to dictate their own terms in an effort to keep games on Saturday and develop their own network.

The Mountain West, however, needed exposure far more than it needed traditional convenience. Instead of being the up and coming hungry underdog, it tried to be the already established heavyweight. That approach put them in a corner, and it appears as if they are close to being knocked out.

Because the conference was unwilling to add members, increase exposure and better promote itself, it put it in a very vulnerable position.

When the Pac-12 came calling, you can't blame Utah for bolting. But, BYU could have easily been saved and TCU probably would have never considered the Big East if the MWC had been in a better position to be an A.Q. conference.

Boise State would have certainly stayed, and the conference would be talking about which team they would add to replace Utah instead of where they find themselves now.

Houston or SMU would have probably been the choice to replace the Utes, and again the conference would have been the fifth or sixth ranked conference in college football.

But again, this is the kind of thinking promoted by the current BCS system.

There are a whole lot of what if's, and no one can really be certain of what might have been. But, it is clear that the constant chase for BCS glory has dictated the actions of many. The Mountain West has not been the only conference affected by it.

The Big 12 was on the verge of collapse just last year, but now it seems poised as a powerhouse conference once again thanks to a solid season and the additions of TCU and West Virginia.

The Big East is in a mad scramble after losing members to the ACC and the Big 12. They have pillaged the Mountain West and Conference USA of six schools in a effort to keep their conference on the BCS radar.

Again, all of these moves can be traced back to the current system.

It will be interesting how the "changes" the BCS is proposing will change the current climate. Let's hope for the sake of tradition, the fans, the schools and the integrity of the game, that those changes will bring stability and fairness.

That isn't too much to ask for is it?

As far as the Mountain West is concerned, it will be interesting how this proposed merger turns out. As C-USA and MWC become one entity, it will bring some intriguing match-ups.

But with the departure of Memphis, UCF, SMU, Houston, San Diego State, and Boise State the two conferences will need a little time to rebuild quality.

If the merger happens the new Mountain-USA will still have Nevada, Hawaii, Southern Miss, Fresno State, Air Force, Wyoming, Tulsa and UTEP. These are all programs with decent football programs and good tradition.

Also, you might see this new mid-major super conference scoop up La. Tech along the way. Which, would add another quality program, but it would send the WAC scrambling to survive.

When it all settles, who knows how many conferences will remain or what they will look like? But one thing is for sure, we haven't seen the end of the conference carousel just yet.