After a unanimous vote by AAC members Friday, Wichita State "announced it would accept" the conference's invitation and "leave the Missouri Valley Conference, where the Shockers have been members" since '45, according to Brett McMurphy of ESPN.com. WSU will "join the AAC in all sports except football, giving the AAC both a 12-team football and basketball league." Because of its basketball success, WSU was an "attractive target for the AAC." To leave the MVC, there is "no exit fee if a school provides 24 months of notice." Sources said that WSU will pay $2.5M to join the AAC, but the school "won't actually pay that amount, as future league revenue -- expected to be $500,000 for each of the next five years -- will be withheld to pay for its entrance fee" (ESPN.com, 4/7). In Wichita, Josh Heck noted WSU's athletic department estimates its budget needs to increase from $1.8-2M to "account for additional travel expenses and to offset revenue the university will no longer receive" once it leaves the MVC. WSU Senior Associate AD/Business Operations Rege Klitzke and WSU AD Darron Boatright said that increased ticket prices for athletic events "are likely, though specific amounts haven't been finalized." Boatright said that the school's "agreement with Cox Communications to air select [basketball] games on its Cox 22 station will be re-evaluated when the contract expires in a year." He "anticipates a 'diminished' local airing of games in favor of more regionally and nationally televised contests" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 4/7).
HOOP DREAMS: In Wichita, Paul Suellentrop wrote, "If there is a turning point in WSU’s public pursuit of a more suitable athletic and academic home, it came on Oct. 17, when the Big 12 voted to stick with 10 members" (WICHITA EAGLE, 4/9). SI.com's Pete Thamel wrote WSU is "upgrading leagues in part because of the chilly reception they’ve received from the NCAA tournament selection committee." By leaving the MVC "so quickly and starting AAC play this fall, Wichita State will have to forfeit its share of the annual conference revenue distribution." The "primary lure" for the AAC adding WSU is "additional basketball prestige" (SI.com, 4/7). In Orlando, Matt Murschel wrote the move gives the AAC a "boost especially on the basketball front." AAC Commissioner Mike Aresco called the addition a "major step for the conference." Asked if it will pay off for the league in upcoming TV negotiations, Aresco "wouldn’t deny Wichita State’s impact." Aresco: "Let’s put it this way, it can’t hurt. We weren’t thinking so much of our new TV deal as we were in strengthening our conference" (ORLANDO SENTINEL, 4/8).
NOT SO FAST: YAHOO SPORTS' Jeff Eisenberg wrote the AAC is a "significant upgrade" for WSU basketball "despite the increased travel time and expenditures in a league with a geographic footprint that spans half the country." But if the news is "win-win for Wichita State basketball and the American, that’s not the case for the Shockers’ non-revenue sports." The school is "spending more on travel, sacrificing regional rivalries and taking more time away from class for the good of the school’s cash-cow program." The "other loser" is the MVC, which "says goodbye to its flagship program only four years after fellow perennial power Creighton also moved on to the Big East" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 4/7).
DEAL MADE IN HEAVEN: In DC, Matt Bonesteel wrote under the header, "Wichita State's Move To The AAC Is A Win-Win For Both Sides." The AAC will now have 12 teams for basketball and "bolsters its roster with a program that has made six straight NCAA tournaments." The "irony of the move, which saw a conference that exists mainly because of football turn to a basketball school, was not lost on some" (WASHINGTON POST, 4/8). WSU sponsors 15 sports all together, and Aresco said that the TV contract "ends for football" after the '19 season and for men’s basketball after the '19-20 season. Currently, he said that there are "no immediate plans for more expansion." Aresco: "We are done for now, but you never close the road for expansion down the road" (PHILLY.com, 4/7). The WICHITA EAGLE's Suellentrop wrote this is a "steal for Wichita State, a heist, a life-changing deal that even if it goes moderately bad is a great one for the Shockers." WSU is upgrading its conference schedule, as well as its "TV exposure, and their neighborhood." And the school is "doing it without football" (WICHITA EAGLE, 4/9). CBSSPORTS.com's Gary Parrish wrote the move is "also perfect" for the AAC, "somewhat because Wichita State does not have a football program, meaning this does literally nothing to damage the AAC’s football product." Parrish: "Congrats to the AAC. And congrats to the Shockers. You guys really did need each other. You’re gonna be great together" (CBSSPORTS.com, 4/7).
WHO'S NEXT? FANRAG SPORTS' Jon Rothstein cited sources as saying that the MVC is "targeting both Valparaiso and Murray State as potential additions following Wichita State’s departure." A source said that those two additions would "give the league 11 teams in total which would lead to each team playing twice during the regular season in a 20-game league format" (FANRAGSPORTS.com, 4/7).
