After all of the hoopla surrounding the Pac-10’s potential pilfering of the Big 12 broke yesterday, I asked if you thought this helps the Mountain West and whether the Mountain West should be interested in adding some of or all of what may remain of the Big 12 in addition to adding Boise State.

It seems like most people are on the same page in terms of thinking that the disintegration of the Big 12 would help the Mountain West.

Here’s a look at some of your answers and my comments:

Travis from Wyoming writes: Graham: If this report is correct, why couldn't the Mtn. West w/ Boise St. merge with the Big 12? The Mtn. West could gain automatic status and break into the Midwest region. I would welcome those schools into a merger. Not like any of them are a threat to our big 3 or 4 but swallow them up just for the AQ status.

Graham: I agree. It seems like a win-win for both the schools and the Mountain West, especially in basketball. The only concern might be Iowa State, which could be a little further than some of the Mountain West teams want to travel. I’m also not sure about the logistics of a 14-team conference and how that messes with scheduling.

Ja"Y" from Utah writes: First off, this is a major IF, especially when you consider the last rumor about the four teams thought to be invited to the BIG TEN turned out false. But IF this is true and Texas is actually interested with this, then the Mountain West begins to look a whole lot better. With BYU, TCU, and Utah staying together plus Boise, that would be a deadly and respect deserving conference. It seems the bigger question however should be, "Would the MWC be satisfied as a ten team conference if both the Big 10 and Pac 10 move to 16?" Would it then be necessary to follow the trend to stay competitive?

Graham: Yeah, I think the MWC isn’t going to make any moves beyond Boise State in the near future, but if the Pac-10 and Big Ten move to 16-team conferences, I could see teams such as Houston, Tulsa, Fresno State and Nevada considered to help complete a 16-team conference.

Jason from Charleston, W.Va., writes: Consider for a moment, if you will, a conference featuring this line 16-member line up split into four separate divisions made from teams left out of conference expansion: Great Plains Division: Kansas, Kansas State, Iowa State, and Memphis. Northwest Division: Boise State, BYU, Colorado State and Texas Tech. River Cities Division: Louisville, West Virginia, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati. Lone Star Division: Baylor, TCU, Houston, SMU.

Graham: I think now you’re getting into travel issues because I’d imagine there would be some interconference scheduling and if I’m Boise State, I don’t want to travel to Pitt and vice versa. I like where you’re head’s at in terms of expansion, but I don’t see a superconference spanning the country like that. Now, it’s possible that some of the teams left out of expansion on the right coast could look at the remaining Big 12 teams and try to make an alternate conference.

Alf from Las Vegas writes: I have a difficult time believing that rumor about the 6 Big 12 schools. The Pac 10 is strongly committed to its academic profile matching, or exceeding, its athletic profile. Oklahoma and Oklahoma St. are nowhere near reaching the academic threshold. But if I am wrong about that, and it does happen, I can't imagine any school in the MWC would prefer to be in the KU, KSU, ISU, Baylor conference. After the BCS AQ evaluation period ends, the MWC would be wise to consider adding KU and KSU. But they'd hurt the conference too much in football to add before the MWC gains AQ status. I'd prefer the MWC to add Houston and KU, but I am sure the Kansas schools are a package deal.

Graham: The Boulder Daily Camera had a story late Thursday that quoted the Colorado athletic director as saying that those six schools likely will receive invitations to the Pac-10. As far as the MWC goes, I agree that they should wait to add any more teams other than Boise State until after the evaluation period. However, I can’t imagine, if the Big 12 is gone, that the MWC wouldn’t be the next conference in line to keep six AQ conferences.

Eric from Salt Lake City writes: I just read Chip Brown's scenario where the Big 12 gets decimated by the Pac 10 and Big 10. My question is whether the BCS has any power to revoke a conference's auto bid immediately if something like that were to happen? Or, will there be an auto bid given to this post-apocalyptic Big 12? I live in MWC territory, but it seems like the BCS shouldn't have to honor its contract with the Big 12 if the new Big 12 doesn't resemble the Big 12 that agreed to the deal. I guess it works the other way, too: if the MWC is actually bolstered somehow by conference realignment, would they be stuck with (what some refer to) as a bad TV deal?

Graham: You have to maintain a membership of at least eight schools to keep automatic qualifying status. So, if the Big 12 were to lose eight schools, heck, five schools, that status would be in jeopardy. However, it wouldn’t happen until those teams actually left the conference and joined another.

Harmon from Los Angeles writes: I believe we could very well see a scenario where the Pac 10 and Big Ten in tandem mortally cripple the Big XII. However, I do not see all of the schools you mentioned getting admitted to the Pac 10. The Pac 10 requires 100% acceptance from the presidents/chancellors before any new schools are admitted. With that being said, I don't see the likes of Texas Tech and Oklahoma State, both Tier 3 schools, being accepted by Stanford, UC Berkeley, and UCLA. Oklahoma is borderline due to the fact it's on par with the Arizona schools (which UCB and Stanford fought prior to the Pac 8 becoming the Pac 10). Texas, Texas A&M, and Colorado are all more likely candidates due to a higher academic standard they maintain. Even without OU, OSU, and Texas Tech, if the PAC 10 still invites Texas.

Graham: Money can make people change their minds quickly and adding those six schools to the Pac-10’s current roster would be huge in terms of creating a television network that not only owns the West Coast, but also the most important parts of the Midwest. I think the Pac-10 would welcome all of those schools with open arms.

I’ll be back later this afternoon with some more of your comments. Thanks for sending them my way.