Posted on: Wednesday, May 28, 2003

MWC chief says he has yet to hear from UH

By Ferd Lewis
Advertiser Staff Writer

Despite University of Hawai'i President Evan Dobelle's stated interest in the Mountain West Conference, nobody from the school has contacted the conference about membership, MWC commissioner Craig Thompson said yesterday.

Dobelle told radio station KKEA and reiterated to The Advertiser that he believes several MWC schools, including Brigham Young, Nevada-Las Vegas and San Diego State, make for better rivalries than some current Western Athletic Conference opponents such as Boise State and Louisiana Tech.

"It doesn't make sense for us to be in the WAC, given the options that may exist," Dobelle said. Other concerns, such as finances and visibility, "might be a close call" between the two conferences, he said.

Thompson, who will sit in on the MWC's Board of Directors meetings beginning this weekend, said he was aware of Dobelle's comments but said neither the UH president nor athletic director Herman Frazier has spoken to the conference about expansion.

Dobelle said he has not met with MWC officials. Frazier, who in the past maintained that no contact had taken place, has twice declined comment since Dobelle made his statements last week.

Thompson said he has been approached by some schools he would not name that asked, " 'What are you going to do? Are you looking to expand?' " But, Thompson said, "I can only say to you Hawai'i has not called."

Conference realignment has become a topic of widespread interest in the wake of the Atlantic Coast Conference's pursuit of Big East members Miami, Boston College and Syracuse. A move by those three could have repercussions across the landscape.

Both the WAC and MWC, which is composed of eight schools that broke away from the WAC following the 1998 season, say their presidents will explore potential options at board of directors meetings in California this weekend although it is unlikely either will expand unless changes come to other leagues first.

Karl Benson said representatives of the 10 WAC schools will discuss their membership options.

Thompson said any decision by the MWC to expand would likely come as part of a three-step process. "First would be the determination we need more than eight members. Step two would be defining the criteria and, three, someone who met that profile," he said.

Expansion would require approval of six of the eight MWC schools, he said. Four schools will have new presidents this summer.

Thompson said when the time comes, prospective candidates for expansion would be evaluated on "11 benchmarks we use that include athletic history, attendance, graduation ... academic and athletic measuring sticks, if you will. Those would be the starting place for any expansion."

While one MWC member said Hawai'i has come up in "informal, unofficial" conversations among members in the past, Thompson said, "No schools have been (officially) discussed in any detail."