Mountain West Basketball: Examining 8 potential candidates for expansion
By Joey Loose
SMU
If the Mountain West decides to act proactively, they might be able to swipe a few teams from the AAC before the opposite can occur. There are a few potential schools that would be intriguing additions, but a really interesting one is SMU. Seemingly, the Mustangs seem like a decent fit for the Big 12 but were passed over, certainly less qualified than Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF. Still, they might just work as a Mountain West program.
First and foremost, this SMU program is more than three decades removed from receiving the Death Penalty and the football program is finally turning things around. They’ve been a solid program the last few years in the AAC and would certainly slide in as a contender in the MWC in their current state.
On the basketball court, the Mustangs had a bit of a revival under Larry Brown and have still been an above-average program since his departure a few seasons ago. They wouldn’t be winning MWC titles, but they’d be a solid add for basketball, especially as the conference’s gateway to Texas.
Would SMU dash from the AAC to the Mountain West or would they wait to see what other dominos would fall? Like we said, it would take a proactive effort to poach the Mustangs, but it might be the best move for SMU in the long run. Both of their flagship programs have taken great strides in the last decade and competing in the Mountain West might help push them even further. Heck, by the time the next cycle of realignment comes along the Mustangs might be ready for the Big 12.