Ault, Carter talk about MWC move
A.W. Prince | Share this:
As nearly every Wolf Pack fan knows by now, Nevada is on the move. Although both the times and the financial side of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) separation has yet to be determined, Nevada is definitely moving to the Mountain West Conference (MWC). SilverandBlueSports spoke with Nevada head football coach Chris Ault, plus Nevada head basketball coach David Carter, in an effort to learn more about the move from their perspectives.
Both Ault and Carter are the first to acknowledge their respect for the WAC, which has been the home for Wolf Pack athletics since 1999.
“I have mixed emotions,” Coach Ault said. “We’ve enjoyed our stay in the WAC, and I enjoy our friendships within this conference. That’s something that we’ve been fortunate to have as a school. There is a deep respect there.”
“It has been a really great conference for us to compete in, and for nearly my entire time at Nevada the only conference I’ve known,” Coach Carter added. “We’ve just had some great games and met some great people in the WAC over the years.”
But due to the success of the Wolf Pack programs and the national respect that has since followed, Nevada has now earned a chance at playing in the MWC, which is recognized by many in college athletics as one of the two prestigious and marketable conferences on the west coast alongside the Pac-10. Alongside the WAC, the MWC is one of five NCAA Football Bowl SubDivision (FBS) conferences that does not receive an automatic bid to the Bowl Championship Series (BCS), but will be entering the third season of a four-year trial period with the BCS in 2010. They are the closest of the five conferences without that status to being upgraded, and despite not having it, have placed numerous teams in BCS games over the past few seasons.
Ault has long been the cornerstone of Nevada athletics, serving as its leader and top coach for numerous years
Both Nevada head coaches also agreed that football is the main reason why Nevada has received this opportunity.
“As you know well, these decisions are football driven,” Coach Ault said. “That’s the nature of the business and the popularity of our sport. And it is a great sport to be a part of. Of course, that adds certain pressures on us, but the opportunity for us to move to the Mountain West is an honor for our program. It shows the respect our program has nationally.
“That’s something that I am not sure everyone locally understands that well, but Nevada football has a lot of respect nationally from our peers. It is balanced between our successes and the concept of our Pistol offense, which has grown in popularity in ways that I think our fan base is just starting to see.”
During the future MWC schedules, Nevada will now have a more meaningful conference game against in-state rival UNLV, plus competition against Wyoming, Colorado State (who the Pack host on September 11), San Diego State, Boise State, Fresno State, TCU, Air Force, New Mexico and perhaps BYU depending what it chooses to do in the upcoming months.
In terms of a basketball conference move, nobody is more excited about moving to the MWC than David Carter. By simply looking at the conference RPI rankings over the past 7 years (as far as we looked back), the MWC has finished with a better RPI every single season than the WAC. Additionally, they have placed more NCAA Tournament teams during that span, including four teams this past season.
“Everyone knows the Mountain West has a great field of teams within the conference, and for us to be apart of that in the future is only going to help our program,” Coach Carter said. “From our current players to our staff, it is just a great opportunity.”
While there are hundreds of potential legal and non-legal questions to be answered about Nevada’s separation, plus Fresno State’s, from the WAC, with the most obvious being whether or not Nevada’s separation agreement with the WAC (which other members did sign, yet Nevada did not) is binding, plus the obvious hostility that some members of the WAC Office, who labeled the moves as “selfish”, will have moving forward, there is no question about the move being right for Nevada. Questions about which conference is better are abound, but Nevada athletics is undeniably moving forward.
For the most part, the WAC is a one bid league in basketball. The Mountain West just put four. It will be a great conference for our hoops program. No wonder Carter is excited. If he can get the recruiting class he just did in the WAC, think of the possibilities in a better conference. Plus, it will be a lot of very good games at Lawlor. I’m excited to be a Pack fan right now. If we enter in 2011-2012 season, we could be starting off with 13 returning scholarship players on our basketball team. It should be a team that could compete for a championship right away. I just hope football can be competitive. Afterall, last year we lost 35-20 to the last place team in the Mountain West.
While there probably is ‘no question about the move being the right move for the Pack’, the real question to ask is – Why were they agreeing to stay in the WAC (with a $5 million penalty) just 5 days before deciding to leave? Didn’t they stop and think about what they would do if the MWC did extend them an invite with BYU possibly going independent?
P.S. I always hope for the best for coach Ault and the Nevada football team, but I’m sure getting tired of hearing the coach making what comes across as negative comments about Wolf Pack fans – as if we don’t appreciate his Pistol offense, all he’s doing now, or all he has done. He needs to just concentrate on building respect for the program by actually winning a meaningful game or two, and stop alienating the fans with comments that appear as if he’s talking down to them. Respect is earned, and this 2010 season presents a real opportunity for him to do just that. Until that time he himself should stop appreciate the loyal fans Nevada does have and make more comments expressing that appreciation.
Appreciate the feedback James…I have two points to make.
1. I think any school could appreciate what USU was trying to do, and that was set themselves up better. Getting BYU into the WAC, even minus football, was fine with Nevada. At the time of Nevada’s verbal agreement with the WAC there was no MWC talks. But Nevada’s agenda has always been to be a part of the MWC due to their natural in-state rivalry with UNLV, the continual rivalries with Boise State and Fresno State, plus the fact that it is a much better hoops conference. When you compare the interests of Nevada from the standpoint of the future WAC and the future MWC there really isn’t a comparison. Furthermore, Nevada’s verbal agreement to the WAC is going to be litigated strongly. They never signed anything, as I’m sure you understand.
2. When you are the cornerstone of a program like Coach Ault, I think you give him all the room in the world to talk about his program. When you say respect is earned, I couldn’t agree more with you. In fact, he has earned that respect. Name another person who has done more for Nevada athletics, or ever will?
I love your comments and passion AW! While I agree that Ault can talk about his program all he wants, my point is that he needs to stop the back handed swipes (as quoted in the article) at Nevada fans. This does nothing in my mind but further alienate an already agitated fan base.