Hyman: Frogs OK in C-USA
By Matt Potter
Staff Reporter

TCU versus Oklahoma? Maybe. TCU versus San Jose State or New Mexico? It’s also possible depending on different moves conference and school officials make in the next few months.

The realignment of conferences around the country could determine whether TCU athletics is placed on a national stage or reduced to a lower status.

Changes in the Big East Conference and the Atlantic Coast Conference have placed TCU in a peculiar situation. The Frogs have several opportunities depending on the actions of the Big East Conference.

“Our program has thrived in Conference USA, and our focus is on C-USA,” athletics director Eric Hyman said. “It’s inappropriate and premature to say where we’ll end up. Our goal is to find a vehicle where we can compete on the highest level.”

Hyman met Friday with Western Athletic Conference commissioner Karl Benson.

The ACC will acquire Miami and Virginia Tech in 2004 from the Big East, which will force the Big East to add at least two football teams for the 2005 season and may also affect the conference in basketball.

TCU’s football team could be affected the most if there is a change. Presently, C-USA is not a Bowl Championship Series affiliated conference. This means the Frogs have a harder time of reaching a national championship game. Playing in a BCS conference greatly increases a team’s chances of landing in one of the major bowls at the end of the college football season.

“The composition of C-USA is changing,” Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs William Koehler said. “We want to play in a conference that will give us the opportunity to achieve our goals and compete for a national championship.”

A couple of different scenarios could happen.

There’s a chance that TCU could receive an invitation from either the Mountain West Conference or the Western Athletic Conference; currently neither are affiliated with the BCS.

TCU athletics could also decide to stay in C-USA, if the conference adds more teams. C-USA is not affiliated with the BCS, but if it could convince nationally respected teams to join the conference, then C-USA has a chance of becoming a BCS conference during the 2005-2006 season.

Head football coach Gary Patterson doesn’t think a change is necessary if it won’t help the program.

“To me, unless it’s a step up, I don’t think a conference change is good,” Patterson said. “If it doesn’t mean a BCS tie-in of some sort then I don’t think there is any reason to change conferences.”

Changing conferences may have an affect on all TCU athletic programs.

A different conference means different opponents, opponents who haven’t been scouted by the TCU athletics programs. New rivalries will have to be formed and community interest may not be as high in one conference as it was in another.

Head swimming coach Richard Sybesma said he is happy with C-USA.

“Conference USA is very solid and we’re doing very well in this conference,” Sybesma said. “I know we’d be competitive in any conference we joined but as far as the swimming program goes, we’re happy in C-USA.”

Conference realignment will have some effect on TCU, but it depends on what kind of additions and subtractions are made in different conferences around the nation in the next couple of months.

“Until all the cards are on the table, it’s too hard to say where we’ll be,” Hyman said.

Hyman said he’d like to see the issue of conference realignment resolved within the next 60 days.