having an awesome year. Per Pomeroy:

7 Texas A&M
10 Texas Tech
22 Arkansas
25 TCU
26 SMU
28 Baylor
32 Texas
37 Houston
306 Rice

That's impressive! I miss the old SWC. I've always been a big proponent of the 80s/90s conferences.

Damn it Rice!

(12-29-2017 10:47 AM)hawghiggs Wrote:  Damn it Rice!

LOL Rice messes up a lot but they get a pass for being an academic powerhouse.

(12-29-2017 10:47 AM)hawghiggs Wrote:  Damn it Rice!

A major coaching change and corresponding talent exodus en mass really hurt the rebuild.

Couldn’t imagine how fun it was living in Texas in the SWC era. Favorite league of all time.

(12-29-2017 02:47 PM)IWokeUpLikeThis Wrote:  Couldn’t imagine how fun it was living in Texas in the SWC era. Favorite league of all time.

It was definitely something else! Everybody had their team they followed because of where they went to school, where their family went, what city/region you lived in and that's why every game mattered because somebody you knew; your neighbor, your family, your coworker, your congregation, etc SOMEBODY you knew and would see every week would get to give you hell for the next year if your team lost.

Nothing like it anywhere else and never will be ever again.

(12-29-2017 03:41 PM)10thMountain Wrote:  

(12-29-2017 02:47 PM)IWokeUpLikeThis Wrote:  Couldn’t imagine how fun it was living in Texas in the SWC era. Favorite league of all time.

It was definitely something else! Everybody had their team they followed because of where they went to school, where their family went, what city/region you lived in and that's why every game mattered because somebody you knew; your neighbor, your family, your coworker, your congregation, etc SOMEBODY you knew and would see every week would get to give you hell for the next year if your team lost.

Nothing like it anywhere else and never will be ever again.

How did UTEP come in to play? North Texas?

SWC was a very good hoops conference, good ball and tight knit even though it was football first.

(12-29-2017 04:04 PM)esayem Wrote:  

(12-29-2017 03:41 PM)10thMountain Wrote:  

(12-29-2017 02:47 PM)IWokeUpLikeThis Wrote:  Couldn’t imagine how fun it was living in Texas in the SWC era. Favorite league of all time.

It was definitely something else! Everybody had their team they followed because of where they went to school, where their family went, what city/region you lived in and that's why every game mattered because somebody you knew; your neighbor, your family, your coworker, your congregation, etc SOMEBODY you knew and would see every week would get to give you hell for the next year if your team lost.

Nothing like it anywhere else and never will be ever again.

How did UTEP come in to play? North Texas?

UTEP? I don’t think they were ever considered for SWC membership, besides, the old WAC was a good conference even after the Arizona schools left for the Pac-8.

Arizona
Arizona State
BYU
Colorado State
New Mexico
Utah
UTEP
Wyoming

Now back to the SWC.

(12-29-2017 04:04 PM)esayem Wrote:  

(12-29-2017 03:41 PM)10thMountain Wrote:  

(12-29-2017 02:47 PM)IWokeUpLikeThis Wrote:  Couldn’t imagine how fun it was living in Texas in the SWC era. Favorite league of all time.

It was definitely something else! Everybody had their team they followed because of where they went to school, where their family went, what city/region you lived in and that's why every game mattered because somebody you knew; your neighbor, your family, your coworker, your congregation, etc SOMEBODY you knew and would see every week would get to give you hell for the next year if your team lost.

Nothing like it anywhere else and never will be ever again.

How did UTEP come in to play? North Texas?

Neither of those two were members.

As far as I know, UTEP never applied for membership. UNT (then NTSU) applied at least once toward the end of the conference but was never voted in

I should have been more clear, I meant in Texas fandom. UTEP was obviously on par with many of the SWC schools in their basketball heyday, but in another timezone. I don't know much about UNT except they have a good music program and wanted in the SWC sometime after Houston was admitted.

I've been doing some digging to see some of the former SWC schools' OOC rivals (FB and BB) during the SWC days or at least, opponents played more often than not:

Arkansas vs. Missouri (basketball)
Arkansas vs. Ok State, Tulsa
Arkansas vs. LSU, Ole Miss (lots of history before SEC)

Baylor vs. Ok City (basketball)
Baylor vs. Ok State

Houston - tough to figure out for basketball because of their membership in the MVC.
Houston vs. Ok State, Miami, Ole Miss, FSU, Miss State (FB - Interesting!) *some of these games occurred before SWC membership

Rice vs. LSU (football - 55 times!)
Rice vs. Tulane

SMU vs. Ok City, Kansas, Oklahoma, Vanderbilt (basketball)
SMU vs. Missouri, Navy (football - although Navy was really post-SWC)

Texas vs. Oklahoma and Ok State (quite a bit in BB as well before Big XII)
Texas vs. LSU (basketball and FB)
Texas vs. Tulane (14 times for FB)
Texas vs. Oklahoma - obviously

Texas A&M vs. LSU
Texas A&M vs. Tulane (12 times FB besides bowls)

TCU vs. Ok City, North Texas (basketball)
TCU vs. Kansas, Ok State (football)

Texas Tech vs. UNM, NMSU, Arizona (continued a bit after Border Conf. basketball)
Texas Tech vs. Ok State, UNM, Tulsa (football)

Notes: Interesting how often Tulane shows up due to proximity. Wonder what Ok City would be like had they not dropped? Houston's football schedule before the SWC is intriguing. The SMU/Missouri and TCU/KU FB series were steady for some time during the SWC days.

The triplets at Arkansas were awesome to watch. Marvin Delph, Sidney Moncrief and Ron Brewer.

Otis Birdsong was the player of the decade in the 1970s. First guard to make $1M a year in the NBA.

Jon Koncak, Joe Kleine and Akeem the Dream patrolling lanes circa 1982-84.

Tom Penders reviving UT basketball with BMW - Lloyd Blanks, Travis Mays and Joey Wright.

40 minutes of hell with Nolan Richardson.

Shelby Metcalf resembled what every non-Aggie pictured an Aggie should look like.


Good times!!

(12-30-2017 08:08 AM)esayem Wrote:  I should have been more clear, I meant in Texas fandom. UTEP was obviously on par with many of the SWC schools in their basketball heyday, but in another timezone. I don't know much about UNT except they have a good music program and wanted in the SWC sometime after Houston was admitted.

I imagine it was similar to living in Chicago today as a MAC fan, it's a Big Ten town through and through. Even then it's probably a lot less pronounced than Texas was back then, Chicago is a pro sports city at the end of the day.

If this old SWC league was still in existence and wanted to create a 14 member conference who would the SWC target?!?

Because of close proximity I think LSU would be high on the list possibly even Tulane or both.