(02-13-2019 05:30 PM)YNot Wrote:  I believe that Hawaii could make independence work. They already have a separate home for Olympic sports and, even as a member of the MWC, they usually schedule a non-conference game or two in October or November (and even December, before the MWC championship game). They've done so every year for at least the last decade, plus '19, '20, '22 and '24.

With the Week 0 flexibility, they can play 5 games in the non-conference season before October (6 games in some years) and could fairly easily get BYU and NMSU on the late schedule every year. Add 1 or 2 out of Army, Liberty, and UMass in the back-half schedule....and you only need 2-3 more games - FCS home opponent and 1-2 others in October or November. Even easier if SDSU and Boise were to make the move.

Not gonna happen. I have no doubt independence would kill UH football and there’s no hint the UH administration feels differently.

It’s the geography. Coaches of teams in non-MWC conferences won’t schedule UH after conference play begins because the long trip puts them at a disadvantage in their next game and consequently in their title hunt. Fellow MWC schools don’t like the travel either but put up with it because they know that having to make the trip four times puts UH at an even greater disadvantage in conference play.

If UH were to leave the MWC for independence the only home games it could land after early October would be against other independents, and such a limited schedule combined with no conference title to play for would wipe out fan interest and destroy recruiting. Nope, UH is exactly where it wants to be and isn’t going anywhere, even at the price of continuing to pay travel subsidies.