and how committed the fan base chooses to be. If you have a flop as HC, and fan interest wanes as the fairweather fans return to cheering for other bandwagon schools, then the more grim prognostication becomes likely. If you get a good HC to follow KW, and keep your PAC12 success going for another 5-10 years, you will have built brand equity, as you will no longer be seen as "a well coached team that plays hard" (think Mike Riley's Oregon State) and begin being seen as a program with inherent value.

As for the PAC12 struggles, these shifting dynamics are unfortunately very real and don't appear temporary at all. The commitment of PAC12 schools to the sport (relative to SEC & Texas schools for example) does not appear headed in the right direction. The shifting demographics on the West Coast, the youth football participation rates, the shift to total streaming eyeballs instead of regional TV audiences, are all working against the PAC12 and don't show any signs of changing course in the future.