I know that this has been discussed ad nauseam on this board the past few days but here it goes anyway. Full disclosure, I am an ECU fan that has randomly posted here since we 1st played you guys back in 2015. I've found this board to be very active and engaging so I check in from time to time just to see what's going on in BYU land and I enjoy all the threads and posts from football, to shoes, to trips to Belize. I've always found most on this board to be thoughful, considerate and rational. There's no question that many BYU fans have a healthy self-esteem concerning your position in the college football landscape (and rightfully so I might add). That said, I still feel compelled to posit that BYU's egocentricity is thwarting its own ability to effectively analyze the merits of joing the AAC at this juncture.

Obviously, as an ECU alum and fan that was born and raised in Greenville, NC I have my own biases. Even in my earnest attempt to evaluate the totality of the circumstances, I am aware that I cannot escape my own enternal prejudices. However, in my best attempts to be objective it seems that the virtues substatially outweigh the detriments when it comes to BYU joining the AAC, even from an exclusively BYU perspective. Now I get that the notion of being affiliated with schools like ECU, Tulane, Tulsa, etc. may not be the most exciting prospect from the average BYU fan perspective. Although, I will say that after the worst 3-year stretch in ECU football history we are on the verge of bouncing back in a major way under the tutelage of one coach Mike Houston. So even the bottom of the league is improving on the field. Moreover, ECU's Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium just recieved a $60 million facelift that only ups capacity 1k (51,000) but tremedously improves the aesthetics and amenities and thereby arguably makes it the best stadium outside of the P5 (& better than many within then P5 for that matter). My point is that the league as whole is surging in the right direction not only from an on field production context but from a facility upgrade perspective as well. Moreover, and correct me if anyone can refute any of the following, but there are plenty of other incentives for BYU to join the AAC:

(1) Better recruiting: It would further expose BYU to more furtile recruiting grounds. While I'm aware that there may be certain idiosyncrasies associated with BYU recruiting I have to believe that BYU recruiting would substantially benefit from AAC affiliation and more exposure in different regions of the country. Look at the link below and you'll see that only 2 teams in the AAC have a per recruit average lower than BYU's 13-player class thus far, Navy (for obvious reasons) and Temple (& Temple is just a few decimal points behind BYU right now).

(2) More money: I fully realize you guys are in negotiations with ESPN but your current deal pays considerably less than what the AAC gets. Right now, ECU is in line to get $7.6 million per year in tv revenue alone and that doesn't even include NCAA credits, 3rd tier tights, or CFP $. All in all we should bankroll well over $10 million a year. BYU certainly has some pecuniary incentives to move into the AAC. 

(3) Access Bowl: Would extensively increasing BYU's ability to have a direct avenue to the Cotton Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, etc. be a bad thing? Moreover, acquiring BYU would only augment the AAC's position in obtaining a contract bowl tie-in and thus power status. Conventiaonal wisdom may not buy into it but the AAC has been pushing for this (possibly with the Peach bowl) and perceptions have changed about the league in a shot amount of time and the trajectory of the league is a positive one. BYU would only help us in that regard. Oklahoma president recently came out and voiced his pleasue at his leagues 'prosperity' and speculation is starting to sway towards longterm stability. Why not join by far the best thing going outside of the P5 and help us continue to build towards something special?

(4) Champioships: CFB players and fans want something to play for. ECU was a major D-1 independant from the split (1978) until we joind C-USA in '97. Outside of 1992, when we beat our rival NCSU in the Peach Bowl and finished #9 nationally, I can tell you that it was not as much fun as having a chance for conference championships. Furthermore, ECU won back-to-back conference championships in '08 & '09 and the media and perception took note that we hadn't won a conference championship since the 70s. That made it look like we sucked all that time because no one took into consideration that we didn't even have the opportunity to do so for a couple decades (even though we won the Liberty Bowl coalition in '95 & '96 which was the precurser to C-USA and that we had 3 other seasons as independants where we finished ranked and several others where we were ranked for most the season). Bottom line is that championships matter, the players want it, the fans want it, and not being in a conference can hurt a program's percieved pedigree.

(5) BYU can always opt out: BYU seems to have some bargaining power in this regard and could condition membership on the ability to opt out if a better opportunity comes along. Maybe a reduced exit fee clause although I think the pros so outweigh the cons that BYU will ultimately be satisfied with AAC affiliation. Consequently, BYU really has nothing to lose and all to gain by joining the AAC.

(6) Scheduling: I know this has been looked at as a negative by many but in evaluating BYU's schedules it appears that there is a precipitous drop off after September. Further, there's nothing stopping BYU from continuing to have 4 P5 games if desired. Additionally, the AAC isn't chopped liver. Games against UCF, Cincy, Houston and Memphis won't hurt and the other AAC teams are improving and or at least have the ability to improve their profile (ECU, USF, SMU, Navy, Tulsa & even Temple have shown that they can be a consistent force). Additionally, with BYU everything is on the table and there are rumblings that the AAC wouldn't be opposed to switching to a 7-game conference slate (only 2 cross-divisional games per year) thereby permitting for 5-6 OOC games each season.

(7) Better platform for achieving power status: As referenced above there appears to be stability within the P5. Despite notions to the contrary, the AAC itself has an opprtunity to acheive power status in light of that stability in the P5 ranks and BYU would only help in that fight. Conversely, if a P5 wants to expand the candidates will most likely emerge out of the AAC itself. 

(8) Basketball and olympic sports: The AAC already performs like a power conference in basically all sports. Basketball is basically viewed as a power as is. UCONN hasn't been to the big Dance in years and finished 9th in the AAC last year. Memphis, Houston, Wichita State, Temple, Cincy, and now even UCF & SMU have a quality basketball prowess. Even Tulsa does okay from time to time. Baseball is legit as well. BYU can benefit from all of this.

(9) Stength in numbers: There's the potential synergy that would be created whereby benefits would be bestowed symbiotically between all parties (including ESPN). With the addition of BYU the AAC would not only improve perception wise it would stregthen the league's strangle hold on the Access Bowl. It would also promote notoriety in all directions. It may even serve as a catalyst to create a long desired western wing for the conference that could include Boise State, Gonzaga and possibly even CSU and Air Force, etc.).

(10) Further promote BYU as a national brand: BYU in some ways is like the Naval Academy in that wherever it goes there are fans that come out and will have a chance to support the team. Joining the AAC would further permit BYU to showcase its product to the entire country for a multitude of reasons. There is a lot to gain by being associated with a group of schools in the Eastern and Central time zones respectively.

I could go on but I've gotta get some work done today. From at outside perspective it seems like a no-brainer. I understand the spurned feeling from Utah's invite to the PAC. I would argue that it would be benificial to embrace that outcast status the way ECU does. There's definately a chip on our shoulders but we use it to our advantage. Even with our recent woes we've beaten UNC 3-consecutive times (all blowouts even last year) and we've gone 10-7 since 1982 against our bitter rival NCSU, last year's blowout loss notwithstanding. It's kind of fun to be the outside renegade challenging the powers that be. That doesn't mean you have to settle for less or compromise your standing in any respect. We (the AAC) are not wilting beneath the P5 or allowing public perception to marganilize us. We are fighting for something bigger and will not let the naysayers define us. I would urge BYU to join us in that fight as we are stronger together than apart. There is common ground. The details just have to be worked out. What does BYU have to lose? I know there is a lot to gain.