Along with Oregon State and Washington State, adding Boise State and San Diego State (and Gonzaga for basketball and baseball) gave the Pac-12 immediate legitimacy. I like where things are headed. As John has stated, it won't be long before Cal, Stanford, and UCLA start having real regrets, if they haven't already.
Yep. I've seen Washington fans on TwitterX predicting they will be back in some type of "Pacific Coast League" by 2031. They were careful not to say Pac12. I think the travel and realizing they will always be outsiders in the Big10 conference is starting to wear on them.
These husky fans can't be that stupid can they? Which League are they joining on the West Coast? If it's not the Pac-12 is it the WCC? The big west, the big sky? The mountain west? They've already looked down their noses at some pretty decent California schools, are they going to align themselves with Utah State? Is Geography not required at these schools what a bunch of idiots. Next time they tell me they're so smart, I'll ask them to study a map of the United States. There's one major league on the West Coast and that will be the new Pac-12, and it won't be in the power 5, or excuse me the power 2, which will be coming up soon. Just where in the heck are UW, ucla, California, and Stanford going to go? They've already put themselves in the corner by saying they don't want to associate with schools that have state on their name? They need to fail.
Don't think the back stabbers are above collaborating on starting their own new pacific league with each other and keep all existing Pac 12 schools out, including OSU and WSU. They could easily do it, they'd have 10 teams. That would be about their ethical speed.
They have too much hubris to have any kind of regrets - it's inbred within their culture to look down upon the current schools of the PAC-12, even in spite of the fact that all three have fallen below many of the future P-12 members.
Correct, their arrogance will keep them from ever joining the new Pac-12. Every week I see someone saying they're coming back. They're not. Their arrogance overcomes any logic like geography. They could literally get last in the Big Ten and the ACC until the end of time and they wouldn't join the Pac-12. Let's give up that and just continue to hope that they fail miserably.
I agree. I attended Fresno State, and I think Cal and Stanford both liked to pretend that Fresno wasn't even in California. I do think things are going to get to the point where both will need to swallow their pride and do something different for the next round of realignment - at least I hope so.
We don't need any of them back. We always played Fresno State every spring, even won their Best of the West early season baseball tournament a time or two. I have no problem with Fresno State. Their baseball facilities are good (a bit dated, but good quality facilities).
I get it, but if geographical sanity comes back into play then it might make more sense for the likes of Boise State, Colorado State, Texas State, Utah State etc. to be in a different conference. If so, having Cal, Stanford, and UCLA back to round things out might be nice. Oregon, Washington, and USC are going to continue to insist that the B1G was a great move for them, because they can't look beyond Football. I have to think those in the other sports, including basketball, have already had enough.
Disagree, those schools are never coming back...too much money at stake. UCLA and Cal had to join the BIG or they would have gone bankrupt. There was no other choice other than dropping sports and dropping sports at those schools is a death sentence.
I hope and pray they will, but OSU's history of bad monumental hires is the glaring 1000 lb ELEPHANT in the room. This is the most important hire in the history of OSU sports - I hope and pray they get it right, because there is no coming back from it if they don't.
I really like what SDSU is doing in the new world of College Athletics with a lot of advantages. Good Media Market, Great Basketball Program, new on Campus Stadium and Football is improving. Keep up the great work JC and can’t wait for your next stop.
Both! SDSU is landlocked. The original campus footprint is already densely built-up and surrounded by fully developed neighborhoods. When the Chargers abandoned San Diego, SDSU launched a city proposition to buy the decrepit Qualcomm Stadium site from the city of San Diego for use as a satellite campus just a handful of freeway / light rail stops away. They paid full value too. A real estate investment group made a competing play they called Soccer City, using a potential Major League Soccer expansion team as their carrot, but aiming for city subsidies. After dealing with Chargers owner Spanos and the atrocious ticket guarantee (the city was on the hook to pay for unsold Chargers seats!), the voters had no appetite for that.
SDSU is a popular and core institution in this city, and won the vote with nearly 2/3 approval, a huge margin. Snapdragon sits in the northwest corner of the former Qualcomm Stadium site. SDSU built a beautiful public park along the southern edge of the site, next to the San Diego River. It is a wonderful new amenity. There are plans for a campus residential / commercial village, a campus hotel or two, office space for research spin-ups, new classrooms, etc.
And we got our MLS expansion team as well, SDFC, currently in the playoffs and well supported by the new fans. The women's pro soccer team the Wave also call Snapdragon home, and there are the usual stadium shows that come through.
I've met Coach Lewis a couple times. He comes across as genuine, passionate, positive and energetic, and really seems to put the welfare and development of his young men first. And clearly, once he had time to recruit the players his system demands, he has shown he knows how to win. To me, he comes across as a more vibrant and young Steve Fisher, who built SDSU men's basketball into a nationally relevant contender. I sure hope we can keep Coach Lewis. I think he has the chops to make SDSU a frequent top 25 program.
I went to UCSD for my PhD in the 80's and yes, we looked down on SDSU as the "large commuter school up on the hill off I8". I had friends that taught there, friends that were in dual PhD degree programs in Public Health. It was still considered a 2nd tier academic and sports institution. I think they had a pretty good baseball player or two that went there. Am I right? I'm glad that they raised their athletics and academics at the same time. It's nice to see them thriving on both fronts. Thanks for the much-needed update.
SDSU has been improving its academic standing for a long time. When I attended classes in the early 90s, it wasn't hard to get in. Today, SDSU turns away about 90% of hopeful students. You have to have excellent grades to win an admission.
While never nationally relevant due to its exclusion from and inability to compete with the legacy PAC-12 schools, SDSU has a rich football history. Absolute legends have coached and played here over the years, including Don Coryell, whose pass-happy scheming fundamentally altered the game including the NFL. Our most famous player alum is Marshall Faulk, but the school has regularly landed players in the NFL. And yes, the baseball team has produced stars such as Mark Grace, Tony Gwynn, Stephen Strasberg, etc. Baseball has been in the doldrums, but they have the promise to become competitive again.
Thanks PL. The baseball question was rhetorical, Tony Gwynn is a San Diego legend and Strasberg had such amazing stuff coming out. Glad you brought them up. I didn't know about Mark Grace...so thanks. I aslo didn't know the 10% acceptance rate. That's amazing. Thanks for all the updates.
Compelling writing John! It's obvious you did a ton of homework before you met with the SDSU AD and then added the storytelling to round it out and make it all come alive. You present a very positive picture of the future at SDSU and back it up sound facts and information. I really enjoy reading your work! More importantly, I admire your journalism cred!
Worried about Wazzu competing in the new Pac financially. Good for SDSU going for it. I know Boise State and others are as well. I hope President Cantwell will make Wazzu competitive too. Go Cougs!
You’re right — WSU and OSU will have to invest or they’ll end up right where they were in the old Pac-12. Part of the issue is they both have “old world” expenses on facilities.
I think OSU's debt service on the new west grandstand is only about $3 million per year, thanks to the inclusion of the university's Welcome Center and the Student Health Center. Both generate rent and helped offset the cost.
It's also 35 years I believe. I don't believe there is an escalator, so $3M in the second half of that payback period will look a lot different than $3M now. Though, projects that will inevitably happen (new or replacement) would probably like to have that $3M in their kitty.
How about Snapdragon Stadium as the site for the new Pac 12 football championship game? It's the right size, usually good weather, easy access for fans to get to & it may make sense financially. Is its advantage to SDSU really a deal breaker?
Wonderful piece John. I was in the press box last night and meant to say hello but the game got the best of me. Glad you got to experience San Diegans’ “affinity” with the rain. Sean Lewis is as advertised. He’s the most articulate football coach I’ve ever seen. During his Monday media briefings he waxes poetic constantly often humorously. He’s not just about football he’s about life and that makes all the difference.
They should have been in the original Pac-12 years ago. They should have been added also the minute USC and UCLA announced they were leaving. It was a no brainer. 8th largest city in the US.
Totally agree and for years I wanted the Aztecs in the conference, being in San Diego would have been huge. Snobbery has never impressed me in the academic world or the athletics world. As much as I respect Stanford and Cal, their attitudes really drug the conference down with we can't have state universities in the conference, we can't have these people, we can't have those people. Meanwhile, they weren't that impressive on the athletic fields and courts, I guess Stanford has a lot of sailing and ping pong titles. I hope we can get away from the stupid elitism that goes on. Great story. I'm really glad the Aztecs are in.
Add USC to the prima donna list of former conference schools that "wouldn't be caught dead" in a conference with "inferior" universities. Those three directly killed the conference long before it imploded.
Agree seeing these schools fail on the football field is a lot of fun for me. People always come back to me and say yeah but they have a lot of money. Okay great congratulations. UCLA is going to finish three and nine this year. USC not a lot better they barely beat Iowa yesterday. Maybe they can deal with the numerous scandals they've had down at USC including a 1.3 billion dollar lawsuit to a pervert gynecologist, and a medical school dean who was dealing drugs and in a prostitution ring. The heralded USC president blame the LA times for discovering those things. It's a vile place.
Yes, and they don't want you to hear about it. The lawsuit against the gynecologist for $1.3 billion was the most expensive lawsuit in the history of universities. Not Sports lawsuit, overall the biggest lawsuit ever for Higher education. By the way, USC lost that lawsuit. The university doesn't want anyone to know that hundreds of young women were abused by this guy. Of course when it was going on the University ignored the pleas of the young women and stood behind their perv. Like I said, it's not a good place.
You outdid yourself again with this inspiring story of AD Wicker and FB Coach Lewis.
Both “Forward Thinkers”, aggressive , attentive ,and contagious in their strategy !…methinks OSU Barnes and Dr. Murthy need to have a sit down weekend in San Diego for “Enlightenment “ on HOW to pull OSU out of the “old school” mess OSU is in…..great story on SDSU !…makes one want to be an “Aztec” fan AND student !!!!
Hey , Guys, “Perception is 99% reality “. Period. Forward recruiting , season ticket purchases, and Coaching hires now depend on OSU’s strategic plan for “recovery” from this year’s disastrous and pathetic FB season. There are SO many areas of weakness existing now with attracting good players and paying fans to OSU football. Having watched and experienced OSU’s conservative approach to anything football, since my Freshman year-1963- I am not optimistic that OSU football will ever return to greatness. Dr. Murthy and sleepy eyed Barnes better commit more Money, and Far better strategic planning to keep OSU a viable Div I contender, or bite the bullet and join the MW.
My daughter, who graduated from WSU in 2023, is planning to relocate to San Diego soon. She has a grandmother and some friends down there. I'm tentatively planning to visit next fall and take in a game at Snapdragon. Maybe WSU if they play down there next season. 😃
If I was asked for advice for Wicker, I would suggest one thing. Go talk to the old timers at Arizona State who were around during the transition to the "Old Pac" and then for most of the duration. Ask them what they did. Then, do the exact opposite.
In my opinion, ASU had the most potential squandered of any old Pac school. They had a large on-campus stadium, they had winning history, they had history of good football players, they had weather, they had Mill Avenue, they had beautiful coeds and handsome guys, they had a diverse student-body, they had a nearby large Metro, they were in an excellent high school recruiting area...and more.
John Cooper, Bruce Snyder, Dirk Koetter, Dennis Erickson, Todd Graham were among football coaches. In 46 "old Pac" seasons they had 6 with double digit wins. 6.
I am still baffled as to why they weren't consistently better.
Have you ever lived in Phoenix? It's great for all the reasons you mention. The one thing people fail to realize is the temperatures are in the 100's at least half way into the season if not more. While climate controlled indoor practice facilities can mitigate some of the practices, all outdoor practices are in the sweltering 100+ temperatures, in full gear. So are 100% of all games, even though they usually start at night. Most great players that have a choice don't want anything to do with that heat in football gear.
Must have been cooler during the Dan Devine and Frank Kush years? ASU had some great players during the Pac12 years. They just couldn't seem to put it together.
And, it ain't exactly a cool breeze to practice in the humidity of the Southeastern Conference.
I spent about 8 years in San Diego before returning to the Northwest - can confirm, people in San Diego freak out when it rains, (and it rained hard there yesterday).
SDSU is such a great add to the PAC - great facilities and weather, have been to games at both Snapdragon and Viejas Arena. Thanks John!
“San Diego State wanted to elevate its brand into a different stratosphere.” Check
The Sean Lewis hire. Check
Adding SDSU to the Pac12. Check
The Boise State and Gonzaga Pac12 additions. Check & Check
SDSU crack the AP Top 25? Maybe
Great start of the new Pac12. Now Oregon State needs to nail the football coach hire. I think they will.
Big hire
Along with Oregon State and Washington State, adding Boise State and San Diego State (and Gonzaga for basketball and baseball) gave the Pac-12 immediate legitimacy. I like where things are headed. As John has stated, it won't be long before Cal, Stanford, and UCLA start having real regrets, if they haven't already.
Yep. I've seen Washington fans on TwitterX predicting they will be back in some type of "Pacific Coast League" by 2031. They were careful not to say Pac12. I think the travel and realizing they will always be outsiders in the Big10 conference is starting to wear on them.
These husky fans can't be that stupid can they? Which League are they joining on the West Coast? If it's not the Pac-12 is it the WCC? The big west, the big sky? The mountain west? They've already looked down their noses at some pretty decent California schools, are they going to align themselves with Utah State? Is Geography not required at these schools what a bunch of idiots. Next time they tell me they're so smart, I'll ask them to study a map of the United States. There's one major league on the West Coast and that will be the new Pac-12, and it won't be in the power 5, or excuse me the power 2, which will be coming up soon. Just where in the heck are UW, ucla, California, and Stanford going to go? They've already put themselves in the corner by saying they don't want to associate with schools that have state on their name? They need to fail.
Don't think the back stabbers are above collaborating on starting their own new pacific league with each other and keep all existing Pac 12 schools out, including OSU and WSU. They could easily do it, they'd have 10 teams. That would be about their ethical speed.
They have too much hubris to have any kind of regrets - it's inbred within their culture to look down upon the current schools of the PAC-12, even in spite of the fact that all three have fallen below many of the future P-12 members.
Correct, their arrogance will keep them from ever joining the new Pac-12. Every week I see someone saying they're coming back. They're not. Their arrogance overcomes any logic like geography. They could literally get last in the Big Ten and the ACC until the end of time and they wouldn't join the Pac-12. Let's give up that and just continue to hope that they fail miserably.
I agree. I attended Fresno State, and I think Cal and Stanford both liked to pretend that Fresno wasn't even in California. I do think things are going to get to the point where both will need to swallow their pride and do something different for the next round of realignment - at least I hope so.
We don't need any of them back. We always played Fresno State every spring, even won their Best of the West early season baseball tournament a time or two. I have no problem with Fresno State. Their baseball facilities are good (a bit dated, but good quality facilities).
I get it, but if geographical sanity comes back into play then it might make more sense for the likes of Boise State, Colorado State, Texas State, Utah State etc. to be in a different conference. If so, having Cal, Stanford, and UCLA back to round things out might be nice. Oregon, Washington, and USC are going to continue to insist that the B1G was a great move for them, because they can't look beyond Football. I have to think those in the other sports, including basketball, have already had enough.
Disagree, those schools are never coming back...too much money at stake. UCLA and Cal had to join the BIG or they would have gone bankrupt. There was no other choice other than dropping sports and dropping sports at those schools is a death sentence.
I hope and pray they will, but OSU's history of bad monumental hires is the glaring 1000 lb ELEPHANT in the room. This is the most important hire in the history of OSU sports - I hope and pray they get it right, because there is no coming back from it if they don't.
I really like what SDSU is doing in the new world of College Athletics with a lot of advantages. Good Media Market, Great Basketball Program, new on Campus Stadium and Football is improving. Keep up the great work JC and can’t wait for your next stop.
Thanks D
Is the football stadium on-campus? I thought it was on the same footprint as Jack Murphy Stadium.
Both! SDSU is landlocked. The original campus footprint is already densely built-up and surrounded by fully developed neighborhoods. When the Chargers abandoned San Diego, SDSU launched a city proposition to buy the decrepit Qualcomm Stadium site from the city of San Diego for use as a satellite campus just a handful of freeway / light rail stops away. They paid full value too. A real estate investment group made a competing play they called Soccer City, using a potential Major League Soccer expansion team as their carrot, but aiming for city subsidies. After dealing with Chargers owner Spanos and the atrocious ticket guarantee (the city was on the hook to pay for unsold Chargers seats!), the voters had no appetite for that.
SDSU is a popular and core institution in this city, and won the vote with nearly 2/3 approval, a huge margin. Snapdragon sits in the northwest corner of the former Qualcomm Stadium site. SDSU built a beautiful public park along the southern edge of the site, next to the San Diego River. It is a wonderful new amenity. There are plans for a campus residential / commercial village, a campus hotel or two, office space for research spin-ups, new classrooms, etc.
And we got our MLS expansion team as well, SDFC, currently in the playoffs and well supported by the new fans. The women's pro soccer team the Wave also call Snapdragon home, and there are the usual stadium shows that come through.
I've met Coach Lewis a couple times. He comes across as genuine, passionate, positive and energetic, and really seems to put the welfare and development of his young men first. And clearly, once he had time to recruit the players his system demands, he has shown he knows how to win. To me, he comes across as a more vibrant and young Steve Fisher, who built SDSU men's basketball into a nationally relevant contender. I sure hope we can keep Coach Lewis. I think he has the chops to make SDSU a frequent top 25 program.
As PL points out. Very closeby but not same footprint.
It is but part of the development includes a West Campus and it’s a few trolley stops from campus.
I went to UCSD for my PhD in the 80's and yes, we looked down on SDSU as the "large commuter school up on the hill off I8". I had friends that taught there, friends that were in dual PhD degree programs in Public Health. It was still considered a 2nd tier academic and sports institution. I think they had a pretty good baseball player or two that went there. Am I right? I'm glad that they raised their athletics and academics at the same time. It's nice to see them thriving on both fronts. Thanks for the much-needed update.
SDSU has been improving its academic standing for a long time. When I attended classes in the early 90s, it wasn't hard to get in. Today, SDSU turns away about 90% of hopeful students. You have to have excellent grades to win an admission.
While never nationally relevant due to its exclusion from and inability to compete with the legacy PAC-12 schools, SDSU has a rich football history. Absolute legends have coached and played here over the years, including Don Coryell, whose pass-happy scheming fundamentally altered the game including the NFL. Our most famous player alum is Marshall Faulk, but the school has regularly landed players in the NFL. And yes, the baseball team has produced stars such as Mark Grace, Tony Gwynn, Stephen Strasberg, etc. Baseball has been in the doldrums, but they have the promise to become competitive again.
Thanks PL. The baseball question was rhetorical, Tony Gwynn is a San Diego legend and Strasberg had such amazing stuff coming out. Glad you brought them up. I didn't know about Mark Grace...so thanks. I aslo didn't know the 10% acceptance rate. That's amazing. Thanks for all the updates.
Compelling writing John! It's obvious you did a ton of homework before you met with the SDSU AD and then added the storytelling to round it out and make it all come alive. You present a very positive picture of the future at SDSU and back it up sound facts and information. I really enjoy reading your work! More importantly, I admire your journalism cred!
I flat-out L O V E San Diego. It will be the best road trip in the new PAC12. Ron Burgandy agrees.
Worried about Wazzu competing in the new Pac financially. Good for SDSU going for it. I know Boise State and others are as well. I hope President Cantwell will make Wazzu competitive too. Go Cougs!
You’re right — WSU and OSU will have to invest or they’ll end up right where they were in the old Pac-12. Part of the issue is they both have “old world” expenses on facilities.
I think OSU's debt service on the new west grandstand is only about $3 million per year, thanks to the inclusion of the university's Welcome Center and the Student Health Center. Both generate rent and helped offset the cost.
It's also 35 years I believe. I don't believe there is an escalator, so $3M in the second half of that payback period will look a lot different than $3M now. Though, projects that will inevitably happen (new or replacement) would probably like to have that $3M in their kitty.
How about Snapdragon Stadium as the site for the new Pac 12 football championship game? It's the right size, usually good weather, easy access for fans to get to & it may make sense financially. Is its advantage to SDSU really a deal breaker?
Think the more likely scenario in 2026 is the high seed to host. Guaranteed sell out. Let’s see.
Sure hope so, need to reward the best team in the conference with home field advantage to give the conference the best opportunity to reach the CFP.
Should always be hosted on campus by the highest seed. Best chance at a great crowd.
Wonderful piece John. I was in the press box last night and meant to say hello but the game got the best of me. Glad you got to experience San Diegans’ “affinity” with the rain. Sean Lewis is as advertised. He’s the most articulate football coach I’ve ever seen. During his Monday media briefings he waxes poetic constantly often humorously. He’s not just about football he’s about life and that makes all the difference.
They should have been in the original Pac-12 years ago. They should have been added also the minute USC and UCLA announced they were leaving. It was a no brainer. 8th largest city in the US.
Totally agree and for years I wanted the Aztecs in the conference, being in San Diego would have been huge. Snobbery has never impressed me in the academic world or the athletics world. As much as I respect Stanford and Cal, their attitudes really drug the conference down with we can't have state universities in the conference, we can't have these people, we can't have those people. Meanwhile, they weren't that impressive on the athletic fields and courts, I guess Stanford has a lot of sailing and ping pong titles. I hope we can get away from the stupid elitism that goes on. Great story. I'm really glad the Aztecs are in.
Add USC to the prima donna list of former conference schools that "wouldn't be caught dead" in a conference with "inferior" universities. Those three directly killed the conference long before it imploded.
Agree seeing these schools fail on the football field is a lot of fun for me. People always come back to me and say yeah but they have a lot of money. Okay great congratulations. UCLA is going to finish three and nine this year. USC not a lot better they barely beat Iowa yesterday. Maybe they can deal with the numerous scandals they've had down at USC including a 1.3 billion dollar lawsuit to a pervert gynecologist, and a medical school dean who was dealing drugs and in a prostitution ring. The heralded USC president blame the LA times for discovering those things. It's a vile place.
Lots of action going on at SC that’s not normally heard about.
Yes, and they don't want you to hear about it. The lawsuit against the gynecologist for $1.3 billion was the most expensive lawsuit in the history of universities. Not Sports lawsuit, overall the biggest lawsuit ever for Higher education. By the way, USC lost that lawsuit. The university doesn't want anyone to know that hundreds of young women were abused by this guy. Of course when it was going on the University ignored the pleas of the young women and stood behind their perv. Like I said, it's not a good place.
1000%
Absolutely well done, John. Go Aztecs!
Think SDSU will be a popular road trip destination.😎 And a formidable challenge.
John.
You outdid yourself again with this inspiring story of AD Wicker and FB Coach Lewis.
Both “Forward Thinkers”, aggressive , attentive ,and contagious in their strategy !…methinks OSU Barnes and Dr. Murthy need to have a sit down weekend in San Diego for “Enlightenment “ on HOW to pull OSU out of the “old school” mess OSU is in…..great story on SDSU !…makes one want to be an “Aztec” fan AND student !!!!
Hey , Guys, “Perception is 99% reality “. Period. Forward recruiting , season ticket purchases, and Coaching hires now depend on OSU’s strategic plan for “recovery” from this year’s disastrous and pathetic FB season. There are SO many areas of weakness existing now with attracting good players and paying fans to OSU football. Having watched and experienced OSU’s conservative approach to anything football, since my Freshman year-1963- I am not optimistic that OSU football will ever return to greatness. Dr. Murthy and sleepy eyed Barnes better commit more Money, and Far better strategic planning to keep OSU a viable Div I contender, or bite the bullet and join the MW.
I wouldn't count on that Rand, unfortunately.
You remain uninformed on the current status of OSU under Dr. Murthy's leadership.
My daughter, who graduated from WSU in 2023, is planning to relocate to San Diego soon. She has a grandmother and some friends down there. I'm tentatively planning to visit next fall and take in a game at Snapdragon. Maybe WSU if they play down there next season. 😃
Sean Lewis couldn’t get out of the Deion Sanders clown show in Colorado fast enough! Good for SDSU.
If I was asked for advice for Wicker, I would suggest one thing. Go talk to the old timers at Arizona State who were around during the transition to the "Old Pac" and then for most of the duration. Ask them what they did. Then, do the exact opposite.
In my opinion, ASU had the most potential squandered of any old Pac school. They had a large on-campus stadium, they had winning history, they had history of good football players, they had weather, they had Mill Avenue, they had beautiful coeds and handsome guys, they had a diverse student-body, they had a nearby large Metro, they were in an excellent high school recruiting area...and more.
John Cooper, Bruce Snyder, Dirk Koetter, Dennis Erickson, Todd Graham were among football coaches. In 46 "old Pac" seasons they had 6 with double digit wins. 6.
I am still baffled as to why they weren't consistently better.
Have you ever lived in Phoenix? It's great for all the reasons you mention. The one thing people fail to realize is the temperatures are in the 100's at least half way into the season if not more. While climate controlled indoor practice facilities can mitigate some of the practices, all outdoor practices are in the sweltering 100+ temperatures, in full gear. So are 100% of all games, even though they usually start at night. Most great players that have a choice don't want anything to do with that heat in football gear.
Must have been cooler during the Dan Devine and Frank Kush years? ASU had some great players during the Pac12 years. They just couldn't seem to put it together.
And, it ain't exactly a cool breeze to practice in the humidity of the Southeastern Conference.
I spent about 8 years in San Diego before returning to the Northwest - can confirm, people in San Diego freak out when it rains, (and it rained hard there yesterday).
SDSU is such a great add to the PAC - great facilities and weather, have been to games at both Snapdragon and Viejas Arena. Thanks John!