If this is the rationale it’s deeply flawed. First off a majority of Cougs end up in Seattle. So that’s your “market”. Second, UNLV would be a far bigger “potential” draw than Alabama. San Diego State would be a far bigger “potential draw” than Oklahoma. Why is that not true? Because Oklahoma and Alabama have rich football traditions that transcend population centers and geography. I’d argue WSU has done the same, obviously not quite on that level, but the Cougs have been an interesting program that has attracted eyeballs over the years…College Gameday, Minshew mania, the Leach era, best college logo, etc.
And no stadium size is not the issue. All of these schools reducing capacity on their stadium remodels along with schools like UNLV and Rice playing in cavernous stadiums explains that one away easily.
The true answer is politics and leadership. The P12 became a political organization when Larry Scott showed up, and the conference leadership was horrendous across the board (along with our own).
It's a combination of factors. LACK OF SALES, MARKETING, Leadership.
Politics, and ERRANT PERCEPTION, BIGGER TV markets, TV eyeballs, success on the field, tradition, competition level, attendance, etc
The media doesn't get that Majority of coug fans and MILLIONS of them, live in the greater Seattle area, and in Portland, and on Westside, and if they are not busy, if the game is not against LC ST, etc, and if WSU having a winning season, then they watch.
But the Media Wonks think that Whitman county, or even just Pullman is WSU's market.
Part of that is on the media. But some of that is on WSU leadership, for not constantly educating, reminding, proving, etc, that to the media, and college football fans.
So Perception is EVERYTHING.
Tradition, winning, how important watching football is, is another factor. Example Alabama, etc.
For a college football program to be valuable to media, and for media to be interested in doing a Media TV deal with a college football program:
You either have to have the following or as much of the following as possible.
1. Have a lot of TV eyeballs semi consistently watching you.
2. Positive Perception of the program
3. Winning Tradition(Alabama)
4. The tradition of everybody watching no matter how good or bad. (Alabama)
5. Playing against good competition at a high, higher level.
6. Good leadership
7. Good educating, sales, marketing of the program.
8. No Politics
9. Being politically correct to everyone.
10. Have good attendance, good fan participation, no fan apathy.
11. Have, get a lot of donations.
12. Be in a higher, highest level, well run conference possible
13. Attendance
14. Stadium size. Bigger Stadium, IF CONSISTENTLY FILL IT, EXAMPLE OHIO ST HORSESHOE STADIUM, FILLED TO MAX CAPACITY(About 100k screaming, fanatical fans)
And the reason why all this matters, what's it all about, and the only thing that matters to media:
MAKING MORE MONEY, AND DOING WHATEVER THEY THE MEDIA THINK WILL MAKE THEM MORE MONEY