Here's an excellent take on them and the Pac from SI...
For anyone doubting SDSU....
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I don't think anyone's doubting SDSU as the "next best thing" to USC & UCLA for the P12. They won't come close to filling the void left by losing the LA market, but in terms of on-field/court performance, SDSU will likely become the easiest destination to recruit to in the conference.
The problem for the P12 is the lost LA market. San Diego doesn't generally give a rip about sports, so even if they build a football juggernaut, they likely won't eclipse the popularity of a Utah or ASU. Say what you want about UCLA's mediocre football gameday attendance, but they have millions of fans who tune in to watch their games. SDSU does not. There's a reason why their NFL and NBA teams left for LA.
Half (or more) of the passionate sports fans in San Diego follow teams in LA more closely than the local product.
The problem for the P12 is the lost LA market. San Diego doesn't generally give a rip about sports, so even if they build a football juggernaut, they likely won't eclipse the popularity of a Utah or ASU. Say what you want about UCLA's mediocre football gameday attendance, but they have millions of fans who tune in to watch their games. SDSU does not. There's a reason why their NFL and NBA teams left for LA.
Half (or more) of the passionate sports fans in San Diego follow teams in LA more closely than the local product.
Lots of people live in SoCal and if they are playing important games, they will have no issue getting people on board. They'll even develop a following in LA if they are winning.
And how do you know all of this? Do you live in San Diego?
The near riot at the BB watch party indicates that quite a few SD people care about sports. And the brand new SD football stadium seems to indicate that many of them care about sports. And I'm not sure that ASU is all that popular, despite their rather large metro area.
Ranking the Pac-12 teams by 5-year attendance
The Pac-12 ranks for attendance over the past five years are eye-opening
www.pacifictakes.com
Who'll develop a following in LA? SDSU? No way. Absolutely no way. USC and UCLA will be playing big-name opponents from within their new conference, and the wow factor of the new opponents will persist for several years. LA has 2 NFL teams, 2 NBA teams, an NHL team, the Dodgers. They don't give a rip about San Diego, nor does the LA market.
In years like this, when SDSU makes a deep run, it will of course capture viewership, but in typical years, the only SDSU games people in LA *might* care about will be vs. Oregon, Cal, and Stanford.
I've spent a lot of time in LA/Anaheim, and that market ONLY cares about big events.
I'm very well versed in Southern California, yes; however I'm not bashing on SDSU at all. They are clearly the #1 choice to add to our conference. It's a shame we didn't add them a decade ago, because having them in the same league with USC and UCLA would have made a lot of sense.And how do you know all of this? Do you live in San Diego?
The near riot at the BB watch party indicates that quite a few SD people care about sports. And the brand new SD football stadium seems to indicate that many of them care about sports. And I'm not sure that ASU is all that popular, despite their rather large metro area.
Ranking the Pac-12 teams by 5-year attendance
The Pac-12 ranks for attendance over the past five years are eye-opening
SDSU fans will care about football to some degree, but nothing like the LA market does when USC or UCLA play big games. SDSU averaged 29K fans for their home games last year in their 1st season at the new stadium. They'll likely see a jump by moving the P12, but it won't be a massive leap. Maybe 33K? Their stadium's capacity is 34K, which is very Pullman-like. USC and UCLA have some stinker home games too, but they make up for it with their big games.
They're not UCLA and USC, and likely never will be, but the Chargers (and long ago, Clippers) leaving town leaves them pretty well-positioned. No, it's not going to be like USC under Carroll, at least for a very long time, but my impression has been that the city is pretty nuts about its Padres support last year and so far this year, and they can draw from the OC, too. Again, see my first sentence, but in terms of the primary market they are located in, leaving aside history, the associated university, etc., who would be better-positioned than them of the remaining schools ... maybe ASU, theoretically Stanford and Cal, and on par with UW, slightly better than Utah? They are kind of in a spot like Utah but in a better market in terms of no local pro football competition. To again be clear, I'm not suggesting they're going to outdraw anyone other than WSU for a very long time, if ever, or that Oregon doesn't have the Portland market, CU doesn't have the Denver market, etc., but I'm just referring to the MSA they are located in as a market in terms of money, interest in sports, lack of alternatives, etc. They should get a huge bump in interest from moving up to P5, too.
To be clear regarding the title of my post...
I wasn't saying or implying that SDSU would REPLACE the loss of sc or UCLA, I was saying that out of the available options they would be an excellent choice... probably the best one on the table at this time. I believe the writer of the linked article confirms it.
I wasn't saying or implying that SDSU would REPLACE the loss of sc or UCLA, I was saying that out of the available options they would be an excellent choice... probably the best one on the table at this time. I believe the writer of the linked article confirms it.
They're the obvious choice for Southern California proximity, but when you do a deep dive into the numbers and compare the LA market with USC & UCLA to San Diego, it's a sobering study.
I've referenced it before. San Diego County has 3.2 million people. 1.3 million in the city alone. 5th most populated county in the US. That's bigger than any county in the Pac-10 except for Maricopa (ASU). What more needs be said? Go get them. And BTW, Clark County (UNLV) ranks #11 at 2.3 million. I mean C'mon.
List of the most populous counties in the United States - Wikipedia
Since we are talking media footprints...
Of the 20-ish million people in SoCal (depending upon where you draw the boundary, and depending upon whether you only count citizens), many would be happy to tune in for a SDSU game against the traditional PAC rivals. In particular, I'm confident that there are a not insignificant number of alums of other PAC schools living here, as well as SDSU alums. The only question is, "how many"? UCLA has not drawn well for football in a long time, outside of rivalry games or the occasional big out of conference game against a big name opponent. Their Rose Bowl attendance reflects that; other than for a SC game (which is at least half Trojans), they haven't come close to consistently putting together a big crowd in many years. SC is a much different story.
If SC could draw 700K video screens for a game, then UCLA would probably be 350-400K. SDSU would have a respectable shot at being 75% of UCLA, depending upon how well they were doing. I think they would surprise you. Certainly not in SC's league from a viewer standpoint, but not all that far from UCLA. Just comparing the San Diego metro population against the LA metro population really misses the point.
Of the 20-ish million people in SoCal (depending upon where you draw the boundary, and depending upon whether you only count citizens), many would be happy to tune in for a SDSU game against the traditional PAC rivals. In particular, I'm confident that there are a not insignificant number of alums of other PAC schools living here, as well as SDSU alums. The only question is, "how many"? UCLA has not drawn well for football in a long time, outside of rivalry games or the occasional big out of conference game against a big name opponent. Their Rose Bowl attendance reflects that; other than for a SC game (which is at least half Trojans), they haven't come close to consistently putting together a big crowd in many years. SC is a much different story.
If SC could draw 700K video screens for a game, then UCLA would probably be 350-400K. SDSU would have a respectable shot at being 75% of UCLA, depending upon how well they were doing. I think they would surprise you. Certainly not in SC's league from a viewer standpoint, but not all that far from UCLA. Just comparing the San Diego metro population against the LA metro population really misses the point.
