All conference realignment discussion begins and ends with football. Other sports, even men’s basketball, are almost always afterthoughts. That doesn’t mean there aren’t major repercussions for the sports other than football when a school changes conferences.

As Air Force considers what options it might have – Big 12? Big East? Independence? Status quo? – the Falcons’ coaches and players in sports wonder about their future, which might not be as high profile as the football team’s plans.

If Air Force is accepted into the Big East, it will most likely be for football only. If the Falcons go independent in football it almost certainly won’t go independent in all sports – scheduling would be almost impossible. And the Mountain West might not be keen on the idea of keeping the Falcons’ other sports while football goes somewhere else. If Air Force does anything but stay in the Mountain West, it will be a big shift for the other sports.

The coaches and players in the other sports signed up to play in the Mountain West. A drop down to, perhaps, the Missouri Valley Conference (the West Coast Conference, which took on BYU’s other sports, could be another option if it comes to that) would make an already difficult job of recruiting tougher for Air Force, and for many competitive folks, they would not be thrilled to go play in a smaller conference. Also, travel would be more difficult in another conference. The counter argument could be made that Air Force’s other sports could be more competitive in a smaller conference, but it’s still not likely to appease everyone.

When Lt. Gen. Mike Gould and whoever else will be involved in the final decision on Air Force’s future, they’ll consider the sports other than football. If the decision is something other than staying in the Mountain West, there could be some upset people at the academy.

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