Big West Council Approves Plan to Expand : Division 1-A: Proposal allows schools to join conference for football only. Two-tiered plan is tabled until November.

A proposal to allow schools to join the Big West Conference in football only, a move Commissioner Jim Haney hopes will attract new teams and strengthen the conference’s commitment to Division I-A football, was passed unanimously by the Big West Council Wednesday.

However, a proposal to establish a lower-level, Division I-AA or I-AAA football consortium to add to the present I-A alignment was tabled until November for further discussion.

The tabled proposal would create a two-tiered conference for football, which would allow current Big West schools to downgrade their programs without jeopardizing conference membership in other sports.

Schools such as Cal State Fullerton and Cal State Long Beach, which are struggling to survive at the I-A level, could benefit from such an arrangement, and Haney said they might, eventually.

“The issue is not dead--there is going to be a place for schools interested in playing I-AA football,” Haney said. “What we’re unsure of now is if the conference is willing to take on that responsibility.

“The general feeling is that some would see our conference in the wrong light if we went I-AA. Our real desire is to strengthen I-A football. We don’t want to create confusion in terms of where our heart lies on this issue.”

In other conference news, the Big West is expected to extend an invitation today to Division I-AA football power Nevada to join the conference in all sports. Officials at the Reno school have indicated they would accept the invitation to replace Fresno State, which will move to the Western Athletic Conference in 1992.

Haney also revealed plans to move the California Raisin Bowl, currently played in Fresno, to Las Vegas beginning in 1992. The bowl would still feature the Big West and Mid-American conference champions, Haney said.

The new football format, which goes into effect in 1992, won’t drastically change the conference. About the only immediate impact of the proposal will be a reduction of conference games required--from seven to six--which will allow schools to schedule one more nonconference game.

Haney said present schools will have until 1995 to achieve Division I-A attendance criteria, which require schools to average 20,000 fans for all games or have a 30,000-seat stadium and average 17,000 for home games.

Fullerton and Long Beach don’t have 30,000-seat stadiums and rarely meet I-A attendance standards, but Haney couldn’t say what would happen to those schools if they fail to reach the standard.

“Our position is these schools are committed to I-A football and planning to grow,” Haney said. “We’ll focus on the positive aspect of achieving these goals.”

Haney listed Boise State (Division I-AA), Tulsa (Division I independent), Sacramento State and Cal State Northridge (Division II) as possible expansion candidates.

Additions of Division I-AA or Division II schools seeking to move to I-A probably would not strengthen the conference in the short run. But Haney said the proposal is more of a move to position the conference for future shake-ups.

For instance, if Brigham Young were to leave the WAC, as has been rumored, Haney believes WAC schools such as San Diego State, Hawaii, and even Fresno State, might scramble to find a new home.

Haney says the Big West could be attractive to such high-level football programs because those universities still would have five nonconference games to play a national-caliber schedule. The number of conference games required also could be reduced in the future.

“College football is built on sand, not on a rock, and as a result, we’re susceptible to the tides,” Haney said. “We’re not going into this with a lot of expectations. If no one is interested in joining the conference, we’ll go back to our regular format.

“This decision is based on the long-term. Time will tell whether we’re good prophets or not, but there’s change coming in college football.”