Rebels Runnin’ Out on Conference : Colleges: When UNLV leaves next year, it is expected the Big West’s national recognition will be damaged for years.

They were the best, but that seems so many lifetimes ago. They haven’t been among the nation’s elite for several seasons and their impressive arena, once an opposition graveyard, no longer stirs fear or remains full.

Nevada Las Vegas has fallen so hard from its perch atop college basketball that little remains to remind of past glory. Coach Jerry Tarkanian and the Rebels took the Big West Conference along for the ride during their fast break to greatness in the 1980s, and the conference has been in tow for their collapse too.

“Obviously, we’ve struggled recently and that’s had a big effect on the conference,” first-year Rebel Coach Bill Bayno said. “We have a task at hand to rebuild this basketball program. It’s not going to be easy, but we’re committed.”

However, unlike with UNLV’s previous success, the Big West won’t benefit from a Rebel revival. Along with San Jose State, UNLV is moving to the Western Athletic Conference at the end of the academic year.

Losing UNLV is the most significant and potentially devastating change for a conference whose relatively brief history has been characterized by seemingly perpetual upheaval. Not only was UNLV dominant in men’s basketball--the conference’s marquee sport--it defined the conference nationally by transcending it, according to Big West executives, athletic directors, coaches and former players. Other strong teams have existed in the conference’s history, but no program matched UNLV’s sustained excellence.

Although the Big West was hurt as the program imploded after years of political infighting and numerous, long-running legal wars with the NCAA, UNLV still provides national recognition. The Big West’s future hinges on another school emerging to fill the pending power and identity gap and leading the conference into the next century, coaches believe. Opinions differ on which school has the ability to assume the leadership mantle. But most believe that no matter what happens, losing UNLV will damage the Big West for years to come.

“Vegas leaving certainly takes a lot of the national spotlight away [from the Big West],” said Dick Vitale, a college basketball commentator for ABC and ESPN.

“There are some very positive things going on in the Big West, there’s a lot of excitement in the arenas, but Vegas gave the conference a big lift. Vegas gave the whole conference something to shoot for.”

UC Santa Barbara Coach Jerry Pimm agrees that UNLV set the tone. Pimm, the dean of Big West coaches, doesn’t know how, or if, the conference can overcome the Rebels’ departure.

“No doubt about it, this hurts the whole conference,” said Pimm, in his 13th season with the Gauchos. “They were our flagship.”

Yes, almost from the moment they joined.

The Rebels entered the Big West in 1981. They joined the men’s basketball schedule for the 1982-83 season--and won the conference championship.

UNLV won 10 consecutive conference titles from 1983 to 1992. The Rebels won seven Big West tournament titles from 1983 to 1991.

Moreover, the Rebels were a perennial NCAA tournament power. From 1984 to 1991, UNLV played in six regional semifinals, four regional finals and three Final Fours. UNLV won the 1989-90 national championship.

UC Irvine Coach Rod Baker said UNLV’s postseason accomplishments obviously brought needed national attention to the Big West. But the Rebels’ tournament success also produced other benefits.

“Vegas was better than maybe two conference levels above the Big West,” Baker said. “That was something that was significant to the league because they were good enough to where they were going [to the NCAA tournament] no matter what. With Vegas, it was assumed they were going as if they were in the [Atlantic Coast Conference], or the Big East.

“It was a lock. That brought the conference a lot of attention, then everybody else could compete for some of those other spots.”

Tarkanian won’t argue. The legendary, and infamous, former UNLV coach said the Rebels are chiefly responsible for the Big West’s overall success.

“Any league is better off with a marquee team,” said Tarkanian, in his first year as coach at Fresno State. “The fact that we were in the tournament all the time and that we were successful gave the Big West a lot of prestige--and money.”

Conference members benefit equally from tournament earnings, and UNLV contributed the bulk of those funds during Tarkanian’s 19-year tenure. For example, each Big West institution has received $211,693 per year since 1991 for UNLV’s share from winning the 1990national title.

That represented 20% of the pool of revenue schools received from the conference last year. Although that revenue ends this season, the conference still has UNLV’s 1990-91 Final Four money to divide until 1997.

UNLV’s impact on Big West recruiting has been equally important. Attracting players to schools throughout the conference was easier during the Rebels’ run. The Pacific 10 Conference still overshadowed the Big West’s efforts, but the job was a little easier.

“Every kid knew about Vegas,” Vitale said. “Even though [coaches at other Big West schools] weren’t recruiting for Vegas, they could tell a recruit, ‘We play in Vegas’ league,’ and it gave them that name recognition.”

John Welch recalls the effective sales pitch. Welch, a Fresno assistant coach, accepted a scholarship to play at Nevada, in part to play against UNLV.

“There’s no question that it helped recruiting,” said Welch, who finished his career at UNLV. “To have one of the nation’s national powers at the helm of your conference raises your status [with recruits].”

UNLV remained way ahead of the pack on this front too, successfully recruiting future NBA players such as Stacey Augmon, Armon Gilliam and Larry Johnson. But the other schools also attracted major talents, such as Brian Shaw of UC Santa Barbara and Lucious Harris and Bryon Russell of Long Beach State.

The zenith of Big West basketball occurred in the 1989-90 season. The barometer of a conference’s strength is how many NCAA tournament bids it receives, and the Big West received three: UNLV, New Mexico State and Santa Barbara.

The Rebels won the NCAA title by routing Duke, 103-73, with an unprecedented barrage of three-pointers, fast-break dunks and a pressure defense that left the college basketball world in awe. It’s still the most lopsided victory in championship history.

“That team had an unbelievable array of talent,” Utah Coach Rick Majerus said. “They were so good, they were unbelievable. They were one of the best, if not the best, of all time.”

With UNLV at its strongest and other schools making strides, the conference appeared poised to take a giant leap forward this decade. However, Tarkanian’s troubles with the NCAA over numerous major rules violations and his derisive feud with UNLV President Robert Maxson, who now holds the same post at Long Beach, helped to wreck the program.

Tarkanian left UNLV in controversy after the 1991-92 season. Maxson hired former Villanova Coach Rollie Massimino, but the unpopular Massimino was forced out after two seasons as the program faltered.

Attendance at the Thomas & Mack Center plummeted. Last season, the Rebels had five coaches in a six-month period.

The Big West was severely damaged in the Rebel fallout.

“When that thing went down hill and Vegas then finally blew up, it really hurt us,” Pimm said. “It hurt recruiting, it hurt everything.”

Former Irvine Coach Bill Mulligan has witnessed a marked change in the conference. Mulligan, who coached the Anteaters from 1981 to 1991, said the talent drop-off and diminished fan enthusiasm is disappointing.

“Just before I quit, Santa Barbara was the absolute toughest place to play,” said Mulligan, who resigned after last season after three years at Irvine Valley College.

“Now, they don’t draw well and they don’t get as many good players. Going to [play at Cal State] Fullerton would be like World War III. They would get 4,000 fans there. Now, they’re lucky to get 1,000.”

Long Beach won the Big West tournament last season, earning the conference’s automatic NCAA tournament bid. Utah State (21-8) won the conference title but was not invited to the tournament, which angered many conference coaches and athletic directors.

“Sometimes I get confused,” Baker said. “I don’t know what Utah State needed to do to go last season. It’s the perception of the conference.”

The national perception is that the Big West merits only one bid, coaches said. This although the Big West was ranked 14th out of 31 Division I conferences according to the Ratings Percentage Index, a complicated statistical tool used by the Men’s Basketball Committee to measure team quality and assist in tournament selection.

National perception, triggered by UNLV’s demise, has affected the Big West’s TV opportunities as well.

Since 1989, the conference has been included in ESPN’s Big Monday package. ESPN reduced the Big West’s Big Monday schedule from eight to four games this season, giving four games to the WAC. ESPN has not guaranteed the Big West any Big Monday games next season.

“Our contract was predicated on Vegas being on Big Monday a certain amount of times, and that’s not a secret,” Pimm said. “We all knew that, so the whole Vegas thing hurt even more.”

Dave Brown, program manager of college sports at ESPN, admitted that the Big West is significantly less attractive without a strong team at UNLV.

“Certainly, it’s one of the factors we had to pay attention to,” Brown said. “When UNLV was really riding high, they put up some pretty terrific ratings for us. Without them, it’s tougher.”

Tarkanian expects the Big West to fall from public consciousness when UNLV leaves.

“It’s going way down, there’s no question about it,” he said. “If any one of those teams [remaining] turns into a power it will help, but it’s going to be very tough.”

Big West Commissioner Dennis Farrell doesn’t accept that. Farrell points to the conference’s history of change and its survival so far.

The Big West has undergone many makeovers since its formation in 1969. When San Jose State and UNLV leave, only Long Beach, Pacific and Santa Barbara will remain from the charter group of seven.

Moreover, the conference has coped with the elimination of football programs at many schools and several expansions. Boise State, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Idaho and North Texas will join the Big West next season. However, Cal Poly SLO’s football team will remain in Division I-AA.

“The rest of the conference was able to shine in [UNLV’s] reflective glory,” Farrell said. “They were a major player for the conference. They were the prime reason why we were able to put together the Big Monday contract and those types of things.

“I’m not going to deny losing UNLV is easy. I’d just as soon not be losing UNLV. But you can’t wallow in and worry about what’s already been done. What we have to do is challenge our new schools to step it up.”

Farrell says they will.

“Boise State has a first-class [basketball] facility, North Texas has a great facility,” Farrell said. “There’s no reason why they shouldn’t be good in this sport if they get the right administration and support.”

At this point, no program is ready to dominate the conference, coaches said.

New Mexico State has been at or near the top of the conference standings the last few seasons under Coach Neil McCarthy. But the Aggies face probation for an alleged 11 NCAA violations, mostly involving academic eligibility fraud.

A few other candidates exist, with Long Beach and Nevada heading the list, coaches believe. Tarkanian picks Long Beach.

“Long Beach should be a power,” he said. “They’ve got the best chance.”

But, again, no one is ready yet.

“What you need as a major-metro area where the players are available and you have support,” Nevada Coach Pat Foster said. “It could happen here. We’ve got the same type of situation that Vegas had. We’ve got the arena and this is an attractive place.”

Pimm said the race to be the new No. 1 is already in high gear. For the Big West’s sake, he hopes someone wins, and soon.

“Everybody is going to try to be that marquee team,” Pimm said. “I don’t know who it’s going to be, but we really need someone to emerge.

“But you know, that might not happen. Vegas was the top, the very best in the whole country, and we might never have that again.”

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Changing Face

With the departure of the conference’s marquee team as well as a charter member, and the introduction of teams from the Big Sky, Southland and American West conferences, Big West basketball will take on a new look next season:

Who’s leaving:

San Jose State, UNLV

Who’s joining:

Boise State, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Idaho State, North Texas

The lineup for 1996-97:

East Division--Boise State, Idaho State, Nevada, New Mexico State, North Texas, Utah State

West Division--Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Cal State Fullerton, Long Beach State, Pacific, UC Irvine, UC Santa Barbara

Schools will play each team in their own division twice and each team in the other division once, for a total of 16 conference games.