THINK TANK.. paradigm shift coming?!?

BY TexCane -

Aug. 11, 2026

Last week, I was talking to an old friend and fellow Miami alum. He said he was appreciative of our “WHAT IF” series regarding conference realignment scenarios. However, he didn’t believe any of them would solve the problems of college athletics.

I asked why.

First, let’s call him Adam (not his actual name).

The NCAA…

Adam believes any realignment at this point will fail under the weight of an already weak foundation called the NCAA. Adam likened the NCAA to a grand old home that served it resident institutions well for the last century but has lost its redeeming value after years of neglect and mismanagement. After numerous additions and renovation, the original foundation is now crumbling. He proposes tearing it down and starting over.

I admire and trust Adam after sixty years as a friend and very successful businessman. He’s also a Miami alum and fan (from a distance).

So, I asked him what needs to be done. Another cup of coffee was execute. He preferred to approach the challenge using a reverse engineering process.

Ok, more?

A Paradigm Shift…

Adam promised to send me the his first supplement, a structural model, for me to absorb. The next day I received an email from Adam with his new model of the NCAA. He obviously put a lot of thought into this model. He doesn’t think the NCAA needs to be destroyed but needs a major paradigm shift to survive.

As I reviewed his model, my initial reaction was “Oh no, another exercise of moving the deck chairs on the Titanic!” But I admire Adam and wanted to understand his thinking. As I examined his paradigm model again, I began to see where he was coming from.

Inclusion…

After a quick phone call, I got his first clue. Adam is an inclusive man. He believes in creating a Win-Win solutions for as many that want to be a part of the solution. The rest need to be understood but ultimately subtracted from the solution.

OK, more?

National Footprint…

Adam does not believe in the “national footprint” strategy. He feels the “secret sauce” of college athletics is fan passion. For their team. Against their arch rivals. He detests the cross county travel for teams today. Be believes we need to bring back regionalization, but delivered it nationally.

OK, more?

Conference Elimination…

Adam firmly believes the NCAA has become corrupted by power and greed, slowly eroding fan support at critical levels. He wants to eliminate all the current conferences and replace them with a new centralized structure controlled by a single governing body. This includes all operations, marketing and media rights contracts. Adam feels this would mitigate the internal competition over money and restore a balance of power.

Oh my! I need to sit down.

Death by a Thousand Cuts…

Adam realizes cleaning out the conferences will be very difficult, if not impossible. He tells me the alternative is a full palace revolt, with more than half of the membership leaving the NCAA and forming a new association. It’s not his first choice, but only if necessary. The alternative is a slow and painful “death fly a thousand cuts” for the NCAA. He points to the AAU as an example.

Enough for now!

Below is the original model Adam sent to me. Examine it.

Don’t get caught up in the schools yet. For right ow, they are place holders. Dig deep into it again and again. For me the genius began to surface. Adam’s model is not perfect. Again, don’t get too caught up in the schools that make up the model. Think deeper. What is he trying to accomplish without destroying the “old lady” completely?

East Region:

1. Boston College

2. Connecticut (UConn)

3. Rutgers

4. Syracuse

5. Army

6. Pittsburgh

7. Penn State

8. West Virginia

9. Navy

10. Maryland

11. Temple

Comment: The perfect geographic region. Lots of rivalries. A balance of power and football.

Mid-Atlantic Region:

1. Virginia

2. Virginia Tech

3. James Madison

4. Liberty

5. North Carolina (UNC)

6. Duke

7. NC State

8. Wake Forest

9. South Carolina

10. Clemson

11. East Carolina

Comment: Again, lots of regional rivalries, with a balance of power in basketball and football.

Gulf Region:

1. Florida

2. Florida State

3. Central Florida (UCF)

4. South Florida (USF)

5. Florida Atlantic (FAU)

6. Miami

7. Georgia

8. Georgia Tech

9. Alabama

10. Auburn

11. Tulane

Comment: Again, regional focus with plenty of power brands.

Mid-West Region:

1. Ohio State

2. Cincinnati

3. Indiana

4. Purdue

5. Notre Dame

6. Michigan

7. Michigan State

8. Illinois

9. Northwestern

10. Northern Illinois

11. Massachusetts (UMass)

Comment: Regional focus and power brands in both football and basketball.

South Region:

1. Tennessee

2. Vanderbilt

3. Memphis

4. LSU

5. Ole Miss

6. Mississippi State

7. Missouri

8. Arkansas

9. Kentucky

10. Louisville

11. Alabama —Birmingham (UAB)

Comment: Read Mid-West.

Heartland Region:

1. Wisconsin

2. Minnesota

3. Iowa

4. Iowa State

5. Nebraska

6. Kansas

7. Kansas State

8. North Texas

9. Rice

10. UTEP

11. Tulsa

Comment Regional focus and rivalries

Southwest Region:

1. Texas

2. Texas A&M

3. Baylor

4. SMU

5. TCU

6. Texas Tech

7. Texas State

8. UTSA

9. Houston

10. Oklahoma

11. Oklahoma State

Comment: Regional big-time rivalries.

Rockies Region:

1. Colorado

2. Colorado State

3. Air Force

4. Utah

5. BYU

6. Utah State

7. Boise State

8. New Mexico

9. New Mexico State

10. UNLV

11. Nevada

Comment: Regional focus with long rivalries.

Pacific Region:

1. Washington

2. Washington State

3. Oregon

4. Oregon State

5. California (CAL)

6. Stanford

7. Southern California (USC)

8. UCLA

9. San Diego State

10. Arizona

11. Arizona State

Comment: Regional focus and rivalries

West Region:

1. North Dakota State

2. Montana

3. Montana State

4. Wyoming

5. South Dakota State

6. Idaho

7. Utah State

8. Fresno State

9. San Jose State

10. New Mexico State

11. Sacramento State

Comment: Regional focus and rivalries.

Mid-American Region:

1. Ball State

2. Bowling Geen

3. Buffalo

4. Central Michigan

5. Eastern Michigan

6. Western Michigan

7. Kent State

8. Miami- Ohio

9. Ohio University

10. Toledo

11. Massachusetts (Mass)

Comment: If its not broken, don’t fix it.

Smoky Mountain Region:

1. Appalachian State

2. Coastal Carolina

3. Georgia Southern

4. Marshall

5. Old Dominion

6. Arkansas State

7. Louisiana

8. Louisiana-Monroe

9. South Alabama

10. Troy

11. Southern Mississippi

Comment: Regional focus and rivalries

Enjoy the ride. I’ll be back with Adam’s view of eligibility, NIL, Transfer Portal, national playoffs, media rights and revenue distribution. Should be interesting.

GO CANES!