Miles Blumhardt

milesblumhardt@coloradoan.com

Warts.

All of the universities mentioned as Big 12 expansion front-runners have them. Even Colorado State University. But fear not CSU faithful, the grades that could hurt the Rams most also bring some big pluses.

Money is where everything starts and stops, and college athletics is no different.

We will address that later, but first let's look at CSU's advantages.

Big 12 teams have had their share of headline-grabbing misconduct issues, the Baylor sexual assault debacle being the latest. Eight of the 10 current Big 12 teams have run afoul of the NCAA with a major infraction over the past decade.

If integrity counts for anything in the Big 12, and it might finally, CSU gets an A+.

CSU is one of only 15 NCAA major athletic programs that has never been guilty of a major infraction. None of the other initial contenders — BYU, Houston, Cincinnati, Central Florida, South Florida, Connecticut and Memphis — can make that claim.

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Connections will also play a key role, and CSU has an in here. CSU athletics director Joe Parker has worked in the athletic departments of Big 12 mainstays Texas, Texas Tech and Oklahoma. His job directly before coming to CSU was deputy AD at Texas Tech. Coincidentally, the Rams now have Texas Tech on their football schedule.

Surely, other schools can claim some similar tie to Big 12 brass, but Parker is well-respected in those circles, so give the Rams another A.

It's unknown if the Big 12 will take any football-only schools, but conference officials said they will look at overall quality of athletic programs of potential new members. Bringing on a member for football only is unlikely given the Big 12 is strong in all the major revenue sports and many of the non-majors.

According to Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby, "We're looking for members that will grow over time as we grow and bring stability and have a high top end.''

CSU does not have the national reputation in any one sport as some other contenders do. But CSU leads the nation among NCAA Division I programs with a combined .779 winning percentage in the four major sports — football, men's basketball, women's basketball and volleyball — over the past two years and tied for the most Mountain West titles in all sports last year.

A conference title in football would have been nice to have on the resume, and naysayers will quickly point out the lack of quality competition in the MW and CSU's modest number of marquee wins over the past couple seasons.

Valid points.

However, over the last three years, CSU football is tied for second in wins among the aforementioned Big 12 hopefuls. Houston is 29-11, CSU 25-15, BYU and Cincinnati 25-14, Memphis 22-14, Central Florida 21-17, South Florida 14-23, Tulane 13-24 and UConn 11-26.

Give the Rams a B.

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Academics is another criteria for assessment, and CSU fares favorably among the contenders in virtually all aspects. The student population is growing rapidly, records in academic and research fundraising have been set each of the past seven years and, as we all know, CSU's campus growth has been at a frenzied pace.

Give the Rams a B.

This is where things get dicey.

CSU's report card has some red checks on it when it comes to the all-important dollar signs.

The $220 million, 41,200-capacity on-campus stadium that opens in 2017 helps. More than 85 percent of premium seating and 17 of the 22 suites have been sold. Fewer than 100 club seats and fewer than 10 loge boxes remain, and the stadium is still a little more than a year from opening.

The stadium would be the smallest in the Big 12 but arguably the best among the contenders and with as much or more capacity than most. And despite a recent $20 million anonymous donation to name the field after Sonny Lubick, it's fair to say that stadium fundraising didn't go as planned. Plus, the Rams are last among contenders in average football game attendance.

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The fact more than 35,000 Big 12 alumni live in Denver, ease of air travel to Denver, relative proximity to existing Big 12 schools and Colorado being a big travel destination would boost attendance. Plus, if BYU is added, Provo, Utah, is nearby and could serve as a CSU travel partner.

Although Denver is the third-largest TV market among the contenders and 17th-largest in the country, CSU has barely stuck a toe in it. Higher quality Big 12 competition would surely increase the TV interest.

CSU also ranks last among the contenders in athletic department budget but has increased spending in recent years to hire and retain quality coaches in its major programs. CSU helped Jim McElwain get the Florida football gig and has an up-and-comer in football coach Mike Bobo.

Give the Rams a C.

To many outsiders, CSU doesn't stack up as one of the two to four teams that could be picked to join the Big 12 as early as September. Many major sportswriters have the Rams just on the outside looking in if four teams are taken.

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CSU is certainly trending in the right direction but hasn't yet arrived in all facets the Big 12 will examine.

That's where Parker and CSU President Tony Frank will need to play a major role. They will have to convince Big 12 presidents that CSU is on the verge of becoming much more than it is right now.

Do that and CSU will truly enter an even bolder new era.

Miles Blumhardt is an editorial coach who oversees the sports department. Find him on Twitter at @MilesBlumhardt or milesblumhardt@coloradoan.com.