If most of life is defined by timing, San Diego State is winning at life right now. There is never a bad time to make the Final Four, but the Aztecs might have transformed their future in ways which are impossible to fully grasp right now.
The dividing line between success and failure is often a matter of catching the wave precisely when it is starting. Capturing a trend, sensing a moment when the market is open to a particular product or idea, and then delivering a product or service before it becomes commonplace, is how a lot of people get very rich. Another person might have a related idea or concept in the works, but it’s either a little too late or perhaps not developed fully enough. One entrepreneur hits the sweet spot with the right mix of just enough development but just enough originality to own the marketplace and become the brand most people flock to.
San Diego State might have done this with the Pac-12.
Some analysts have felt the Aztecs were going to go to the Pac-12 no matter what. Maybe that’s true, but can anyone know for sure in this world of conference realignment?
If a school is trying to move up the ladder in the world of college sports (or any other realm of activity or competition), doing something big and splashy which gets national attention and lots of free publicity for the school is a pretty good thing to do.
Making the Final Four? Yeah, that will do.
San Diego State just did it by beating Creighton 57-56 on Sunday in Louisville.
Some will say that SDSU isn’t an elite football school. Sure. That’s true. Yet, if making the Final Four helps student admissions and helps a school compete better on many different fronts, that obviously helps any conference which might benefit from such growth and development.
Second, San Diego State might be able to develop its football brand a little more as a result of improving its national profile. It certainly won’t hurt. Being an Aztec is a lot cooler and more popular than it was a week ago.
George Kliavkoff’s media rights negotiations are obviously focused on football more than basketball, but if he mentions the name “San Diego State” these days, he might get more of a reaction — and more dollars — than he did in January or February.
It is now even more intriguing to wonder what will happen between the Pac-12 and San Diego State, and how this might affect any dealings or decisions from the Pac-12 in the coming weeks.
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