Well, it appears As The Mountain West Turns has reached its conclusion.
The Salt Lake Tribune reports that the talk of BYU reconciling with the Mountain West Conference was a bit premature.
Cougars to the WAC? Well, that's dead too.
The Trib says BYU will play as an independent in football, with the bulk of their other sports headed to the West Coast Conference.
For BYU's remaining sports, the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation would be a logical home for men's and women's indoor track and women's swimming. However, the MPSF doesn't sponsor men's swimming, softball, and outdoor track and field.
So, here's how the MWC, WAC, and WCC will look in the coming seasons, probably as soon as the 2011-12 academic year, when BYU is slated to depart the Mountain West.
Mountain West
Air Force
Boise State
Colorado State
Fresno State
Nevada
UNLV
New Mexico
San Diego State
TCU
Wyoming
West Coast
BYU
Gonzaga
Loyola Marymount
Pepperdine
Portland
Saint Mary's
San Diego
San Francisco
Santa Clara
Western Athletic
Hawai'i
Idaho
Louisiana Tech
New Mexico State
San Jose State
Utah State
The WAC is really in trouble because it will lose its basketball auto bid if it doesn't pick up a seventh members before the 2013-14 academic year begins and the NCAA's two-year grace period expires.
And that doesn't account for Hawai'i potentially declaring its football independence and finding another home for its other sports.
Or Utah State realizing its dream by joining the MWC to make up for the loss of BYU and Utah.
Plus, there's the whole matter of the $5 million WAC exit penalty. Apparently, that's a simple case of "No BYU, No Fee." Fresno State and Nevada, you should be off the hook...after the courts speak, of course.
So, there's a bit more certainty in the conference landscape for the moment, don't expect it to last. Members of the Big Sky, Conference USA, and Sun Belt could all be on the move in the inevitable next round, as the Mountain West and WAC try to recover from BYU's choice.