The Mountain West Conference presidents are holding annual meetings the next three days in Carlsbad, Calif., to discuss, among other things, possible league expansion. The guess from here is that no definitive action will be taken but that talk will be serious with the possibility of a new school or two being added within the next year . . .
And so who are the top candidates if the MWC does decide to expand in the near future? I'd have to put Boise State No. 1, followed by Nevada, Fresno State, Hawaii and Utah State. Schools such as TCU and Tulsa are too far away and don't bring enough to make them viable candidates . . .
Why Boise State? One of the main reasons is its strong football program, which is important to the league if it wants to help its BCS status. Boise is also a growing market, a fresh area for the MWC to cultivate and easily accessible. Fresno State also has had a strong football program in recent years, but some presidents might be put off by the recent NCAA sanctions against the program dating back to the Tarkanian years. A poor reputation is a difficult obstacle to overcome, something that Fresno State faces . . .
If I were in charge, I'd put Utah State in an expanded MWC, along with Boise. While it wouldn't make sense from a TV market standpoint, the Aggies would immediately be competitive in basketball and other sports and before long would become more competitive in football (after all, they did beat New Mexico last year and almost beat BYU). They already own perennial MWC champion Utah in basketball (three straight wins, four of past five). It would make all of the Utah-USU and BYU-USU games more interesting in all sports and would also free up Utah and BYU's non-conference schedules. It would be fun, but it's never going to happen, unfortunately . . .
Were you one of those people who stood in line to get those John Stockton tickets the other day? Hope you weren't in one of those outside lines because when the ticket booths opened at 4 p.m. Wednesday, it just happened to be 99 degrees, the hottest May day in Utah history . . .
As great as Stockton is, I don't know if I'd want to go to the Delta Center on another hot day just to see him talk, rather than show off his magical skills on the court. On the other hand, maybe that will be a thrill for many folks, to see John Stockton actually speak in public . . .
I've got the over/under on the length of Stockton's speech at 29 seconds. As for the chances of Larry Miller crying at the ceremony, that's a 100 percent sure thing . . .
Are you excited about the upcoming New Jersey-San Antonio NBA Finals, a k a ABA Revisited? Dr. J and the Iceman (George Gervin) won't be playing like in 1976, but Tim Duncan and Jason Kidd should make it an interesting series. The problem with this year's final is that you can't root against the Lakers or for a local hero such as Keith Van Horn.
Turning to baseball news, it was fun while it lasted as my Red Sox were in first place ahead of the hated Yankees for three whole days last week. Also, can you believe it's June and my other beloved team, the Cubs, are still in first place? We'll just take that one a month at a time.
The Glenwild Golf Course was named the No. 1 course in Utah this week by Golf Digest magazine, but I'll bet no more than a handful of you have ever played it. The course, situated in a development about 10 miles north of Park City, is an excellent course. However, it may also be the most exclusive golf course in Utah with fewer than 100 members and no playing privileges for the general public.
And finally, after all the recent attention Annika Sorenstam received for playing in the Colonial, I'm thinking of capitalizing on her sudden stardom and changing the last couple of letters of my name to see where that gets me.
E-mail: sor@desnews.com