Mayfield: Dear Gonzaga, it’s time to join the Pac-12

Admittedly, I am not a huge sports fan, but I am a fan of being a fan. I like excitement, fun and school spirit. I enjoy a game when I go. I root for the home team. I ride the wave of excitement when tournaments and playoffs are underway.

I also value local tradition and civic pride.

And honestly, those are the two most important reasons Gonzaga University (GU) should join the newly rebuilding Pac-12.

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Washington State University (WSU) and Oregon State University (OSU) were both left holding the bag when Washington and Oregon saw green and fled.

For a minute, locals – fans or otherwise – thought the Pac-12 might be dead. But the Cougs and the Beavers are more fearsome than that. They are also a lot savvier than some folks thought.

Now with the new schools — Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Utah State — joining the Pac, it needs team No. 8 to seal the deal under NCAA rules.

Gonzaga is a premier national player. It outgrew the West Coast Conference years ago. In fact, playing in the WCC probably hurts the basketball program each season, both by lowering national expectations and also by not properly hardening the Zags up for the big dance.

Sure, there’s no Zag football team, but honestly, that’s barely a problem, especially if GU’s reputation convinces other schools to join up, too.

Like the Ducks and the Huskies, the Zags are hearing the call for more money. But instead of the Big 12 calling, what if that call is coming from inside the building?

Or inside the region.

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The Spokesman-Review reports the school could see between $5-12 million more if Gonzaga joined the Pac-12.

I’m not a college sports financial expert, so I’ll leave that math alone. Instead, what I want my college to remember is that it owes so much of its decades of success to its city, state and region. We helped build the Gonzaga that dances big each March. We love and support and cheer and give because y’all are one of us.

Why not throw your lot in with the other local schools – WSU and OSU – that looked death in the face and said no thanks, that’s not how it’s done here in the Pacific Northwest.

Gonzaga, show the rest of college sports — and your friends and neighbors — you, too, know how it’s done here on the Pac coast.

Travis Mayfield is a local media personality and fills in as a host on KIRO Newsradio