RENO, Nev. -- Nick Holt shaved his head on a golf course
recently, auctioning his locks to raise a quick $2,000 for the
Idaho football program.
The spontaneous gesture was sure to get the locals talking about
the coach's attempt to resuscitate the Vandals. With all the
challenges facing Idaho, New Mexico State and Utah State during
their debut seasons in the Western Athletic Conference, Holt can
testify that such dramatic acts sometimes seem quite necessary.
"I was going bald anyway, so that's why I kept it like this,"
Holt said, rubbing his clean dome Thursday at the WAC's media day.
"I saved some money on shampoo. When I first shaved it, I looked
like an egg ... but when you get a tan and you're naturally
good-looking, you can wear any hairstyle."
The WAC changed its lineup for the fourth time in eight years
this summer, adding the three schools to replace UTEP, Rice,
Southern Methodist and Tulsa in a nine-team league that's leaner
and more Western -- but just as tough, according to the coaches
charged with making a name for themselves for something other than
their hair choices.
Though the three new squads generally are expected to finish at
the bottom of the WAC this season, the men in charge know they've
moved up in the world. The conference provides bigger opportunities
for recruiting, revenue and television exposure while cutting down
on travel and building new rivalries.
"I think everybody agrees it's a step up in leagues," New
Mexico State coach Hal Mumme said. "It gives us a chance to
recruit better players, and geographically it's great for our fans.
Nothing against the league we were in, but a lot of those teams,
our fans didn't know where they were."
Mumme probably wouldn't have agreed to take over New Mexico
State's program if the long-struggling Aggies hadn't shown their
commitment to big-time football by leaving the Sun Belt for the
WAC.
Mumme, who ran his inventive offenses at Kentucky and Valdosta
State before building Southeastern Louisiana's program from scratch
in the last two years, said coaching in the WAC is "something I've
always aspired to."
"I think the WAC is the most exciting and the most innovative
conference in the land," he continued. "A lot of the coaches that
have coached in this league have influenced the entire world of
college football."
Indeed, Mumme could cite anyone from Lavell Edwards to Fisher
DeBerry among the WAC's great innovators of seasons past. Boise
State's Dan Hawkins and Fresno State's Pat Hill have built
consistent powerhouse programs earning frequent national rankings
in recent years, with Hawaii and coach June Jones not far behind.
All three of the league's new coaches are rebuilding their
programs on the foundation of recent failures, though Mumme and
Utah State's Brent Guy face the double challenge of being rookie
coaches at their schools.
Holt is only slightly more comfortable in his second season at
Idaho after going 3-9 last year in a season containing 12 straight
games without a bye while featuring nearly enough road miles to
circumnavigate the globe.
"It's already helped our (recruiting)," Holt said. "Being
able to sell the WAC, especially in the regions that we recruit, we
(get) better student-athletes. They know about the conference. They
know it's competitive, and it's going to be better. It's just got
to take some time."
Guy left his job as defensive coordinator at Arizona State to
return to Logan, where he was an assistant from 1992-94. Utah State
has wandered through Division I football in recent years, spending
time as an independent in between stints in lower-tier leagues.
"It's a challenge, but this is where we wanted to be," said
Guy, who won't even have a full complement of scholarship players
this season. "We're going to have to earn the respect and earn our
way to the top of this league. There are three teams that have
clearly been dominant in this league, and we're going to be anxious
to compete and see how we measure up to those teams."