Conference Realignment: What Is Boston College's Aspirational Conference?

New University of Hawai'i-Manoa Chancellor Tom Apple, whose school has yet to officially join the Mountain West, has, shall we say, higher aspirations for the Warriors:

"I won't go dreaming about where we might be, but there is a really good conference out on the West Coast that it would be wonderful to be part of, eventually

And, there are schools that I'd certainly like to be mentioned with in the same breath. So, I think the idea that we try to aspire to be a great university that is thought of in the company of the other great universities is something that we should think about for athletics," Apple said.

Call it a hunch, but something tells me Apple isn't talking about the West Coast Conference ...

This would hardly be the first time a school's Athletics Department or University President has gone on the record stating this a school aspires to bigger and better athletic conference affiliations. If these school could have their wishes granted: Hawai'i would be in the Pac-12, Memphis in the SEC, Tulane in the Big 12, Louisville in the Big 12 OR the ACC, UConn in the ACC, and East Carolina in the ACC (Caulton Tudor'd).

Further, it's not hard to project out where many other schools would ultimately like to land. Boise State, San Diego State, Nevada, UNLV, and BYU, among others, would probably love nothing more than to be a part of the Pac-16. Rice, UTEP, Tulsa, SMU and Houston the Big 12. The Sun Belt and much of Conference USA the SEC. #MACtion less Temple and UMass the Big Ten. Temple and UMass the ACC? Yes, programs still aspire to the ACC. Why do you ask?

But when you get to a school like Boston College, the Eagles ultimate aspirational conference becomes a little less clear.

Are the Eagles in the conference they want to be in with similar academic institutions such as Duke, Wake Forest, Miami, Virginia, North Carolina and Syracuse? And with or without two of Florida State, Clemson and Georgia Tech?

Or do the Eagles fit better in the Big Ten, especially if like schools such as Notre Dame, Syracuse and Pittsburgh join the conference in an expanded, 16-team superconference?

Finally, is it some combination of the Big East of yore, with BC joined by all-sports schools like Connecticut, Rutgers, Syracuse, Miami, Pittsburgh, West Virginia, Virginia Tech and Miami? Something cool that I don't even know about? Football independence and all other sports in the basketball-first Big East? Your thoughts?