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Unlike the star wars display on the beach in Destin, Fla. at the Southeastern Conference, the American Athletic Conference will  hold meetings the next two days at a hotel at the Dallas Fort-Worth Airport, with only Presidents and athletic directors attending.

"We've got a lot of work to do,'' conceded AAC commissioner Mike Aresco. "And we feel getting the Presidents and AD's all in the same hotel is the best way to do that. We can get everyone (coaches) together later in the summer''

 Aresco knows that the AAC, which is losing three members--Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF--to the Big 12 and is adding six new members--Florida Atlantic, Charlotte, North  Texas, Rice, UT-San Antonio and UAB--is mired in a log jam that also involves the SEC and Big 12.

The disputes about exit fees has the whole process on pause, perhaps until the 2025 season, although no one really wants to wait that long.

Aresco thinks the AAC may be able to speed up the process, which would allow everyone else to finalize their moves.

""How can we start focusing on the future without having our membership settled?," asks Aresco in a rhetorical tone

The AAC is perfectly willing to allow UCF, Houston and Cincinnati to move to the Big 12 tomorrow if they pay exit fees

"We made what we felt is a very fair offer,'' said Aresco. "The schools we are losing have been a big part of our success. And I think we're close. If we can get that done, things could will start to happen.'

'The exit money the AAC has been reported in the neighborhood of $27 million per school, but Aresco makes it clear there are ways to make any numbers work.

 ""It's not like we're asking for it all at once,'' he said. ""We have worked things out in the past. Once we do that, then maybe things will speed up.''

Aresco knows he can not control what the Big 12 does with Texas and Oklahoma, nor can he control the SEC timetable on weaving those schools into the SEC  fabric.

But he knows somebody has to take the first step and he is hoping that the AAC will be able to do that.