This conference realignment stuff is a lot like football itself. Leverage is half the battle.

And it looks like Hawaii might finally have some — at least on the surface.

Last week UH was stuck in a weakened WAC due to its isolated locale. Now it’s on the verge of joining the Mountain West and the Big West, with the WAC proposing a counteroffer.

We don’t need to get into semantics about whether the MWC has actually offered an invitation yet. The technical answer is no, but the Mountain West presidents told the commissioner they want Hawaii in the league, so it’s his job to make it happen.

Is Craig Thompson’s task to craft a deal that’s good for the existing membership? Of course, but he’s not supposed to weaken the newcomer in doing so. It’s common sense.

Is there a chance that an agreement will not be reached? Sure, and there’s also a chance it will snow on Waikiki Beach today.

At any rate, it’s refreshing that UH got the jump for a change and at least looks like it’s taking major steps toward determining its own fate rather than letting decisions be made for it.

UH vice president Rockne Freitas and president M.R.C. Greenwood performed like L.C. Greenwood, one of the fiercest guys Freitas used to block in the NFL. They beat the snap and went straight for the target.

Leverage? It can be created by action. Someone just finally figured out that you wait for the mango to fall it’s probably going to be rotten. Sometimes you gotta shake the tree.

UH ATHLETIC DIRECTOR Jim Donovan and WAC commissioner Karl Benson are scheduled to meet today in Las Vegas, site of the WAC volleyball tournament.

"I’ll listen to the offer and bring it back to the leadership team," Donovan said.

What might such an offer entail? Donovan didn’t know, and Benson wasn’t saying yesterday. Maybe enhanced TV benefits for UH, since it would clearly be the flagship of WAC v.4.0 (or is it 5.0? I’ve lost track).

But what would be left of the ESPN deal when it is restructured to account for the departures of Boise State, Fresno State and Nevada? As Billy Preston sang, "Nothin’ from nothin’ leaves nothin’ … You gotta have somethin’ … If you wanna be with me."

Speaking of TV, that’s the biggest Slinky for UH and the Mountain West to untangle, not travel subsidies. The Mountain West could insist on killing off UH’s pay-per-view money machine. Or, it might like it so much that it taxes it to benefit the entire conference.

"You could come up with so many scenarios it’s not funny," Donovan said.

He added that UH is used to dealing with TV decisions made for "the greater good" of the conference that hit Manoa in the wallet. "(ESPN picking up) the Boise State game is a perfect example of that," he said.

MAYBE YOU ARE among those who would applaud the death of pay-per-view, in the belief that it hurts UH’s bottom line by keeping fans away from the stadium. Maybe you think the combination of no available live TV and Mountain West foes instead of WAC opponents will bring back the crowds.

Well, this is not a given. Don’t forget the MWC is losing some of its prime attractions.

For a younger generation that doesn’t really have an attachment to the old WAC, how much more allure does a Wyoming offer than an Idaho? Does New Mexico have a starting quarterback from Hawaii? New Mexico State does now and probably will through 2013.

This is not to say the Mountain West won’t be better than the WAC — how can it not with the WAC’s four best football programs heading for the hills?

Habits have changed for UH fans and many simply don’t want to make an expensive and long day of it by actually going to the stadium — not when they can watch from the comfort of home, on their own terms, sharing the cost.

For better or worse, that convenient option may no longer exist in two years.

Fans who like pay-per-view? The picture’s pretty fuzzy, but it looks like you lack leverage.