Right now, it doesn't stack up.
But take a look at the direction these programs are going. Baylor, SMU, UCF, Cincy, and USF were all terrible programs 5 years ago.
-Baylor is one of the more exciting teams in the Big 12 and has improved immensely
-SMU has resurrected its program and could win 9-10 games this year
-Cincy struggled the past two years but played in a BCS game in 2009
-USF didn't have a football program 15 years ago and are playing in bowl games and consistently winning 7-10 games
-UCF has played in bowl games recently and sent a lot of players to the NFL. Plus they have only been a 1-A program for 10 years.
TCU won the Rose Bowl last year
The only team that probably doesn't fit is Memphis but given their success in basketball and the fact that it is a decent market in that area along with the 10 million bucks FEDex would pony up, I think they could fit.
I would argue that it would be a very strong conference especially when recruits see some of those programs being a part of a major conference.
I agree it would be a solid conference. A lot of people have the same mistaken perception about ISU as we do about some of those directional/city schools. They have things to offer as well. It'll be hard to stack up against those other confernces, but it's not like we have a hard time stacking up as it is right now as an individual school in the Big 12.