All of the new buildings ---- the list includes Cox Arena, Tony Gwynn Stadium, a softball stadium and a tennis complex ---- have left no room to build an on-campus football stadium. The issue could surface in the future if the Chargers bolt town and Qualcomm Stadium is razed.

"I don't think you can put a stadium on top of the track that's on top of the parking garage," said Mountain West Conference commissioner Craig Thompson, referring to the school's Sports Deck, home to the soccer and track programs. "They are pretty landlocked over there."

Considering whether to build an on-campus football stadium will only become a pressing issue on athletic director Jeff Schemmel's plate if the Chargers decide to load up the moving vans. The Chargers can begin speaking to other cities on Jan. 1, and the earliest they could depart town is after the 2008 season.

"I would guess finding a location would be difficult," Schemmel said. "When it's all said and done, that's less of an issue than how you pay for it. We'd have to figure out a funding mechanism.

"We haven't really put any effort in finding a location yet, but I think when you're talking about building a stadium, you're talking about a minimum of $200 million and you have to have that discussion first."

Perhaps one of the last significant plots of land that might have been large enough to handle an on-campus stadium was the pit north of Cox Arena. But that parking area, located just above Interstate 8, was used for the trolley line that opened last summer.

Another factor not to be taken lightly in any on-campus stadium thoughts would be dealing with the concerns of residents that live near campus. Cox Arena was approved in 1988, but the first shovel didn't dig into the ground until seven years later because of legal wrangling ---- much of it precipitated by college-area residents. The arena finally opened in the fall of 1997.

Of course, Schemmel's primary hope is that an on-campus stadium discussion never takes place. He'd like to see the Chargers get a new stadium on the Qualcomm site, with the Aztecs continuing to share the facility.

It's anybody's guess what would happen to Qualcomm Stadium should the Chargers leave, but it's clear the wrecking ball wouldn't come calling the next day. The consensus is that Qualcomm Stadium could remain standing into the middle of next decade, so it's not like the Aztecs would suddenly become homeless.

"My understanding of it all is there's not a tomorrow concern," Thompson said. "Even if the Chargers were to announce in the next year or six months that they're moving to Los Angeles or wherever, there will be a viable Qualcomm for the next five, six to eight years."

New Aztecs football coach Chuck Long played in an on-campus stadium when he starred at Iowa , and he coached in one as an assistant at Oklahoma the past six years.

Oklahoma has a storied program deep in tradition, and each home football game is celebrated like a glorified holiday. San Diego State softball catcher Erin Floros was amazed with the atmosphere when she took a recruiting trip to Oklahoma early in the 2004 football season.

" Oklahoma has a football stadium on campus," said Floros, a Mt. Carmel High graduate. "We don't have that here, so it was completely different. I just thought that was really neat, all the energy that went on before the game."

But Long says the environment isn't lively and exciting just because of where the Sooners' Owen Field is located.

"At Oklahoma , the big reason for the atmosphere is winning," Long said of a program that has played in three of the last six national championship games. "It's not because there's a stadium on campus. It's because of the winning. People will go anywhere to see a winning product, regardless of where the stadium is located."

-- Contact staff writer Mike Sullivan at (760) 739-6645 or msullivan@nctimes.com.