Big 12 implosion again? A&M and Oklahoma looking at the SEC

[MVCfans]

And more:

The SEC now likely will pursue Florida State, Clemson and Missouri, a source told ESPN's Gottlieb, though Missouri athletic director Mike Alden said the school was not in talks with any conferences about a possible move.

The Big 12's days are numbered.

[Snaggletooth]

And more:

The SEC now likely will pursue Florida State, Clemson and Missouri, a source told ESPN's Gottlieb, though Missouri athletic director Mike Alden said the school was not in talks with any conferences about a possible move.

The Big 12's days are numbered.

I think that is premature. SEC has not even approved A&M (and the SEC has said it is even possible they don't have the votes to accept them), plus they have to find a 2nd team to go along with them.

[MoValley John]

What is your point exactly John? I am well aware that Texas Aggie is leaving, I've been following this saga closely. When I said that the Big XII can't afford to lose anyone else, I thought it was implied that I was stating this assuming that Aggie is gone and thus meaning anyone in addition to the Aggies.

The league is somewhat weakened, yeah. My understanding of the situation is that the new Big XII TV deal is not affected by Aggie leaving. This is supposedly what the league has been told. Now whether this is truly the case remains to be seen and in any event, it will remain a point of contention. The talk of adding Houston is...well interesting to say the least. Not sure what will happen, but the league will survive as long as Texas wants it to so all eyes are on Deloss Dodds and the power structure at Bellmont.

My point is the Aggies are leaving. And with them leaving, the Big XII is in a very, very bad position. In reality, to even be competitive as a BCS league, they need three more teams. And with them losing Nebraska this year and aTm next, they need to add at least two good teams. Not mediocre, two good teams. Where are they? They simply aren't out there. With that, your comment, "The Big XII has a good chance to survive as is in my humble opinion" is on shaky ground at best. And while Houston has been mentioned as a viable replacement, Houston is a huge step down from either aTm or Nebraska. Houston brings nothing to the table, they simply are adding another underfunded bottomfeeder. The Big XII is now a joke. It is dying.

The fact of the matter is this, schools that have resources and options must now aggressively explore those options. That would include Texas Tech, OSU, Mizzou and Kansas. OU and UT are still joined at the hip, but the minute Texas can figure out a way to keep the LHN and join another conference, they're gone. And they will take OU with them. My guess is that now that the bond with aTm has been broken, UT will find a way to keep the LHN and jump with OU to the Pac 12.

Texas may be able to make that deal work before Kansas, Mizzou or Okie State find new homes, maybe they will make a deal later. But make no mistake, no current Big XII school is sitting on the sidelines, hoping the league makes it. Schools are saying the right things, all the while, searching for new homes. Any one of them will take the first offer that gives them similar money and also stability. I think your opinion is wrong, The Big XII is a dead man walking.

[MVCfans]

And more:

The SEC now likely will pursue Florida State, Clemson and Missouri, a source told ESPN's Gottlieb, though Missouri athletic director Mike Alden said the school was not in talks with any conferences about a possible move.

The Big 12's days are numbered.

I think that is premature. SEC has not even approved A&M (and the SEC has said it is even possible they don't have the votes to accept them), plus they have to find a 2nd team to go along with them.

Gregg Doyel is reporting that Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and 2 other Big 12 schools approached the Big Ten about joning as a package deal, but were rebuffed due to academic concerns. I retweeted here: https://twitter.com/#!/MVCfans

[Snaggletooth]

Gregg Doyel is reporting that Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and 2 other Big 12 schools approached the Big Ten about joning as a package deal, but were rebuffed due to academic concerns. I retweeted here: https://twitter.com/#!/MVCfans

all the more reason why the B12 is not going to implode - most B12 schools don't have other options (that are at least better). Texas A&M leaving is not irreplaceable.

[uniftw]

Gregg Doyel is reporting that Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and 2 other Big 12 schools approached the Big Ten about joning as a package deal, but were rebuffed due to academic concerns. I retweeted here: https://twitter.com/#!/MVCfans

all the more reason why the B12 is not going to implode - most B12 schools don't have other options (that are at least better). Texas A&M leaving is not irreplaceable.

They will be because of the Longhorn Network.

TAMU hated how Texas was running the old B12 the way it was, adding the LHN was the final straw in it all.

Schools like OU, OKSU, and Tech will go search for better options.

Schools like Baylor, Mizzou, Kansas State and Iowa State don't have many other options...Iowa State is praying the B12 holds on because without that money they are a MVC team with a MAC football program.

Texas ruined the SWC and has now ruined the B12.....TWICE.

[CaseyGarrisonforPrez]

Gregg Doyel is reporting that Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and 2 other Big 12 schools approached the Big Ten about joning as a package deal, but were rebuffed due to academic concerns. I retweeted here: https://twitter.com/#!/MVCfans

all the more reason why the B12 is not going to implode - most B12 schools don't have other options (that are at least better). Texas A&M leaving is not irreplaceable.

I agree wholeheartily with the last sentence. Chip Brown says that BYU, TCU, Air Force, and Houston would be candidates for A&M's spot. Based on recent football success, any of these four would be an upgrade over the Aggies.

[MoValley John]

Gregg Doyel is reporting that Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and 2 other Big 12 schools approached the Big Ten about joning as a package deal, but were rebuffed due to academic concerns. I retweeted here: https://twitter.com/#!/MVCfans

all the more reason why the B12 is not going to implode - most B12 schools don't have other options (that are at least better). Texas A&M leaving is not irreplaceable.

I agree wholeheartily with the last sentence. Chip Brown says that BYU, TCU, Air Force, and Houston would be candidates for A&M's spot. Based on recent football success, any of these four would be an upgrade over the Aggies.

Any of these would be an upgrade over the Aggies? Are you serious? You could argue TCU, but they are already in the Big East. And while TCU has had recent success, they don't have a large fanbase, nor do they bring anything to the table other than a few years of recent success. In fact, if TCU was such a great pick, why were they an outcast when the Big XII was formed?

Air Force? Are you kidding me?!!! Respect the hell out of them, but they are a service academy. Air Force wins the games that they should win and loses the games they should lose. And because they can only recruit cadets that are academically qualified to attend the academy and then become Air Force officers, the ceiling on how good they can get is set. They also don't have a huge fanbase. If you are unaccustomed to the military, the enlisted don't give a crap about academies. Neither do the Air Force officers that didn't attend the academy, they follow their alma mater. The only draw, the only fanbase are some people in Colorado Springs and the people that attended the academy. Air Force is not an upgrade, they would be a band aid.

BYU? Maybe a viable replacement as every Mormon follows them. But just as every Mormon follows them, nobody outside of the LDS gives a crap. The LDS gives them something, a draw and a name, but Notre Dame they aren't. They are also way outside of the geographical footprint, plus, that no games on Sunday is a huge barrier. And it is hard to think that BYU would be interested. BYU is grasping at straws. Chip Brown might as well have mentioned Notre Dame or Penn State.

Houston is so laughable that it doesn't even warrant a response.

In theory, you can try to piecemeal together the Big XII forever. But if that is how the Big XII survives, that strategy will happen in perpetuity. And would it really be a viable conference? The preplacement ieces that the Big XII will be using are all downgrades from the teams leaving. And even if they find a downgradable replacement for aTM, who is going to replace Mizzou when they finally get their ticket out? What about Oklahoma State? Kansas? These schools are all putting on their mandatory smiley faces, but they aren't happy. The rest of the schools are downright scared. And whatever trust any school may have placed in Texas is gone. They are no longer voting with Texas because Texas is their savior, they are voting with Texas only because they have no other option. Each school will leave the second that they have an opportunity.

The biggest problem with the Big XII is that it really died last year. When Nebraska and Colorado left, nothing was done to shore up the conference or address anything that is causing the rifts. Further complicating the matter is that the Big XII wasn't proactive last year in grabing two more teams. Without 12 members, the Big XII is not on par with any of the other BCS conferences, they are behind and falling further behind. Equal replacements can't be found, mainly because schools on equal footings wouldn't want to be a part of the mess and wouldn't trade their stability for whatever the Big XII might promise to offer. Keeping the Big XII alive will require a continuation of adding weaker and weaker teams. Eventually, Texas will move on and this "saved" Big XII will look worse than the WAC. All of the current members know this, they are simply waiting for their ticket out. Meanwhile, it's all wine and roses coming from the mouths of the AD's.

[Aargh]

It my have only died last year, but the cancer has been there for a while. The B12 has Longhorn's carcinoma. The B12 is the only conference that allows a member institution to have its own TV network. That's because UT wanted it - and in the B12, if UT wants it - UT gets it.

I wouldn't be surprised if UT bullying the conference led to the departure of Arkansas from the SWC, and that was one of the pieces that brought the SWC down.Then UT - uh, I mean the B12 - picked up the B8, which needed more members, and some of the better teams and Baylor (very well connected politically in Texas) to form a new league.

aTm views the LHN as a 24/7 infomercial for UT. There are (or were) 4 Texas schools in the B12(or maybe 9). How could the league allow one of those schools to have a private network? UT is getting paid $300 mill to have 24/7 access to Texas sports fans and be able to hit them with their brand names (University of Texas and Longhorns) over and over and over. From a marketing standpoint, that gives UT a huge advantage in pursuing recruits, donor dollars, etc. Since aTm and UT are pursuing some of the same donor dollars and recruits, anything that tips the scales toward UT tips them away from aTm.

But, it's the B12 and in the B12, UT can do anything it wants to do. Tom Osborne is probably one of the brightest and sharpest minds in college athletics. UNL saw what was coming to the B12 and wanted nothing to do with it. UNL had been showing signs of discontent for several years before they made their move. Colorado is the surprise of the bunch. I think they saw an opportunity to join a conference with a bit more parity in how the conference is run and jumped at the opportunity.

I think aTm has been stewing for years, but stuck around due to political pressure in Texas. I think they finally had the moment when, as in the old film, Network, aTm opened their windows, leaned out as far as they could and yelled, "We're mad as hell and we're not going to take it any more".

OU-UT is a huge rivalry. It was a huge rivalry when OU and UT were in different conferences. Past that - what's left in the B12 for a "name brand" program. UNL and aTm were the next two most well-known names in the league. The overall status and the national opinion of the B12 has taken an enormous hit. Without UNL nd Tm, the B12 is the bottom-feeder of the BCS conferences. They may produce some national champion FB teams, but the gap between UT, OU and the rest of the league just became a chasm.

Yeah, the B12 is lower than the BEast. The BEast has more people in its market who couldn't find Iowa or Oklahoma within 500 miles on a map of the USA than the B12 has in its entire market.

[MVCfans]

Aargh - well stated.

I think in the next 5 years, the following occurs:

A&M and Mizzou to SEC
Texas, Oklahoma, Okie State, Texas Tech to Pac 12
Baylor to CUSA
Kansas and K-State to MTN or Big East
Iowa State to MTN or MAC