VectorVictor

A&M's Regents Meeting notes re: Longhorn network per San Antonio Of Note: Bottom line--the groundswell for A&M to go to the SEC, regardless of Beebe's and Dodd's gestures, is there and growing. And it's now a battle between the will of the fanbase and of $ Bill Byrne. And we all know too well $ Bill is about the AD cup and is willing to sacrifice revenue sport success (read: going to the SEC) for non-revenue sport success (read: staying put in the Big XII). Unless the Bevo Network is eradicated completely, it's going to come to a head, and I don't think $ Bill will survive. His tenure is still on shaky ground, and any knowledgeable booster/fan/alum you come across can't stop talking about the $16 million their AD owes. Not good at all, for A&M, the Bevo Network, or the Big XII...it's schadenfreude at it's finest.

Good. Here's hoping the NCAA brings the hammer down on Auburn.

What battle? This is all just discussions amongst close friends. They've gotten rid of the bad guy - Nebraska. Everything is sunshine and daisies from here on out! Yup, like a Summer's Eve commercial.

Redblooded--the trick for making predictions this go around in realignment is to think less like a conference admin, and more like a cable network admin. When the blogger 'Frank the Tank' looked at the numbers in 2010, he couldn't believe how Nebraska blew away the competition when it came to ratings and viewership. We may be small, but we are mighty and united, and it shows in the TV ratings. I agree that either KU or Mizzou will get a golden ticket to the Big 10 if they go to 14. But not both--too many TV sets that can be picked up out east for the Big 10 to ignore. And of course, as you illustrated, Notre Dame would steal a ticket--likely at the expense of either KU/MU, IMO, as the BTN needs to expand their local footprint. I did, people keep saying the big east is Notre Dame's fallback and that the big ten will have to raid and destroy that conference to try and get an eastern market and leave ND nowhere to go. My belief is, no, they don't. The big east is already pretty much irrelevant in football, what do you think they'll be if the major conferences go to 16? Notre Dame captures the east coast just as well as any of the horrible teams like Rutgers and Syracuse. It's a pro sports area. The difference is, adding KU, MU, OU, and ND would give a better inventory of games in basketball and football. Redblooded--the Big East may be impotent in football, but they still have a golden (BCS) ticket. That BCS berth is all the relevancy that conference needs for football, and it's all the relevancy Notre Dame would need. Plus, if you're a 'Domer, which schedule would you rather slog through--one that has TCU, Pitt, UConn, and West Virginia as your biggest teams, or a schedule that could potentially have Nebraska, Ohio State, Michigan, and Penn State on it? And don't forget, one of those schools pwned you even back when the Four Horsemen were the shiznit--pwned you so bad, in fact, that you cancelled your ongoing series with that team and blamed it on anti-Catholic sentiments.

CBS Sports Article re: A&M Going to SEC Of note: Uh oh...the honeymoon's over.

Redblooded--the trick for making predictions this go around in realignment is to think less like a conference admin, and more like a cable network admin. When the blogger 'Frank the Tank' looked at the numbers in 2010, he couldn't believe how Nebraska blew away the competition when it came to ratings and viewership. We may be small, but we are mighty and united, and it shows in the TV ratings. I agree that either KU or Mizzou will get a golden ticket to the Big 10 if they go to 14. But not both--too many TV sets that can be picked up out east for the Big 10 to ignore. And of course, as you illustrated, Notre Dame would steal a ticket--likely at the expense of either KU/MU, IMO, as the BTN needs to expand their local footprint.

Just FYI. Looks to be more overall appearances than before thanks to the BTN, but we're not getting as much time on ESPN?

This. I'm 5x more worried about our Special Teams play this season than I am the offense, to be honest. The worst Beck can do is be Watson-esque; we are going to likely see a dropoff in Special Teams play this year, and Special Teams play, in some ways, made up for a lack of offense.

Is that before or after Nebraska is added to the mix?

It's their game vs. Tech. It's all but been confirmed by ESPN themselves last I saw. Seen it mentioned a few places as fact. Makes sense--the network is likely only going to be offered in Texas, and it would be simpler to just make the network available to everyone that day in Lubbock instead of trying to get a cable provider in Stillwater to carry a one-time feed. Still, the move is sending games against Texas down a slippery slope, it can feasibily happen to any of the other nine--even Oklahoma, who self-admitted they are hooked on suckling Bevo teat during the conference realignment.

Likely Florida itself--the other two haven't been competent enough in the past decade or so to be subject to any wrongdoing.

The only leverage A&M has is to leave the conference. They can rattle their saber all they want, but until they actually do something Texas isn't going to budge, or hand over any revenues they generate with the Bevo Network / ESPN deal. A&M's situation is pretty much all or nothing, the way I look at it. They either join another conference that'll make them more money and level the economic playing field or they stand pat and remain Texas' bitch. Agreed. And that their regents are looking at their options/angles suggests that 1) A&M is finally all in, including their blue-haired boosters, for a SEC move, and 2) they believe the current NCAA investigation won't impact the charter of the Bevo Network any.

Looks like the Texas A&M Regents are going to be discussing all aspects of a possible move and the Bevo Network at their next meeting: Houston Chronicle link

Back when all of this was going on, the blue-haired A&M fans wanted to maintain tradition, playing UT, blah blah blah and adamantly opposed a move to the SEC. The vast majority of under-40 A&M fans, though, wanted to move. Since we're talking about $ Bill Byrne here, and the blue-haired folks are typically your best boosters, $ Bill naturally went where the boosters were at. That's why this article shocks me--Texas has pissed off the blue-haired A&M boosters soooooooooo much that they're willing to walk lockstep with the young'uns now. And folks thinking the Texas Legislature won't let A&M leave should think again. Texas is desperate to find a fall guy in all of this--look at the anti-Nebraska derp that Texas commanded when our independence day occurred. A&M asking to leave would trigger a second conference realignment--the perfect cover of night for Texas to slip out of the Big XII under and declare independence, complete with their own network, guilt-free. Of course there would be posturing, but when the vote happens, Texas will vote to allow A&M to leave. What's interesting is that the SEC would take Clemson--I wonder if Oklahoma would steal Clemson's ticket should the Big XII be without Texas and A&M...

I think A&M does now...one year too late. Dr. Tom should send $ Bill Byrne a card in the mail that says "sucks to be right!" Plus, if what they say about not approving the current version of the Big XII is indeed true, Texas may have made a significant tactical error...

Link This is one bonfire that is just heating up, but will be remembered for the ages.

Whoa...slow down there. Going independent doesn't kill championship ideas--in fact, it makes them easier to obtain, because champion programs cost money to make, and money to maintain. Any independent worth a bunch of money (read: Texas, BYU) will be able to take advantage of the current Notre Dame 9-win BCS threshold. That means Texas could get a BCS game and all the prestige and money without having to split it with its have-not bumpkin cousins in MO, KS, and OK. Plus, Texas gets to craft their own schedule, and it will likely look similar to that of ND or BYU--a lot of fluff, little filler. And even if Texas keeps their OU and A&M tilts, they could still lose both of these matches and one more to some random scrub and still take home millions in BCS excess simply because they have nine wins and an orange, pointy uterus on their helmet. The real, significant challenges in going independent are scheduling and network access, and I think we all know that Texas has the later all wrapped up. Actually it does kill Championships. BYU now can't go to a BCS bowl at all. They were told that when they went independent but they don't care about that. Texas doesn't have a long history of being an independent like Notre Dame does. Hell the Big 12 was worried that they would lose their BCS status because us and Colorado left. Notre Dame also has to win a certain number of games(9 i think) and be ranked in like the top 6(i think) to even be considered for a BCS bowl. Considering that the Federal Government is investigating the BCS for anti-trust violations (among other things), I seriously doubt the BCS was told "BYU now can't go to a BCS bowl at all" or anything along those lines. And frankly, considering the size of the fanbase and the better TV contract BYU got when it went independent, BYU is all but assured of sharing Notre Dame's sweetheart BCS backdoor deal, especially since Notre Dame can't seem to capitalize on it. Texas too, for that matter. And I did address the nine-win requirement, and how that's easy for Texas to achieve, even if they're only a hair above mediocre (or a bit below as they were last year). Texas would likely keep A&M and Oklahoma, mix in one annual contender, fill the rest with fluff, and *poof* instant nine-win season, even if Texas chokes to A&M and OU. We capitalized on it jus fine after they changed the rules to pay us for not going to a BCS bowl in 2007. I'm quite sure that an eligible Texas team would never get excluded as if Texas went independent then the BCS as we know it is already dead. BYU wouldn't either--while they haven't had past success on the scale that Notre Dame has, their fanbase and following is, if you go by TV money, better than Notre Dame. And frankly, if you had, say, Army go 9-3, the BCS would be hard pressed to exclude them considering the current environment of investigation, especially if it's a weak year for BCS teams.

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Delaney's not big on it currently because it hasn't generated revenue for any of the member institutions...yet. Once Nebraska gets on track and proves a Big 10 school can make money at Baseball, you'll see investment by the other Big 10 programs and Delaney warming up to the sport. Plus, Delaney will soon realize when the Pac-12 Network is made available that they will need the baseball inventory to compete for ratings and advertising money. Although I can see an outcome where your prediction of an independent status in baseball happens, especially if some Big 10 schools ditch baseball in favor of the more regionally-aligned collegiate hockey.

Whoa...slow down there. Going independent doesn't kill championship ideas--in fact, it makes them easier to obtain, because champion programs cost money to make, and money to maintain. Any independent worth a bunch of money (read: Texas, BYU) will be able to take advantage of the current Notre Dame 9-win BCS threshold. That means Texas could get a BCS game and all the prestige and money without having to split it with its have-not bumpkin cousins in MO, KS, and OK. Plus, Texas gets to craft their own schedule, and it will likely look similar to that of ND or BYU--a lot of fluff, little filler. And even if Texas keeps their OU and A&M tilts, they could still lose both of these matches and one more to some random scrub and still take home millions in BCS excess simply because they have nine wins and an orange, pointy uterus on their helmet. The real, significant challenges in going independent are scheduling and network access, and I think we all know that Texas has the later all wrapped up. Actually it does kill Championships. BYU now can't go to a BCS bowl at all. They were told that when they went independent but they don't care about that. Texas doesn't have a long history of being an independent like Notre Dame does. Hell the Big 12 was worried that they would lose their BCS status because us and Colorado left. Notre Dame also has to win a certain number of games(9 i think) and be ranked in like the top 6(i think) to even be considered for a BCS bowl. Considering that the Federal Government is investigating the BCS for anti-trust violations (among other things), I seriously doubt the BCS was told "BYU now can't go to a BCS bowl at all" or anything along those lines. And frankly, considering the size of the fanbase and the better TV contract BYU got when it went independent, BYU is all but assured of sharing Notre Dame's sweetheart BCS backdoor deal, especially since Notre Dame can't seem to capitalize on it. Texas too, for that matter. And I did address the nine-win requirement, and how that's easy for Texas to achieve, even if they're only a hair above mediocre (or a bit below as they were last year). Texas would likely keep A&M and Oklahoma, mix in one annual contender, fill the rest with fluff, and *poof* instant nine-win season, even if Texas chokes to A&M and OU.

Personally, I would add Kansas*slash*Missouri to the list--one of them will make the cut if the B1G goes to 14--both if full frontal Conference Armageddon occurs. And I only say this because Texas leaving the Big XII-II would kill the conference off and either be the start or result of Conference Realignment II: The Realigning.

Whoa...slow down there. Going independent doesn't kill championship ideas--in fact, it makes them easier to obtain, because champion programs cost money to make, and money to maintain. Any independent worth a bunch of money (read: Texas, BYU) will be able to take advantage of the current Notre Dame 9-win BCS threshold. That means Texas could get a BCS game and all the prestige and money without having to split it with its have-not bumpkin cousins in MO, KS, and OK. Plus, Texas gets to craft their own schedule, and it will likely look similar to that of ND or BYU--a lot of fluff, little filler. And even if Texas keeps their OU and A&M tilts, they could still lose both of these matches and one more to some random scrub and still take home millions in BCS excess simply because they have nine wins and an orange, pointy uterus on their helmet. The real, significant challenges in going independent are scheduling and network access, and I think we all know that Texas has the later all wrapped up.

Any good deals for NCAA 2012 out there? Got a few PS3/360 games I can trade in, but haven't seen the 'trade X games to get NCAA free' offers like in the past.

This, though a move to 14 will have to contain at least one program from a major metropolitan area for the Big Ten Network to continue to thrive, so it's likely to be a tossup between Kansas and Missouri. Kansas is supposedly still eying the Big East as their exit/collapse strategy, so I don't know if they would be receptive to a B1G invite. Maryland (along with Ga. Tech) was thrown out there as a rumor by a (Florida?) sports reporter, but nothing ever came of it since that was floated. However, Maryland is contiguous to the Big 10 footprint and would bring the Baltimore/Washington DC boob tubes (Top 25 media market) with it, which would be a net new add to the footprint, which makes me think that there is some legitimacy to the idea, though maybe not the rumor.