knapplc

Yep. Nebraska to the Big 10 won't interest congress in the least. It'll take signs of abuse by the rumored four "superconferences" before congress starts getting involved.

Not defending PSU, but as recent threads have shown, Nebraska Fan (me included) still hasn't gotten over the extra-wide field in 1983. Passionate fans are passionate, and many have long memories.

I think what we're finding out is that Nebraska has been in discussions on some level with the Big 10 since this whole thing began in December, or possibly longer ago than that. December is just when the Big 10 announced their intention of looking further into expansion, so obviously the conversations have been going on longer than that, at least internally with the Big 10. It's hard to say when Nebraska was brought into the conversation, but it's pretty safe to say we're ahead of wherever Texas and Co. are with the Pac-10. The Pac-10 announcement seems very reactionary to me, even though the Pac-10 announced a possibility of expansion in December, as well. Curiously enough, their announcement also included a 12-18 month timeline. It's only now that the possibility of Nebraska going to the Big 10 seems very real that the Pac-10 has ramped up their time frame, and the whole Texas group became involved.

Hawkeye trolls, like trolls of any other fan base, will be dealt with swiftly. That I can assure you. Anyone is welcome to come and talk sports with the Husker fans here. Conversations can even get passionate. But I will not tolerate trollery, not one tiny little bit.

Did this really need its own thread, or couldn't you have posted this as a reply to the dozen other threads where this has been discussed?

It's my understanding that NU is well beyond ND when it comes to graduate/research facilities. Thus, if the ND academics get their wish of Big Ten admittance to buoy their programs; then I would imagine that it can only help NU as well. As far as whether the support for NU's present work was establishing a ground work for Big Ten admittance, I would probably say no. However, any time that a university with NU's abilities decides to increase their facilities, it would make them attractive to suitors that may or may not include the Big Ten. This takes me into a neophyte understanding of the CIC. One point that most people don't realize (because I had not clue) is that the CIC is a cooperative not just in sharing funding, but also allows students from said schools to study at the other schools as well. It's a complete sharing philosophically and physically. Yes, the CIC is a total sharing of academic knowledge and resources. Over 100 students a year take advantage of the ability to transfer without penalty from one CIC school to another to further their research. Michigan is undertaking a project right now that will allow access to their entire library of books to every CIC member electronically, and the plan is to extend that electronic library to the whole conference eventually. Penn State is a great example of what can happen when you get plugged in to the CIC. They went from an OK school, around on par with where Nebraska is now, to a top-15 school today. That's the kind of planning for the future that Perlman and Osborne are working on for Nebraska.

I would imagine that there would be an explosion of facilities/renovations in quick order. It's funny you mention that, because Nebraska is breaking ground very soon on a large research campus just north of the downtown campus, on what was Nebraska's old State Fair grounds. This project has been in the works for about three years, which makes me wonder if Nebraska to the Big 10 hasn't been thought about on a purely hypothetical basis for quite a while.

I think KU will be fine, too. I think it's a shame that the Kansas government is going to tie KSU to Kansas' hip. If the Jayhawks could go on their own, I think the Big 10 would have a hard time turning them down. I like Kansas and always have. I hope for the best for them, but we really have to look out for ourselves here.

That probably has more to do with needing to meet deadlines than anything else.

Where have you been the last couple of years? How have you missed those very comments by visitors from the South? You people act like mentioning Kansas' losses in the Big Dance is some crime. Get a grip!

It's definitely lack of seeing the big picture. Most of the people unhappy with the move focus on football, and specifically the Big 10's perceived strength at this moment. It's a case of not being able to see past your nose - all thoughts are about the here and now, this moment in time. People have discussed Michigan as being "weak" and the conference overall as weak. Oddly, in those same threads you'll find people saying we can't compete in the Big 10 - basically saying it's a weak football conference, but we're not good enough to be successful, despite the fact that we just competed in our own conference's championship game and came damned close to winning. Clearly these arguments aren't based on much logic, but a lot of emotion. Further, I have yet to see a poster who is against this move address the economic benefits to Nebraska, both in BTN money and CIC grants. And nobody at all is discussing how the cooperative nature of the CIC will necessarily benefit Nebraska academically. While there are arguments against joining, they're not well-thought-out and they're mostly based on emotion, and adherence to the past.

Surely you're not advocating we sell it and use the proceeds?

You don't think Sip's backing off of this, do you? I imagine not considering Lee's report in the OWH. What about this column makes you think he's backing off?

There have been a couple of polls here on this site, which were mostly positive about the move. There are people with concerns, and that likely won't change, but they're in the minority, I believe.

People here give Kansas all due respect in basketball. They've choked a couple of times against lesser opponents. You're saying that because we always suck at BB that we can't ever mention Kansas' troubles? Get real.

How does our complete lack of success in the NCAA tourney make it any less true that Kansas has a history of choking? Both are true, right?

I don't read Danny's stuff, but I would agree that would get annoying - and I'm a fan of playoffs. I think we're all in agreement that playoffs don't solve all problems, and I think most of us would agree that at least some of the bowls are a lot of fun to watch, if not all of them. But for determining a champion, flawed as the process may be, the bracket system is the best way to go.

Kansas State Fan getting in their last shots at Nebraska before we wipe the last vestiges of them from our heel. That's OK, Wildcat Fan - be petty. You're nothing but an embarrassing guest at the Big XII table. You have been a weight around the neck of the Big XII North these past ten years, and you're going to continue to be a chain around the neck of Kansas, preventing them from moving on to a successful conference, as this all plays out. Without being linked to KSU by the Kansas legislature, it's very, very possible Kansas is the team being invited to join Nebraska in the Big 10, not Missouri. Kansas has more revenue, brings in a similar number of TV sets, and has success in football and unparalleled success in basketball. If the Big 10 could draw the KU basketball program into their fold they'd do it in a heartbeat, and gladly take that over Missouri's football program. But they can't, because Kansas State has to come along for the ride wherever KU goes, and that's unpalatable to the Big 10. It's unpalatable to the Pac-10 as well, and probably not something the MWC or C-USA is really thrilled about. You stay classy calling Nebraska irrelevant, KSU Fan. We'll see how things look five years from now, and who's irrelevant. I'm willing to bet it's not us.

Gave the wife a few beers and some new socks!! lol ok ok http://photobucket.com/images/husker/ There are like a million pictures in that link. Care to shorten it down? Or post it in the Shed. Help a brother out! PM me if you don't have the password to the Woodshed. I'll gladly give it to you for a better shot of that. I'm definitely a legs kind of guy.

Well, technically Nebraska and any other school would have to apply to the Big 10 and go through an acceptance process. The best thing the Big 10 could do is let it be known through backdoor channels that "If you applied, we would accept you." I know it's a semantic difference, but it's the way the process works.

If that doesn't tell you that we're moving to the Big 10, nothing will. Anyone who's listened to Tom Osborne over the past 40 years knows how parsimonious he is with his statements. This ranks right up there with the biggest insinuations Osborne has ever given on anything. He's not talking about staying in the Big XII for 75 to 100 years, because as dysfunctional as this conference is, it will not last that long, period. The Big 10 has already lasted 100 years and looks destined to last another. I see only one way to read that statement, and it means we're going to the Big 10. Probably very soon.

Welcome to the board! Make yourself at home. Be sure to visit our Conference Expansion forum for all of the latest rumors on what's going on with the Huskers.

If you think about it, isn't the Pac-10 about the only "major" conference that could be bullied into taking the Texas Four? The SEC would have none of it. The Big 10 would laugh in their collective faces. The Pac-10 with their laissez-faire attitude just might be vulnerable to being forced into taking all of those schools. I have some buddies who are Oregon fans. It'll be interesting to see how they feel about it in a year or so if Texas and Co. join up. I'm certain the honeymoon won't last long.

Andy Staples from SI sat down with Baylor president Ken Starr (yeah, that guy), and found out that Mr. Starr isn't all that good at keeping information secret. Good article, Andy: