Great write up of what happened with Texas and the Big12

[MGoBlue]

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/andy_staples/06/15/texas-expansion/index.html

 

 

AUSTIN, Texas -- They've been talking a lot about textbooks and revisionist history in this town the past few months. So it only seems germane to ask: If, in five, 10 or 20 years, someone writes a history of the Big 12 conference, how will the text describe the events of late May and early June in 2010?

If the book is published in Austin, it might describe how the University of Texas swooped in at the last moment to rescue the conference from utter annihilation by turning down a deal from the Pac-10. It will praise president Bill Powers and athletic director DeLoss Dodds for their concern for their region, their Big 12 colleagues and the poor student-athletes who would have missed so much class while playing in Eugene or Palo Alto.

If the book is published in College Station, it might describe how Texas A&M's flirtation with the SEC scared the mighty Longhorns right back into the Big 12 because Texas feared A&M would grow too powerful thanks to an influx of new cash and the added football recruiting boost the Aggies would receive from membership in a conference that occupies a ton of prime national television real estate.

If the book is published in Lubbock, it might describe how those bullies, Texas, Texas A&M and Oklahoma, strongarmed the other seven into giving them all the departure penalties that will be collected as a result of Colorado leaving for the Pac-10 and Nebraska leaving for the Big Ten.

If the book is published by some hippie out in California, it might describe how Texas strung along the Pac-10, demanding its local TV rights at the 11th hour when the Pac-10 had always assumed schools would turn over their local rights so the league could start a cable network. At that point, the Pac-10 walked away from the table, allowing Texas to return to a league it could control with an even sweeter deal and no pesky Cornnhuskers to muck up all the conference get-togethers.

After conversations with people in every camp, it's obvious the truth is somewhere between all those views.

Though it pains Aggies and Sooners to hear this, Texas did save the Big 12. "Texas," Big 12 commissioner Dan Beebe admitted Tuesday, "has a lot of influence." Texas did not save the league because of any noble, altruistic act, though. It saved the Big 12 because it wanted the best deal for Texas. And while there's absolutely nothing wrong with that -- heck, that's how business entities in this country are supposed to operate -- the Longhorns shouldn't position themselves as champions of the downtrodden, either.

Throughout this entire process, readers have written and complained that Texas or Notre Dame or the Big Ten or the SEC has too much influence. I always responded the same way. Conference realignments have always been governed by the Golden Rule: He who has the gold makes the rules. At the moment, Texas has the most gold of any individual program.

Basically, the Longhorns swung for the fences, missed, and, in the process, saved the conference. If the Pac-10 had caved and given Texas its local TV rights so it could start its own cable network, Texas would have had the sweetest deal in all of college sports. It was a deal no self-respecting university president would have turned down. Texas could attempt that negotiating gambit because Beebe had gotten positive vibes from TV partner Fox about "exponential" revenue increases when Fox's contract expires at the end of the 2011-12 school year. Beebe also secured a pledge from ESPN/ABC to continue paying at the same rate until its contract expires in 2016 despite the fact that the conference lost two schools and will no longer stage a football championship game. That means 10 schools will split $60 million a year instead of 12. "The Big 12 approached us asking if we would maintain our agreement through its term of 2015-16, and we agreed," ESPN spokesman Mike Humes said in a statement from the network.

So when the Pac-10 declined to cave in to the Longhorns' demands, Texas simply moved to its next (also excellent) option: make a few million more than it does now, start its cable network and essentially run a BCS conference. To seal the deal, the other seven agreed to fork over the penalty money to Texas, Oklahoma and Texas A&M, all of which also had been coveted by other leagues. (The offer has yet to be accepted by the big three.) Oklahoma, as one of the nation's most powerful football programs, had plenty of juice. Texas A&M, a top 25 revenue program with keen interest from the SEC, also had bargaining power. The rest did not, with the possible exception of Oklahoma State threatening to cut off all interviews with superbooster T. Boone Pickens. "They were being hotly pursued by a number of conferences," Beebe said of the Big Three. "Their value is based on their tradition and their success, and all three of them could have left for desirable situations."

At the end of the day, though, Texas took care of Texas. "Every family I know tries to take care of their family first," Texas football coach Mack Brown said Tuesday in a way only Mack Brown can. "And then they try to help their friends." That the Big 12 stayed afloat was a happy accident. Again, there is nothing wrong with that. If fans of Missouri or Texas Tech or Oklahoma State don't like playing in a league run by the Longhorns, they have two options: Join another conference or hire smart executives and coaches and find a way to make more money than Texas.

It may seem as if Texas has been the nation's richest, most powerful program forever, but that's not even close to true. In 1991, it was Notre Dame, which had just signed its first deal with NBC. Notre Dame remains powerful, but it isn't as strong as Texas. In 2030, some other school will be the nation's most powerful, and it will control a conference or hold all the cards in a realignment standoff.

We very well could see a repeat of this saga in a few years. Beebe and Texas president Powers said Tuesday that the only commitment the league required of its 10 remaining members were "strong public statements of unequivocal commitment." (Yes, both men used that identical phrase.) Obviously, a financial penalty remains for schools that would leave the league, but that didn't stop Nebraska or Colorado. Would it stop Missouri if the Big Ten -- a rumored suitor -- came calling? "I've talked to [Missouri athletic director] Mike Alden," Texas athletic director Dodds said Tuesday. "I had a good long conversation with him, and I feel very comfortable with where Missouri is."

That's still not entirely reassuring. How does anyone know whether a league that almost fell apart because Texas has too much power and came back together because Texas has too much power won't simply fall apart again -- probably because Texas has too much power? No one knows, just as no one knows when some conference will next try to radically realign college sports.

"If we live long enough," Dodds said, "it's going to happen all over again."

And when it does, the winners probably will write the history.

 

 

[Hunter94]

Texas had their way with the rest of the Big 12 lite teams, they (Missouri, KU, KS , Baylor and IS) were just happy to have a BCS conference to play in, they let Texas have everything they wanted, to keep them and OU in it....i guess everyone has their "price"....the little 12 will only last 2-3 years before the next raid takes place, it is inevitable.

[_JT_]

Texas had their way with the rest of the Big 12 lite teams, they (Missouri, KU, KS , Baylor and IS) were just happy to have a BCS conference to play in, they let Texas have everything they wanted, to keep them and OU in it....i guess everyone has their "price"....the little 12 will only last 2-3 years before the next raid takes place, it is inevitable.

 

New "Big X(II)" Logo:

[Chef K]

Texas had their way with the rest of the Big 12 lite teams, they (Missouri, KU, KS , Baylor and IS) were just happy to have a BCS conference to play in, they let Texas have everything they wanted, to keep them and OU in it....i guess everyone has their "price"....the little 12 will only last 2-3 years before the next raid takes place, it is inevitable.

 

New "Big X(II)" Logo:

You left one S outta Texas.

[irafreak]

What an eyesore....good read but man....

[deedsker15]

What an eyesore....good read but man....

 

just to sum it up for ya

 

TEXAS SUCKS!!!!!

 

that is all...

[rawhide]

I think someone has said the new name is tada "Longhorn League".

 

 

GBR

[Ponderosa]

SWC - Part II: Resurrection

 

 

[HuskerfaninOkieland]

Texas had their way with the rest of the Big 12 lite teams, they (Missouri, KU, KS , Baylor and IS) were just happy to have a BCS conference to play in, they let Texas have everything they wanted, to keep them and OU in it....i guess everyone has their "price"....the little 12 will only last 2-3 years before the next raid takes place, it is inevitable.

 

New "Big X(II)" Logo:

You left one S outta Texas.

This

[Mike N]

Except for his lack of information about the LARGE part the almost-departure of A&M had in the mess, he's pretty much right on target. You take care of your own family first, and he who has the gold.......

 

I'm not sayin' it's right, I'm just sayin' it is.

[psylentbob]

If Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Missouri and Baylor are smart they will begin looking right now at their future alternatives. They all got lucky this time with Texas staying. This was going to screw over these universities big time (especially Iowa State who was not rumored to have ANY new home). Maybe now is a good time to start having a plan in place when this happens again instead of standing around and not thinking of the future.

[HuskerTrucker]

If Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Missouri and Baylor are smart they will begin looking right now at their future alternatives. They all got lucky this time with Texas staying. This was going to screw over these universities big time (especially Iowa State who was not rumored to have ANY new home). Maybe now is a good time to start having a plan in place when this happens again instead of standing around and not thinking of the future.

 

I could see Missouri landing in the Big Ten yet, though it is a long shot...otherwise they can join KU and go to the MAC...lol.

 

As far as KSU and ISU...they will be left out in the cold, playing in some minor conference with no meaning. IF KU and Missouri don't figure it out they might be left out too. It is only a matter of time before OSU or OU, or possibly A&M or Missouri bolt. I used to think that Texas would pull another fast one and go for either the SEC or PAC 10 again, but then I have figured out that one of the reasons Texas stayed was they figured they had a shot at dominating this conference on the field, where they probably wouldn't do that in one of those "other" conferences.

[I am I]

Great article, good Sig JT, good riddance texass...

 

history will be remember by Oct. 16, 2010 when gives texass a whippin and we exit to a better conference with more integrity and better academic standards, and more $$$.

 

BTW, write this down: texass will be out of the B12-2 or the B12-2 will be dissolved in 3 years or less. So history will be like the 3 days that the French were actually winning the Franco-American war: no one cares, no one knows..and just like the French only like the French, only texass football likes texass football.

[huKSer]

Great article, good Sig JT, good riddance texass...

 

history will be remember by Oct. 16, 2010 when gives texass a whippin and we exit to a better conference with more integrity and better academic standards, and more $$$.

 

BTW, write this down: texass will be out of the B12-2 or the B12-2 will be dissolved in 3 years or less. So history will be like the 3 days that the French were actually winning the Franco-American war: no one cares, no one knows..and just like the French only like the French, only texass football likes texass football.

When was this?

 

EDIT: Never mind, the interwebs are amazing

[redblooded]

I still don't see where this "exponential" increase in cash the big 12 is gonna get is coming from. It lost a media market in Denver, even if they didn't care much about college sports and a brand in Nebraska. You have at least 3 schools that bring absolutely nothing to the table in the Football or TV market picture in baylor, kstate, and isu... Mizzou and Kansas wouldn't get left without a conference, they just won't be first to be picked in gym class.

 

The conference is pretty locked from expansion by stronger conferences so it's not going to get any better. No school in their right mind would jump from the SEC or in ND's case a basically standing invite to the big ten to join that dysfunctional conference. I don't care how much money crazy Jerry Jones wants to toss around. It's like the old Texas boys remember the glory days of the SWC and want to relive it with Arkansas again and think that suggesting they invite ND is somehow going to jab at the big 10, but I don't think Arkansas views them as any kind of glory days and I don't think ND needs Jerry's money.

 

So you are stuck with 2 of the north teams with the most past history in football gone, nothing to do to strengthen the conference, which just 2 weeks ago had 7 of the ten exploring or wishing for other options, a lost a media market and supposedly you are going to see double the money from 17 million/year for the smaller 5 school from where exactly? Not to mention that only closes the ever expanding gap the conference faces against the big ten and its network, and eventually the pac10 and its network, and the sec and the power of its programs.

 

Somebody's doing some fuzzy math. I'm not buying it. Thank god we aren't going to be in that conference anymore is the bottom line. Good luck to KSU, ISU, Kansas, and Mizzou... You're gonna need it.