New Conference re-alignment thread

[Saulbadguy]

The old one has AIDS.

Anyways, Chip Brown from Orangebloods.com reports OU may apply to the Pac-12 by the end of the month.

Oklahoma will apply for membership to the Pac-12 before the end of the month, and Oklahoma State is expected to follow suit, a source close to OU's administration told Orangebloods.com.

Even though Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott said Friday the Pac-12 was not interested in expansion at this time, OU's board of regents is fed up with the instability in the Big 12, the source said.

The OU board of regents will meet within two weeks to formalize plans to apply for membership to the Pac-12, the source said.

Messages left Sunday night with OU athletic director Joe Castiglione and Oklahoma State athletic director Mike Holder were not immediately returned.

If OU follows through with what appears to be a unanimous sentiment on the seven-member Oklahoma board of regents to leave the Big 12, realignment in college athletics could be heating back up. OU's application would be matched by an application from Oklahoma State, the source said, even though OSU president Burns Hargis and mega-booster Boone Pickens both voiced their support for the Big 12 last Thursday.

There is differing sentiment about if the Pac-12 presidents and chancellors are ready to expand again after bringing in Colorado and Utah last year and landing $3 billion TV contracts from Fox and ESPN. Colorado president Bruce Benson told reporters last week CU would be opposed to any expansion that might bring about east and west divisions in the Pac-12.

Currently, there are north and south divisions in the Pac-12. If OU and OSU were to join, Larry Scott would have to get creative.

Scott's orginal plan last summer was to bring in Colorado, Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State and put them in an eastern division with Arizona and Arizona State. The old Pac-8 schools (USC, UCLA, Cal, Stanford, Oregon, Oregon State, Washington and Washington State) were to be in the west division.

Colorado made the move in June 2010, but when Texas A&M was not on board to go west, the Big 12 came back together with the help of its television partners (ABC/ESPN and Fox).

If Oklahoma and Oklahoma State were accepted into the Pac-12, there would undoubtedly be a hope by Larry Scott that Texas would join the league. But Texas sources have indicated UT is determined to hang onto the Longhorn Network, which would not be permissible in the Pac-12 in its current form.

Texas sources continue to indicate to Orangebloods.com that if the Big 12 falls apart, the Longhorns would consider "all options."

Big 12 commissioner Dan Beebe held an emergency conference call 10 days ago with league presidents excluding Oklahoma, Texas and Texas A&M and asked the other league presidents to "work on Texas" because Beebe didn't think the Pac-12 would take Oklahoma without Texas.

Now, it appears OU is willing to take its chances with the Pac-12 with or without Texas.

There seemed to be a temporary pause in any possible shifting of the college athletics' landscape when Baylor led a charge to tie up Texas A&M's move to the Southeastern Conference in legal red tape. BU refused to waive its right to sue the SEC over A&M's departure from the Big 12, and the SEC said it would not admit Texas A&M until it had been cleared of any potential lawsuits.

Baylor, Kansas and Iowa State have indicated they will not waive their right to sue the SEC.

It's unclear if an application by OU to the Pac-12 would draw the same threats of litigation against the Pac-12 from those Big 12 schools.

Stay tuned.

[Brock]

Originally Posted by KcMizzou

A response to the concern in the KC media about losing the BIG 12 Tourney.

The concern over that is limited to KC media? You think the city isn't wondering about that? The chamber? The KCVA? I guarantee you there is a ton of angst over it.

[Brock]

Originally Posted by Bowser

Is he making reference to the Big XII, or whatever other conference MU ends up in?

I'm not sure, but the point of what he's saying is trying to reassure a bunch of people that they'll still make money off Missouri games. (And that if it doesn't happen, it's not Mizzou's fault nobody wants to schedule them.)

[UL Washington]

And Mark May went to Pitt which just bolted for the ACC, interesting.

[Priest31kc]

Everybody hates Mizzou right now. Oh well, **** em.

[Bowser]

I had no idea the University of Missouri was the lynchpin to the ecconomic success or failure of Kansas City, MO.

[KcMizzou]

Originally Posted by Brock

I'm not sure, but the point of what he's saying is trying to reassure a bunch of people that they'll still make money off Missouri games. (And that if it doesn't happen, it's not Mizzou's fault nobody wants to schedule them.)

If KU had a chance to go to another major conference right now, would you want them to go?

[Brock]

Originally Posted by KcMizzou

If KU had a chance to go to another major conference right now, would you want them to go?

Has nothing to do with what I'm saying. I don't care if Missouri leaves, the conference has been a zombie for a while now. It became pretty meaningless to me when Nebraska and Colorado left.

[Brock]

I shouldn't say I don't care if Missouri leaves, I do care. But I am resigned to it, the old Big 8 is dead and a major reason I followed college sports at all is sort of gone with it.

[Bowser]

Originally Posted by Brock

I shouldn't say I don't care if Missouri leaves, I do care. But I am resigned to it, the old Big 8 is dead and a major reason I followed college sports at all is sort of gone with it.

In your opinion, who or what is to blame for that? And I mean specifically - "greed" isn't an acceptable answer. For me, I'm placing the blame squarely at the feet of Dan Beebe. His lack of spine destroyed the Big 8/XII, imo.

[dirk digler]

Originally Posted by mnchiefsguy

If they are willing to play KU, and are not making any ludicrous demands, then I don't see what fault you can hang Mizzou with. If KU wants to refuse and lose money on the deal, then they can live with that. Considering the state of the KU football program, they need a profitable game at Arrowhead with Mizzou much more than Mizzou does.

Yep. If KU doesn't want the $1.25 million dollars or so to play MU then MU can move the Florida or Alabama game to Arrowhead and have SEC football right in the backyard of Big 12 country. I wonder how that will taste in Jayhawk land.

[Frazod]

Originally Posted by UL Washington

And Mark May went to Pitt which just bolted for the ACC, interesting.

About the only good thing I can say about May is that he's marginally smarter than that idiot **** Holtz.

At this point it's ridiculous for anyone to think that Missouri doesn't have some sort of deal in place, and is merely whoring itself out to other conferences.

[Bowser]

Originally Posted by Spott

It's funny how people want to make Mizzou out to be the bad guy in all of this and that they will somehow be responsible for KC losing the Big 12 tournament and possibly some Big 12 championship games if the conference ever gets back to 12 teams again.

Before the SWC reject schools from Texas joined the conference, KC had the Big 8 tournament every year and was also home to the conference headquarters. As soon as the Texas schools joined, Tom Penders started bitching about how unfair it was that they had to travel all the way up there for the tournament even though the Big 8 is the one that allowed them to join the conference. Within a few years of the Texas schools bitching, the Big 12 tournament was only played in KC every few years and conference headquarters were moved to Dallas. The funnny thing is that even though the tournament has been rotated to different locations, none of the 4 Texas schools have managed to win the tournament yet and hopefully never will. If Mizzou does leave, it's really just a big F**k you to Texas. Texas has been sticking it to the old Big 8 schools the last 15 years and are the ones responsible for screwing over KC.

What the hell are you thinking bringing this level headedness to this thread?

[Brock]

Originally Posted by Bowser

In your opinion, who or what is to blame for that? And I mean specifically - "greed" isn't an acceptable answer. For me, I'm placing the blame squarely at the feet of Dan Beebe. His lack of spine destroyed the Big 8/XII, imo.

Obviously the roots of it all are when we said yes to Texas. But on the other hand, I also think that most of the teams of the North came out ahead in terms of recruiting, making their teams better, and making their teams more high profile as a result of being in the same conference as all those Texas schools. I don't know that there is a lot Beebe could have done, but that's JMO.

[Bowser]

Originally Posted by frazod

At this point it's ridiculous for anyone to think that Missouri doesn't have some sort of deal in place, and is merely whoring itself out to other conferences.

And I have a problem with that. If you've got a deal, jump on it. Quit flirting with the ****ing B1G, and go play football on CBS on Saturdays.

[Brock]

Originally Posted by dirk digler

Yep. If KU doesn't want the $1.25 million dollars or so to play MU then MU can move the Florida or Alabama game to Arrowhead and have SEC football right in the backyard of Big 12 country. I wonder how that will taste in Jayhawk land.

It would be fantastic. I would go to that game.