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.

[Saul Good]

Originally Posted by Wickedson

Missouri isn't being "held hostage". They are being told that their agreements must be honored like any other organization or person that enters into a contract with another.

Can that be negotiated out? Most likely.

We live in a society with agreements that bind factions together for a million different reasons.

You can't just up and decide that "I'm done with this and move on."

please

Missouri signed an agreement to be in a 12 team conference that included Colorado, Nebraska, and Texas A&M. The conference has not delivered, and Missouri wants out.

[Pants]

Originally Posted by Saul Good

Missouri signed an agreement to be in a 12 team conference that included Colorado, Nebraska, and Texas A&M. The conference has not delivered, and Missouri wants out.

You got that contract handy?

[mikeyis4dcats.]

Originally Posted by Saul Good

Missouri signed an agreement to be in a 12 team conference that included Colorado, Nebraska, and Texas A&M. The conference has not delivered, and Missouri wants out.

And then Missouri reaffirmed it's membership in the conference after NU and CU left, happily taking it's portion of the exit fees.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by mikeyis4dcats.

And then Missouri reaffirmed it's membership in the conference after NU and CU left, happily taking it's portion of the exit fees.

Again - this didn't actually happen. The meetings after Colorado and Nebraska left led to a lot of non-binding crap and hippy handholding sessions where everyone said they'd agree to get along in the future and explore things as necessary.

In fact, my understanding is that the exit fees haven't been paid yet, either.

There is no new 'membership' contract. The by-laws remain the same. The potential fees and arguments w/ them remain the same.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by duncan_idaho

In a piece of actual news...

The LHN isn't on life support yet, but things look bad.

Anyone want to take bets on how long Texas sticks around if/when the LHN fails?

Dangerous spot for ISU, KU, KSU, etc. If the LHN is a roaring success, Texas has the ammo to pull a ND and go independent for everything except football. If the LHN is a huge failure, ESPN and UT fold up shop, and UT has nothing to keep it from being an attractive partner for the PAC or B1G.

I feel like Wildcats, Jayhawks, Cyclones and Bears should be rooting for the LHN to be a break-even type deal for Texas.

No doubt. The LHN needs to just keep limping along for the next decade and then maybe the IIX will stabilize.

If it takes off or implodes, the IIX will collapse behind it for the reasons you've suggested.

Again - it's just not a good place to be unless your alternative is the Big East.

[Saul Good]

Originally Posted by mikeyis4dcats.

And then Missouri reaffirmed it's membership in the conference after NU and CU left, happily taking it's portion of the exit fees.

That would be an excellent point if any part of it were true.

[ferrarispider95]

Originally Posted by Saul Good

Missouri signed an agreement to be in a 12 team conference that included Colorado, Nebraska, and Texas A&M. The conference has not delivered, and Missouri wants out.

It reaffirmed it is affiliation after Colorado and Nebraska moved out. Your only gripe is A&M.

I wanted Missouri to stay because of traditional rivalries and geography, but I have moved past that point. IMHO Louisville is an excellent replacement.

The holdup between the Big 12 and Missouri is next years schedule. Our tv contract stipulates a ten team league as well the scheduling difficulties to add another game for the 2012 season.

As soon as those issues are resolved, I am sure Mizzou will be on to the SEC and the big 12 will ad a Louisville, BYU, or WVU. My preference is in that order.

But, don't act like the big 12 is holding you hostage. If there was so much resentment, you should have bolted last year. Except, you didn't have a landing spot with the big 10 and you are not strong enough pull to go to the SEC by yourself, you needed A&M which forced the SEC to get to 14 teams.

I am honest with my prospects on KU and KSU, if this thing blew up, KU had a small chance at the PAC, but more realistically both would have headed to the big east. I am happy the big 12 is still around and looking to add more teams.

[Mr. Plow]

Originally Posted by Saul Good

Missouri signed an agreement to be in a 12 team conference that included Colorado, Nebraska, and Texas A&M. The conference has not delivered, and Missouri wants out.

Just keep tooting that horn....maybe someone, somewhere will believe you that will be the reason you'll get out of exit fees.

[HemiEd]

Originally Posted by Saul Good

West Virginia has the most tv sets, but half of them are non-working sets that sit beneath working ones.

This is so funny coming from a Mizzou fan, the irony.

Didn't Eazyb1 document that Mizzou had won the most confederate flags per capita award just last week?

[Bambi]

Originally Posted by Saul Good

Missouri signed an agreement to be in a 12 team conference that included Colorado, Nebraska, and Texas A&M. The conference has not delivered, and Missouri wants out.

Your intelligence level keeps falling in this thread.

You should stop.

Or like MU..... leave like a bitch.

[HemiEd]

Originally Posted by Mr. Plow

Seriously though, they'll be a dominate team in the SEC....I swear. The last 5 minus this year prove it.

They are going to be really good once they get some money from them southern boys, and steal all their recruits.

[ferrarispider95]

Honest question to Mizzou fans, do you have an invite if A&M doesn't leave the big 12?

Lets just say, you wanted to be the catalyst after hearing Texas flirt with the Pac and A&M was content following Texas, but they both decided to stay in the big 12, so no race to get to 16.

[ferrarispider95]

Honest question to Mizzou fans, do you have an invite if A&M doesn't leave the big 12?

Lets just say, you wanted to be the catalyst after hearing Texas flirt with the Pac and A&M was content following Texas, but they both decided to stay in the big 12, so no race to get to 16.

[Mr. Plow]

Originally Posted by HemiEd

They are going to be really good once they get some money from them southern boys, and steal all their recruits.

[Saul Good]

Originally Posted by Mr. Plow

Just keep tooting that horn....maybe someone, somewhere will believe you that will be the reason you'll get out of exit fees.

You want to place a wager on what the exit fees will be? I'll take under $10,000,000. You can have the over.