🏈 Big XII to exists at 10 team conference

[LBS]

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/news/story?id=5286672

PAC-10 not getting the Big XII gang. Bebee's play will keep the ten remaining teams intact. Conference to lose Championship game, but schools cools with that.

Presumably UTAH will complete the PAC-12, who will gain a Conference Championship game.

 

[shipley00]

I don't think there is anything in the rules that say you have to have a conference championship. I don't think the PAC-10 or Big 11 would every want one without a big insentive.

 

[psychojoe]

I don't think there is anything in the rules that say you have to have a conference championship. I don't think the PAC-10 or Big 11 would every want one without a big insentive.

A very good point. The Big 12 and ACC have tried the route of a conference championship game, but those games just haven't created the excitement of the SEC CG.

 

[ExiledTidefan]

And the reason those games haven't created as much excitement is because the winner isn't always in line for a shot at the national title, like the SEC has been every year since who-knows-when. Really, other than 2004 when Auburn and Tennessee played, and you knew neither team was likely going to the National Championship. I guess 2005's edition when LSU and UGA met.......

 

[rammerjammer]

2003 was unsure as well, when Saban took LSU.

I think it would make sense for the Big XII to pick up two more teams and keep going. I think it hurts them losing Nebraska. Big 12 could get TCU and Arkansas and keep things going, maybe do a little re-aligning. Either way..playing as a 10 team conference would kind of suck IMO. That means, for right now, the winner of the Red River shootout will be your big 12 champ.

 

[alagator]

I think it would make sense for the Big XII to pick up two more teams and keep going. I think it hurts them losing Nebraska. Big 12 could get TCU and Arkansas and keep things going, maybe do a little re-aligning. Either way..playing as a 10 team conference would kind of suck IMO. That means, for right now, the winner of the Red River shootout will be your big 12 champ.

The Big XII-2 will be in the ash bin of history in five or fewer years. The proposed television dollars promised will not materialize and Texas will flirt once again with the Pac 10 - only this time there will not be any false promise of huge new TV money to give them any bargaining power. And Oklahoma, afraid they will be unable to recruit in the state of Texas if they cannot promise recruits they will play UT, aTm, TT, and Baylor every year will slink along where UT goes.

Addendum: Reported on CollegeFootballTalk.com that there is currently no signed television agreement to support the tremendous increase in TV monies supporting this agreement, that Kansas-K State-Iowa State-Missouri-Baylor each agreed to give up their share of the departure penalties to be paid the league by Nebraska and Colorado to allow these monies (should be around $12MM total) to be distributed to Texas-aTm-Oklahoma, and there is NO signed agreement among the remaining programs to commit to any fixed term of membership. This is a shot-gun wedding of the purest sense. When Texas finds they have milked the cows completely dry, they will abandon this pack of losers so quick.

I never understood why the original and real Big XII did not split Texas and Oklahoma into different divisions. Just because of what will happen now, 99 times out of 100 the winner of the UT-OU game would represent the South division and they were always the big two teams in that league. Put them in different divisions, have them play each October, and most likely you would have a rematch of your two most visible teams again in early December. Maybe, looking through the window of a national title, the two schools did not want to take the chance of one team winning in October and the other in December and knocking both out of the BCS title chase.

aTm had a chance here to make a truly bold statement by joining the SEC. Step out of UT's shadow and join a solid and stable league. I really believe their recruiting would have experienced a dramatic spike selling the fact UT would be playing the same old schools (TT, Baylor, OU, OSU, Missouri, Kansas, K State) and some lesser new names (Arizona and ASU) in their division and then bringing in a Cal, Stanford, Oregon, Washington State) on a regular basis. ONE game with USC would not have been a real bonus. Where aTm could sell bringing in LSU, Alabama, Auburn, and old SWC foe Arkansas at least every other year - not to mention a Florida or Georgia or Tennessee or (probably FSU or Miami). And LSU and Alabama and Arkansas would have seen an improvement in recruiting the state of Texas, thus further knocking down their hated big brother. Oh year, and REALLY be paid about $20MM a year.

 

[LBS]

Consider last year, which is not so unlike any of the previous years. Imagine if the SEC said that Bama and Florida would not play in the SEC CHampionship game, instead saying Let the BCS pick now. BAMA and Florida would have played in the Title game and the rest of college football would have been out in the cold. The point is that the rest of college football was helped by us holding the game, while we were hurt. Without a game of their own, a conference hurts its own shot at getting the other slot.

Now consider this. WHat if that conference championship game that did not include the champs of the east and west, but rather the runner-ups. This would give the SEC a third team a chance to play itself higher into the poles. Or better yet. What if the game was played between SEC teams that had yet to reach the 6-win plateau, resulting in another team becoming bowl eligable.

I guess we win regardless of what we do with the SEC Championship Game. The question is how do those conferences compete against each other.