BYU to the Big 12 before Utah to the Pac 10

http://collegesportsblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/05/report-nebraska-mizzou-invited-to-big-te.html



Let the summer expansion fun begin!

nebraska's denying it



http://my.journalstar.com/post/Husker_Extra_Group/Husker_Extra/blog/perlman_report_untrue.html

ESPN radio mentioned the invites to the four schools this afternoon, but their website has not offered anymore information to confirm it. It will be great to know whether this is true or not.

33311710 wrote:
nebraska's denying it



http://my.journalstar.com/post/Husker_Extra_Group/Husker_Extra/blog/perlman_report_untrue.html

and Nebraska's Chancelor is known for being truthful and forthcoming based on his assessment that the BCS is a fair system that doesn't need to be fixed...

Wickchad84087 wrote:

nebraska's denying it



http://my.journalstar.com/post/Husker_Extra_Group/Husker_Extra/blog/perlman_report_untrue.html

and Nebraska's Chancelor is known for being truthful and forthcoming based on his assessment that the BCS is a fair system that doesn't need to be fixed...

Exactly!



Really, though, there's no SNIFF of this on ANY major sports news site - which tells me this isn't as "official" as this radio station would have us believe.

According to Cougarboard the story is being picked up on other websites and newspapers.

scott715 wrote:
According to Cougarboard the story is being picked up on other websites and newspapers.

But still not the big boys. If there was real substance to this (yet), ESPN, CNNSI, Sportsline, etc would be ALL over it. And not a whisper on ANY of them.



Which tells me that, for now, it's still just rumor and speculation.

scott715 wrote:
According to Cougarboard the story is being picked up on other websites and newspapers.

Well, yes, multiple other media outlets are carrying the story, but all of them I've seen have referred back to the original radio network, whose sources are, of course, anonymous. Not saying it isn't true, I am saying they're playing this one close to the vest.

33311710 wrote:

According to Cougarboard the story is being picked up on other websites and newspapers.

But still not the big boys. If there was real substance to this (yet), ESPN, CNNSI, Sportsline, etc would be ALL over it. And not a whisper on ANY of them.



Which tells me that, for now, it's still just rumor and speculation.

Though the SportsCenter following PTI dedicated a whole segment to this exact report.

Here's what this article said about the Big Ten expansion.

Big Ten presidents and chancellors are expected to discuss expansion at meetings in Chicago in June.

http://www.chicagobreakingsports.com/2010/05/missouri-mulling-big-ten-expansion-issues.html



How can the Big Ten offer Missouri, Nebraska, Notre Dame, and the Rutgers now IF the presidents and chancellors are discussing this in June???



All this speculation doesn't add up.

BigCougsFan wrote:
Here's what this article said about the Big Ten expansion.

Big Ten presidents and chancellors are expected to discuss expansion at meetings in Chicago in June.

http://www.chicagobreakingsports.com/2010/05/missouri-mulling-big-ten-expansion-issues.html



How can the Big Ten offer Missouri, Nebraska, Notre Dame, and the Rutgers now IF the presidents and chancellors are discussing this in June???



All this speculation doesn't add up.

Amen.



I think that the Big ten has maybe TALKED to these schools to gauge interest levels - and somehow this bozo at the radio station got wind of that and blew it WAY out of proportion (not that the find Media would EVER do such a crazy thing!)

33311710 wrote:

Here's what this article said about the Big Ten expansion.

Big Ten presidents and chancellors are expected to discuss expansion at meetings in Chicago in June.

http://www.chicagobreakingsports.com/2010/05/missouri-mulling-big-ten-expansion-issues.html



How can the Big Ten offer Missouri, Nebraska, Notre Dame, and the Rutgers now IF the presidents and chancellors are discussing this in June???



All this speculation doesn't add up.

Amen.



I think that the Big ten has maybe TALKED to these schools to gauge interest levels - and somehow this bozo at the radio station got wind of that and blew it WAY out of proportion (not that the find Media would EVER do such a crazy thing!)

Agreed, but at the same time, it's kinda like asking a girl to marry you. You sure as hell better not ask the question til you know the answer. The report could be generally accurate in substance, and it has all been finding out off the record whether or not she'll say yes. It's very possible that their head honcho meeting is the ring shopping, and the Big 10 will be making proposals VERY shortly after meeting adjourns. The Big 10 won't give anybody the rush like they did Notre Dame only to walk away with a no. Fool me once...

I'm kind of hoping this rumor is only half true. If BYU gets into the Big 12 it would be in the north division. We don't want to be in the north division with no one else prestigious to play. I hope that Nebraska declines but Colorado, Missouri, or Iowa State leave to provide a slot for BYU to take. I'd love to have Nebraska on the schedule every year with KSU, Kansas, OSU and then occationally get Texas, Oklahoma, and A&M.

Wickchad84087 wrote:
I'm kind of hoping this rumor is only half true. If BYU gets into the Big 12 it would be in the north division. We don't want to be in the north division with no one else prestigious to play. I hope that Nebraska declines but Colorado, Missouri, or Iowa State leave to provide a slot for BYU to take. I'd love to have Nebraska on the schedule every year with KSU, Kansas, OSU and then occationally get Texas, Oklahoma, and A&M.

I would think that if this were to happen, if CU, Neb, and Missouri were to bolt, they'd realign the divisions. I think the Big 12 would LOVE to have OU and Texas in different divisions.



Assuming these 3 teams do leave, the new divisions could look something like this:



North:

BYU

OU

Kansas

KSU

Iowa St

OSU





South:

Texas

A&M

TCU

Baylor

Tech

Houston? (SMU? Louisville? Utah? CSU?)





Or you might even see an East/West split instead of North/South.



Either way, if Neb, Mizzu, and CU all leave, guaranteed - the divisions get realigned within the Big 12 (until Texas and T A&M bolt to the SEC and the whole conference implodes)

If the Big 12 gets anyting more than a token loss of 1 or 2 immaterial teams I don't think anyone can predict what will happen. Nebraska is not immaterial. Colorado is. Iowa State is. Missouri, KU, Kansas tough calls - maybe immaterial. Baylor - no one would care. Okla St - material as would be A&M or T Tech. Texas or OU would change everything.



It seems the Mountain west can sit aorund like veryone else seems to be doing to see wha the BIg 10 dictates to them or take action to better their current situation and possibly insulate them selves from such chaos.



Unfortunatley, what you would do to insulae yourself from a Big 12 meltdown scenario might be useless in a scenario nwhere the Big 12 or PAC 10 want to tgrab 1 or 2 MWC teams.



I like the Big 12 melt-down scenario better.



I I had the HAIR to run the MWC - I would be worried that key institutions migh meet secretly and then - bang - they go form a new conference.



Call it the Big Country Conservative Republican Conference. Then you have BYU, Utah, TCU, Boise State, Air Force, Navy, Army, Houston, SMU, UTEP, SDSU, Fresno State, San Jose State, UNLV, Nevada, NM, NM State, Wyoming, CSU, and Hawaii form an 18-20 team super conference with 2 divisions and require that OOC games be played against the other division (play whomeve ryou want) but not count for determination of Divison Championships and then have a Conference Title game. Revenue split would be pro-rated based on performance on the field.



This conference would have enough Top End - BYU, Utah, TCU, and BSU - to continue to be respected. It would have an improved middle - AFA, Navy, Houston, SMU, Fresno State and maybe Hawaii - and the bottom would benefit in that nobody plays OOC so the league would be 500 overall every year. This way nobody plays PAYDAY games they are guaranteed to lose. The TOp teams would be split such that they did not beat each other down. So BYU could beat a highloy ranked Utah team in Regular Season and then beat a Top 10 TCU or BSU in the Conference Championship game with decent wins over Air Force, Navy, and Houston, and crack the BCS regularly until the BCS includes hte new conference.



It would suck to travel to Hawaii, Anapolis, and West Point.



Then when all heck breaks loose when the Big 10 / 12/ SEC / PAC 10 dominoes start to fall - hae some poison pills built into th enew conference for anyone that tries ot bolt. If this feels too big - pare it down to 18 or 16 or 14 team. I like the 20 team versoin becasue it preserves much of what college football issuppose to be about - STUDENT ATHLETES - playing regional competitors, maintaining rivalries, and providing a level playing field of competition. It seem so AMERICAN at its roots I wanted to call it Conference USA - oops - already taken. Everyone is included. And if a bottom team invests and improves - it gets more money. Then tie up half dozen or so of Bowl invites and life would continue to be good - maybe better.



It would be kind of like having a WAC schedule until the Championship game - then getting a game between two top 10 teams - then going to a BCS Bowl and kicking butt on another ranked opponent.



Or just wait for the explosions and implosions and do something like this with the leftovers - which may not include TCU and Utah and maybe not even BYU and may not even be in the same division or associatoin as the super conferences.

My 2 cents:



This is all with the understanding that football and basketball drive the dollars.... everything else is a veritable money sink in college sports (though with a national TV network, they could actually earn enough to support themselves)



1. Losing Nebraska, Colorado, and Missouri and adding BYU, TCU (and either Houston, Tulsa, SMU) would not hurt the Big 12 that much. Other than last year, Nebraska had been a nonfactor for many seasons in the Big 12 football race; (and has never been a factor in mens hoops)Missouri went 4-4 in the Big 12 last year in a very very soft Big 12 north.

The Big 12 south runs the show and has for a very long time. If BYU ends up in the north with Kansas Iowa State, Kansas State, etc. I would be very confident that BYU could succeed.



BYU has as much of a following as Colorado and Missouri but they pale in comparison to Nebraskas overall following. BYU's recruiting would improve drastically in all sports.



Now, if somehow Texas made the horrible decision to bolt to the SEC, the Big 12 would be in big trouble... but why would Texas leave a good conference that they control? (they wouldn't, their geographical opponents and rivals make them too much money)



2. The Big 12 offers something that cannot be overstated; the chance to get away from sub-par schools that do everything they can to attempt to beat us... New Mexico, SDSU, Air Force, Colorado State, etc. etc. etc. all gear up to play us.; sometimes it's the biggest game on their schedule all year. BYU sneaks in the Big 12 while teams like Kansas/Kstate etc. attempt to beat each others brains in still.



3. If the Big 12 and Pac 10 work out a combined TV contract/network.... they literally own everything west of Kansas City. Is there any reason to believe that a network that big wouldn't be in every home and eventually a standard cable package piece? (standard cable package = mega advertising bucks)



4. The Big 12 is the bible belt, they will not balk at the no-sunday rule...(and for the most part they reserve their sundays for pro sports) and in fact have already moved their championship games to saturday. (not neccessarily for religious purposes... but sunday play will not be a major hangup)



5. BYU becomes a top 3-4 school as far as undergrad academics immediately in the Big 12 and are the shining star as far as athletic program academics right away. The Big 12 has actually suffered recently with poor athletic program athletic scores. What the Pac 10 doesn't see as desirable, is actually very desirable to the Big 12.



6. ESPN/ABC cannot be happy.... they had a near monopoly on college games they wanted. With a bigger big 10 tv network and a potential Big12/Pac10 conbined network.. they drive the prices up for the leftovers at ESPN.



7. The Big East, the WAC, and the potential MWC leftovers are also big losers. BYU drives the MWC (who drives when they leave?) The Big East is already a joke in terms of football, what happens when the Big 10 gets every recruit from Minneapolis to Buffalo and the Big East goes scraping for whatevers left?



8. BYU will have some up and down years in the Big 12. It's a very competitive and athletic conference and it'll be difficult to maintain consistent top 25 performance in hoops and football. The bonus is that we finally can feel good about having our destiny in our hands; throw in the infusion of cash and interest in the program, improved overall recruiting, and I think a few down years here and there can be tolerated.

I totally agree tat the Sunday no play thing for BYU is a real non-issue. Might be for the PAC10, but not really. Not at al in the Big 12.



I still think the Big 12 ought to be proactive and invite BYU and Utah right now. Then try to keep Colorado, and let Nebraska and Missouri go. The PAC10 will be screwed because who do they add if Utah goes elsewhere, and there is value to keeping BYU/Utah together for travel. And if the Big 12 wants to go 2 more, they then add TCU and either Houston or SMU.



All I know is that I would love to see the PAC10 screwed over by all of this expansion talk. I hope the Big 12 jumps first after NU and UM leave and make a play for the Utah schools together. I would love it.