Big 12 Conference

[Pete]

The tv contract is the only reason why this would get done. If tv contracts matter less going forward there is even less reason for Texas or the SEC to do this. No reason to cut more slices out of a shrinking pie.

There are tons of good reasons that I've already listed.

It may need to wait a couple more years due to contracts, though.

That's the way it usually works: an announcement is made and then it takes a couple of years to unwind everything.

[Pete]

A friend of mine made a good point...

While Boren was president, he was adamant about taking OSU with us no matter where we went. Probably due to his deep political ties in the state. Lots of talk that that was the reason OU didn't go to the Pac-12 a few years back.

But President Harroz is a very different guy and thinks differently about a lot of issues. I'm sure he is also very concerned about securing the best possible financial long-term deal for the university, especially due to the huge loss of revenue in the last couple of years, and with the prospect of things never completely returning to where they were.

[dankrutka]

^

A&M has a significantly better program than Texas does now, and the Horns won't schedule them.

This would force them into that game.

Texas A&M has won nothing since joining the SEC. They are essentially the same program that left the Big 12. They had their best season in 20 years last year, but no one really saw them as a serious threat to win their own division, much less something nationally. I don’t think a move to the SEC does anything for OU or Texas long term.

[Pete]

^

A&M finished just outside the playoffs last year and have a great new coach.

That's miles better than they've done in a long time.

They finished #5 and OU #6 even though we won our conference and they didn't even win their division.

[dankrutka]

Right, but it’s just a blip. A&M was good in the 90s for a bit too. I don’t think we can credit the SEC for A&M having one decent season in their 9th year in the conference.

I just tend to think programs stand more on their own. There’s a lot of SEC schools who have stunk at football for a long time. Changing conferences doesn’t change things much. Missouri is the same story. They were national title contenders before leaving for the SEC. Now, what is Missouri? Basically the same program they’ve been, if not more hopeless.

[Pete]

Jimbo Fisher is a great coach and you shouldn't discount that.

He's done an amazing job in a very short time.

[dankrutka]

Yes, I agree that he’s a good coach. I think A&M could have attracted him if they’d stayed in the Big 12 though. They’ve always had resources, but they’ve never been a consistently elite program… and they’re still in a tier below Alabama and LSU as programs in their division. A&M can haa as be success, but I just don’t think their position has changed because of their conference affiliation.

[Pete]

A&M was like OSU is to OU: under a big shadow.

Time will tell, but it looks like it was a very smart move for them and they are doing great in recruiting.

[GoGators]

A friend of mine made a good point...

While Boren was president, he was adamant about taking OSU with us no matter where we went. Probably due to his deep political ties in the state. Lots of talk that that was the reason OU didn't go to the Pac-12 a few years back.

But President Harroz is a very different guy and thinks differently about a lot of issues. I'm sure he is also very concerned about securing the best possible financial long-term deal for the university, especially due to the huge loss of revenue in the last couple of years, and with the prospect of things never completely returning to where they were.

OSU is not the reason OU didn’t go to the PAC. The PAC was already set to take OU OSU Texas and Texas Tech. Texas decided not to go so everyone stayed. It wasn’t Borens OU or the PACs decision on whether OU went. It was Texas decision. It certainly had nothing to do with staying in the Big 12 because of OSU. OSU had already got the invite to join the PAC.

[Swake]

OSU is not the reason OU didn’t go to the PAC. The PAC was already set to take OU OSU Texas and Texas Tech. Texas decided not to go so everyone stayed. It wasn’t Borens OU or the PACs decision on whether OU went. It was Texas decision. It certainly had nothing to do with staying in the Big 12 because of OSU. OSU had already got the invite to join the PAC.

The PAC refused to accept the Longhorn Network and UT wouldn't go without it.

[GoGators]

The PAC refused to accept the Longhorn Network and UT wouldn't go without it.

Yes, the Big 12 offered Texas their own network if they stayed. OU OSU and Tech weren’t involved in any decision. They were all just going to do whatever Texas told them to do. If OU and Texas do go into the SEC it won’t be Harroz decision either. That decision will also come from Austin. If OU wants to go and Texas turns it down then OU isn’t going.

[Teo9969]

Why not do four 4 team divisions:

A: Mizzou, OU, UT, A&M
B: Arkansas, LSU, Miss St., Ole Miss
C: Auburn, Bama, KY, Vandy
D: Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee
(I think that's the right groupings to keep most important SEC rivalries, but Tennessee/KY/Vandy/SC might need to shuffle a bit)

You play all three in your division + one home and one away in each of the other 3 divisions.

[Swake]

Reportedly, there was an old agreement between South Carolina, Florida, Georgia and Kentucky to keep out other schools from their states, which vetoed Louisville, Florida State, Miami, Georgia Tech or Clemson joining the SEC. No idea if that still holds, but, Missouri and A&M have already come out against Texas, and they only need two more votes to kill that school's invite.

[PhiAlpha]

If this is being seriously considered, I trust that Joe Castiglione and Lincoln Riley have already discussed at length and have very good reasons.

Football playoffs are likely to expand to 8-12 teams, which means you don't have to win your conference to advance. If 12, you could easily see multiple SEC teams included.

Also, the move to that conference has been a godsend for Texas A&M. They were near oblivion for a long time and last year finished just one spot out of the 4-team playoff even with that rugged conference schedule.


I suspect Lincoln and Joe know we need to face better conference competition in order to win more national championships.

And they also know it's very hard to recruit players to the Big 12 out of all those football-rich SEC states.

I suspect, like the fans, they are a bit tired of winning the conference every year, usually making the playoffs, then going no farther.


The Big 8/12 has undergone so many changes over the last few decades there isn't much tradition to maintain.

And since we play Texas in Dallas every year, the home schedule has been very boring and that matters if you want people to show up for future games, as they can all sit home and watch for free and have a much better vantage point.


Might be time to get ourselves into a better position for the long haul.

This perfectly sums up my feelings as well. If OU and UT have the option, it’s a no brainer. I hope we can get a yearly home and home with OSU to maintain the rivalry but even in the absence of that, I’m all for this move or a move to the Big 10 for that matter if it became an option. I’m for anything that preserves the red river shootout and gets us out of the Big 12. Absolutely sick of all the 11 AM kickoffs and terrible home schedule (outside of Bedlam), I was planning to drop my season tickets after this year due to both.

[PhiAlpha]

Florida has vetoed Florida State or Miami joining the SEC for decades. I would assume A&M has the same power and if so, this is a nothing story.

aTm just got to the SEC. No way they wield the level of influence that Florida does.

[PhiAlpha]

Reportedly, there was an old agreement between South Carolina, Florida, Georgia and Kentucky to keep out other schools from their states, which vetoed Louisville, Florida State, Miami, Georgia Tech or Clemson joining the SEC. No idea if that still holds, but, Missouri and A&M have already come out against Texas, and they only need two more votes to kill that school's invite.

That’s what has been said by unnamed sources or insinuated without explicitly stating it by known sources publicly. No way of knowing if that’s just posturing for their fan bases or if they’ll actually vote that way. At any rate, we likely will not ever know who voted for or against. It will either be announced that an invitation will be extended or it won’t…so what ADs or any one else insinuates publicly isn’t indicative of much. If the SEC sees the end result of realignment being 4 conferences of 16 teams, they all agree to this without a second thought. Under that premise it would be insane not to from a financial standpoint. No conference is adding two better teams than OU and UT. With OU and UT, the SEC will always unquestionably be the most powerful conference in college football and it won’t even be close most years.

[Swake]

That’s what has been said by unnamed sources or insinuated without explicitly stating it by known sources publicly. No way of knowing if that’s just posturing for their fan bases or if they’ll actually vote that way. At any rate, we likely will not ever know who voted for or against. It will either be announced that an invitation will be extended or it won’t…so what ADs or any one else insinuates publicly isn’t indicative of much. If the SEC sees the end result of realignment being 4 conferences of 16 teams, they all agree to this without a second thought. Under that premise it would be insane not to from a financial standpoint. No conference is adding two better teams than OU and UT. With OU and UT, the SEC will always unquestionably be the most powerful conference in college football and it won’t even be close most years.

I disagree a bit. I think the point may well be to kill the NCAA entirely and go independent. There may well be other conferences waiting to see what happens.

[shawnw]

The SEC also has to ask, if not TX and OU, then who? Especially if we automatically count out the teams mentioned by Swake. There are only so many quality programs left that might possibly realign. And if there's a race to 16 (you know this story has got the other conferences scrambling for parity), they're going to have to think of the big picture. Speaking of parity, if this shake-up falls through, maybe all the teams that the SEC won't let in can join the Big 12 and make it more competitive.

[PhiAlpha]

I disagree a bit. I think the point may well be to kill the NCAA entirely and go independent. There may well be other conferences waiting to see what happens.

Good point. Very well could be the case.

[Swake]

Killing the NCAA also brings in basketball money which has long been owned by the NCAA as part of the tournament. That's billions of dollars.

[dcsooner]

This perfectly sums up my feelings as well. If OU and UT have the option, it’s a no brainer. I hope we can get a yearly home and home with OSU to maintain the rivalry but even in the absence of that, I’m all for this move or a move to the Big 10 for that matter if it became an option. I’m for anything that preserves the red river shootout and gets us out of the Big 12. Absolutely sick of all the 11 AM kickoffs and terrible home schedule (outside of Bedlam), I was planning to drop my season tickets after this year due to both.

+1

[Pete]

Yes, the Big 12 offered Texas their own network if they stayed. OU OSU and Tech weren’t involved in any decision. They were all just going to do whatever Texas told them to do. If OU and Texas do go into the SEC it won’t be Harroz decision either. That decision will also come from Austin. If OU wants to go and Texas turns it down then OU isn’t going.

You keep stating things as fact that simply aren't. You have no idea what is going on behind the scenes.

OU has one of the best athletic departments in the entire country and probably better than anyone in the SEC. The SEC took Missouri and A&M, it's absurd they wouldn't love to have OU.

[BoulderSooner]

A&M does not want Texas in the SEC at all. There is a group of teams with an agreement to not vote in teams from a state where an SEC team already resides. The SEC already has the Texas market and the Oklahoma market won’t move any needles when it comes to tv contracts. The University of Texas doesn’t want to join the SEC as they think it would water down their academic brand. The Longhorns would have to give up their own network and complete control of their current conference. Doesn’t make a lot of sense for Texas or the SEC. If the rumor was the Big 10 it would be more believable IMO.maybe if the rumor was OU only. Texas to the SEC is not happening.

almost this entire post is incorrect

[Pete]

The current voting setup is that 11 of the 14 SEC teams have to approve a new school.

One team does not have veto power and it's hard to imagine who would vote against OU or Texas, two of the best athletic programs in the country.

Even if A&M is against one or both, why on earth would the other schools turn down the massive dollars that would flow into their profit-sharing conference?

[BoulderSooner]

OSU is not the reason OU didn’t go to the PAC. The PAC was already set to take OU OSU Texas and Texas Tech. Texas decided not to go so everyone stayed. It wasn’t Borens OU or the PACs decision on whether OU went. It was Texas decision. It certainly had nothing to do with staying in the Big 12 because of OSU. OSU had already got the invite to join the PAC.

this is correct .... .OU was in lock step with texas ... OU was not going to the Pac12 if Texas was also not going .. (it would not have been a good long term choice with out texas included )