More photos » Harry Cabluck - AP

7 months ago: Texas NCAA college football coach Mack Brown speaks during a news conference Monday, Dec. 21, 2009 in Austin, Texas. The No. 2 Texas Longhorns are getting back to basics before delving into their game plan for facing No. 1 Alabama in the national championship game. (AP Photo/Harry Cabluck)

Browse more photos »

Fact 1: Texas make more football revenue than anyone else.

Fact 2: Texas shares money with the Big 12.

Fact 3: Texas is looking at making a University of Texas athletics network.

Rumor has it that the desire to pursue this network weighed in on their decision a month ago to not join the PAC 10 or SEC. Both of those conferences would not allow a team to form such a network after they join. The Big 12 cobbled together an agreement that divided the outgoing team's fees, their previous share of the revenue pot and promised new TV revenue. This total rivaled what other leagues were promising.

But how does that TV revenue flow once a Texas Longhorns Network is launched? If you were signing a TV deal with the Big 12 now, would you not include a clause allowing you an out if Texas formed their own network? It seems clear to me that the TV revenue would go very much towards Texas and away from the rest of the Big 12. Will the Oklahoma Sooners and Texas A&M Aggies agree to stay once that point is reached?

The formation of a Texas network could spell the death of the Big 12, but the waves would not end there.

Continue reading this post »

Rumors, originating from Colorado, stated that the PAC 10 was going to split into North-South divisions. The north would have the California Golden Bears, Stanford Cardinal, Oregon Ducks, Oregon St. Beavers, Washington Huskies, and Washington St. Cougars. The south would feature the Arizona Wildcats, Arizona St. Sun Devils, UCLA Bruins, USC Trojans, Colorado Buffaloes and Utah Utes.

My first impression of this news was that it was mighty generous to the two new teams in the league. USC and UCLA are considered prime scheduling due to the LA market and the recruiting wealth of southern California that all western schools want as big a piece of as they can carve.

Washington, Oregon, Washington State and Oregon State have been in the conference since its beginning. If they had approved such a plan I would have been amazed. I had sketched of an idea I was thinking of to promote a PAC 10 expansion (including Utah). Well, that is now history but I feel my sketch is now needed.

Travel costs are cut by grouping teams into regional groups. The four northern schools, four California schools and the two Arizona schools and two new schools are logical divisions I will call the North, California and South. The North and South have limited interest in playing each other, but a high interest in playing the California schools. The California schools also want to play each other every year.

NCAA rules require a conference to be split into two divisions to host a championship game. How do you take that mess and make division structure that works?

Continue reading this post »

The fourth domino has fallen this summer as the Utah Utes are set to move to the PAC 10 tomorrow at 3 ET, after an emergency board of regents meeting half an hour before, at this point a mere formality. If you doubt this check out the fans that board would have to face if they over turned this invite at Block U.

This might wind down the conference alignment game for this year. I expect more changes to come next year, but nothing is urgent at this time. The WAC had previously suggested it would look at FCS teams if they lost the Boise St. Broncos or the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs. The Big 12 will likely look at expansion options to add two teams to remain name appropriate.The MWC and C-USA members are the only reasonable options, with the BYU Cougars the only team everyone favoring expansion appears to agree on.

The Big 10 has hedged on expansion, opening a time frame with another year left. They had to show a card with the Nebraska Cornhuskers but the hand is far from over. They are at nine states now, adding one more could restore numerical significance to their historic branding. The SEC has asserted it would not be left behind if the Big 10 moves.

At this point I am starting to think the super conference meme has not yet arrived. The Big 12 move and the answers by the MWC and C-USA could be the end game. Unless one counts the WAC FCS invite.

Now I am off for a toast!

I suppose the PAC 10 division game is now afoot.

Continue reading this post »

The Texas Longhorns, Oklahoma Sooners, Oklahoma St. Cowboys and Texas A&M Aggies announced they plan to stick with the Big 12, turning down an offer to the PAC 10.

The fact that this deal was as close as the media frenzy made it look has to be credited to Larry Scott. This was a home run strike the PAC 10 knew was a long shot. It came up short but the PAC 10 still has its plan intact, with the Utah Utes a likely target.

MWC hopes to score a coup on the Big 12 remnants and the Fiesta Bowl tie-in are now a vapor in the wind, though if Utah stays for 2011 their BCS automatic qualification for the 2012 and 2013 seasons should be very close.

It appears that this summers expansion extravaganza is nearing a conclusion. I expect more dominoes to fall next year.

But what should the Big 12 do now?

Continue reading this post »

Here is what we know:

In 2011 Boise State is headed for the MWC and Nebraska for the Big 12.
In 2012 Colorado is leaving for the PAC 10

Here is what we think we know:

The PAC 10 has invited Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State to join in 2012
Texas A&M is more interested in the SEC
The SEC is not saying anything
The WAC will invite a few FCS schools to shore up their ranks.

Rumors are swirling around what is going to happen to the Big 12, MWC, SEC and college football in general. Lets see if we can make some sense of this and see when the next cards will be played and by whom.

Continue reading this post »

The Nebraska Cornhuskers became the third domino to fall in this year's conference shuffle. They will be headed to the Big 10. And they would like to do so by 2011.

The move will bring the Big 10 to twelve members and the Big 12 to ten members.

And they parted with a few jabs at the Texas Longhorns. Nebraska wanted to make it clear that the Big 12's blood was not on their hands.

Nebraska chancellor Harvey Perlman stated "this will bring Nebraska the stability that the Big 12 cannot." He elaborated that Texas was unwilling to commit to the Big 12's or its current current TV deal. The Big 10 is committed to a far more generous TV deal that only stands to get stronger with further rumored expansion.

Athletic Director Tom Osburn had this to say

We realize that some of the schools that were asking us to stay were (at the same time) talking to not just one conference, but two or three. So at that point, you begin to wonder, 'Where are you going to get yourself if you make a commitment?'"

Now Texas is on the clock. A move may come as soon as next week. For the moment at least, wouldn't thngs be more clear if the Big 12 and Big 10 swapped names?

The Seattle Times is reporting that Boise State will be moving to the MWC and a formal announcement will be coming this afternoon. This move was a long time coming and was expected earlier this week. It was only delayed due to uncertainly in how the PAC 10 expansion efforts would unfold and the Big 12 response.

The Boise St. Broncos and the MWC were not ready to move until its top teams could commit to the future of the conference. Expansion now means the BYU Cougars, TCU Horned Frogs and Utah Utes are no longer looking elsewhere. This is the most decisive evidence yet that the Big 12 will be finished after the 2011 season.

Boise State is the second domino to fall in this expansion cycle but will be the first to actually move. Colorado announced yesterday they will head to the PAC 10, but that move will not take place until 2012. Boise State will be moving in 2011.

Nebraska is expected to become the next domino later this afternoon.

How this move shapes the MWC and WAC in the BCS numbers used to determine automatic qualifications next.

Continue reading this post »

I had an opportunity to talk with the Fiesta Bowl PR Director Andy Bagnato yesterday about the implications of conference expansion on the Fiesta Bowl.

The Fiesta Bowl is one of the four BCS bowls and has a single tie-in with the Big 12. The Big 12 appears to be heading to a finally, possibly before the current BCS contracts expire for the 2013-2014 season. Andy was hesitant to feed the massive speculation explosion, agreeing that most of what is in print is written in Jell-O.

Andy was adamant that is was premature to discuss whether the folding of the BCS could jeopardize their BCS status. He also turned down an opportunity to discuss the MWC as a potential replacement if the relationship with the Big 12 became untenable.

"The Fiesta Bowl has been an integral part of the evolution of the college football postseason and the BCS," Bignato stated, with homage to this site's title, "Whatever happens, the Fiesta Bowl will remain significant in college football. There will always be good teams wanting to play in our January game."

Continue reading this post »