The Big 12 expansion groundswell

[San Juan Sun]

What's the Japanese word for buzz-kill?

Seppeku?

[Coach McGuirk]

You heard it here first. If super conferences form, neither independence nor the Big 12 will save BYU.

Unless the Pac-16 has a drastic change of heart, the only chance at salvation BYU will have is the last or second-to-last spot in the B1G.

I used to think you were connected/had info, but clearly you are lost on this issue.

[shoganai]

What's the Japanese word for buzz-kill?

Do the math folks. It's not rocket science. 4x16 superconferences + no Pac-16 interest = B1G or nothing for BYU.

Unless you theorize that the Big 12 somehow survives and the ACC gets pilfered. But that doesn't seem as likely right now.

[Mormon Red Death]

Ol' Larry have a change of heart about Texas bringing and keeping its $300M LHN? Texas isn't going to share that with OU. You can just forget about that idea now.

Fine let them keep it as their regional network. Give them one conference game a year on it. create another regional network for Tech, OK & OK St. Then give TEX them no money from the Pac-16 network.

They keep their LHN, PAC-1216 keeps theirs.

[jay santos]

I have been trying to sort out the continual mention of ND. Not sure if it is solely an effort to sell more newspapers (i.e., internet hits) or if there is something more.

Normally, I would lean toward something less, but BYU's continued talk about "relationships" and "partners" and the mention of ND keeps pulling my brain back into a non stop spin cycle.

I really don't believe that ND would abandon independence, barring some metamorphic change. I always wondered about packaging their other sports and having a scheduling alliance in football with the B12 (e.g., rotating games - I even wondered about a Texas ND game on Thanksgiving, but not sure if South Bend Indiana (weather) on Thanksgiving gets anyone excited up there?).

What do you guys think about the possibility of ND leaving the Big Least in their other sports? It doesn't make sense to me, so maybe someone has another perspective that demonstrates higher possibility?

Also - the other thing I don't get yet - as I understand it, the SEC is locked into their TV contracts for 25 years. If they add more teams, doesn't everyone else get less money? I guess renegotiation is always possible...that must be the answer - am I missing something?

I see it the same way.

This business about BYU and ND being partners? Laughable. Yeah, sure if we're both independent it works out to schedule each other late in the season. So in that sense, we're partners with ND just like they are with Army, Navy, Boston College. What does that get us? A 2:1 in November. Nothing more, nothing less.

ND switching from Big East to Big 12 in non-FB sports? I don't see the point. To kill the Big East? Why does ND want to kill the Big East? I see no purpose. To get the Pitt to join the Big 12? Really? Step back. ND can join any conference in just about any arrangement they way. FB only. BB only. whatever. Are they going to go out of their way to kill the Big East just to get Pitt on board so they can join the Big 12? ?? And of all the players here, Delaney is the smartest and nastiest. If ND is joining a conference, he'll figure out a way to make it the Big 10.

On four super conferences all with 16 teams. I just don't see that either. There are reasons for conferences to get bigger and reasons to get smaller. 16 is not a magical number. I could see someone getting aggressive and going 20 teams with two 10 team divisions. I could see Texas, Oklahoma, and ND getting together and forming an 8 team elite conference with unequal revenue sharing. A lot can happen. I think the notion of four 16 team super conferences is way too clean and extremely unlikely.

[shoganai]

I used to think you were connected/had info, but clearly you are lost on this issue.

Would you care to propose an alternative? If the only conferences left are the Pac-16, Big 16, ACC, and SEC, where else exactly do you think BYU would be able to land?

If you have a viable theory on how the Big 12 could survive instead of the ACC, I would be interested in hearing it.

But, the reality is a stable Big 12 (if attained), would actually prevent super conferences from forming indefinitely.

[jay santos]

Do the math folks. It's not rocket science. 4x16 superconferences + no Pac-16 interest = B1G or nothing for BYU.

Unless you theorize that the Big 12 somehow survives and the ACC gets pilfered. But that doesn't seem as likely right now.

What makes you think 4 x 16 is likely? If Big 10, SEC, and ACC go to 16 and Big 12 is still sitting there with 10 and Pac with 12. And TV networks are still willing to pay big bucks for Texas, OK football and Texas, KS basketball, why would Texas feel compelled to bolt to the Pac?

[San Juan Sun]

Do the math folks. It's not rocket science. 4x16 superconferences + no Pac-16 interest = B1G or nothing for BYU.

Unless you theorize that the Big 12 somehow survives and the ACC gets pilfered. But that doesn't seem as likely right now.

Why start with the assumption that there will only be conferences with 16 teams, and only four of them? You're starting with a predefined endpoint to a completely fluid situation.

[Surfah]

What's the Japanese word for buzz-kill?

Shoganai!

[Uncle Ted]

Shoganai!

About time someone translates this for us.

[byu71]

You heard it here first. If super conferences form, neither independence nor the Big 12 will save BYU.

Unless the Pac-16 has a drastic change of heart, the only chance at salvation BYU will have is the last or second-to-last spot in the B1G.

Apparently ESPN has adopted us. To grow every bit as much attached to an adopted child and one you conceive. Unless ESPN is not a normal parent or they get out of the college sports business, our parent (ESPN, not the BOT) will make sure we are part of the landscape.

[jay santos]

Would you care to propose an alternative? If the only conferences left are the Pac-16, Big 16, ACC, and SEC, where else exactly do you think BYU would be able to land?

If you have a viable theory on how the Big 12 could survive instead of the ACC, I would be interested in hearing it.

But, the reality is a stable Big 12 (if attained), would actually prevent super conferences from forming indefinitely.

I would bet you ten grand today we don't see four 16 team conferences within the next 20 years. I don't even know why we're talking about it. It's dumb.

[Mormon Red Death]

I see it the same way.

This business about BYU and ND being partners? Laughable. Yeah, sure if we're both independent it works out to schedule each other late in the season. So in that sense, we're partners with ND just like they are with Army, Navy, Boston College. What does that get us? A 2:1 in November. Nothing more, nothing less.

ND switching from Big East to Big 12 in non-FB sports? I don't see the point. To kill the Big East? Why does ND want to kill the Big East? I see no purpose. To get the Pitt to join the Big 12? Really? Step back. ND can join any conference in just about any arrangement they way. FB only. BB only. whatever. Are they going to go out of their way to kill the Big East just to get Pitt on board so they can join the Big 12? ?? And of all the players here, Delaney is the smartest and nastiest. If ND is joining a conference, he'll figure out a way to make it the Big 10.

On four super conferences all with 16 teams. I just don't see that either. There are reasons for conferences to get bigger and reasons to get smaller. 16 is not a magical number. I could see someone getting aggressive and going 20 teams with two 10 team divisions. I could see Texas, Oklahoma, and ND getting together and forming an 8 team elite conference with unequal revenue sharing. A lot can happen. I think the notion of four 16 team super conferences is way too clean and extremely unlikely.

The only thing about ND is that they are probably making contingency plans. There have been several articles (here is one) about the bball schools and the FB schools split. If ND doesn't like the split they may want to find a better home for their NonFB sports.

[byu71]

I would bet you ten grand today we don't see four 16 team conferences within the next 20 years. I don't even know why we're talking about it. It's dumb.

What makes you so sure you will have $10,000 in 20 years.

[Babs]

What makes you think 4 x 16 is likely? If Big 10, SEC, and ACC go to 16 and Big 12 is still sitting there with 10 and Pac with 12. And TV networks are still willing to pay big bucks for Texas, OK football and Texas, KS basketball, why would Texas feel compelled to bolt to the Pac?

Because the Big12 is under too much strain. It didn't make a move earlier, and now it's under too much strain geographically.

It was once in a great position to pick up a couple of strong teams from surrounding conferences, but it chose not to do that. Instead it will almost certainly splinter as the SEC, Big Ten, and Pac poach from the remaining ten teams.