The Big 12 expansion groundswell

[PolyCougar]

The guy was not sent home. It was a very bad situation in a very bad part of Chile. Anyway, I wasn't implying any wrong doing on his part. The story was that he actually saved he and his companion as the group was well known for its violence. Whether that is true or not, *shrug*. Good story though.

I was meaning the battling character... it's a stereotype I was working against for years, and eventually embraced it, as long is it is not criminal. No offense taken... either way, we Poly's seem to help people with good and bad stories for their mission in the end. My cousin (the first of our family to go) was sent home for beating up all the Elders (3 of them) in his apartment because they were making fun of his accent... so I take the good with the bad. He had a bit of a thug attitude before he left, and eventually was more comfortable in the gang lifestyle.

[USUC]

The Big-12 is so jr high

Additional reports surfaced that a press conference was scheduled for tomorrow, Wednesday, with WVU and officials from the Big 12 to announce the move. But, since it’s customary in realignment to drag out the process as much as humanly possible, it appears there will be no press conference at all.

“Contrary to media reports, there is no press conference scheduled for Wednesday concerning WVU’s athletic conference affiliation. There are no further comments at this time,” WVU said in an official statement tonight.

http://collegefootballtalk.nbcsports...ss-conference/

[lambdacoug]

The Big-12 is so jr high



http://collegefootballtalk.nbcsports...ss-conference/

OMG... It's like my daughter that went to the HS football game with one boyfriend and left the game with another...

[Uncle Ted]

I guess West Virginians better take the couches off the porches again if this Big 12 thing goes down...

As everyone knows, West Virginia fans have an impressive history of lighting things on fire – win or lose – and city officials are taking preemptive steps so that Morgantown doesn’t burn this weekend.

City officials will remove furniture and other flammable items from porches and lawns this week in an effort to combat celebratory fires following the nationally televised football game this weekend.

The abatement effort, which covers much of downtown Morgantown and will be effective Thursday through Monday, requires that residents remove any furniture, construction materials, debris and other combustible materials from porches, balconies or lawns.

West Virginia, ya’ll.

A few words bloggers will be searching for on YouTube Friday, Saturday and Sunday: fire, morgantown, West Virginia, burn, Mountaineers, LSU. I love this concession from the fire chief:

“We know we’re going to have fires, but they aren’t going to be as bad,” said Fire Department Chief Mark Caravasos.

Perhaps a WVU grad can help me out here. Why fire?

Morgantown may be burning it up.

[NorthwestUteFan]

Better yet, God returns to earth and repeals: Thou Shalt Not Committ Adultery! He also instructs an angel with a flaming sword to tell Scarlett Johannson that her head will be chopped off if she does not agree to becoming my second wife!

Aren't you a 'Give me Plastic or give me death!' type? You wouldn't really be interested. Her sweater puppets are REAL and they are SPECTACULAR. No man-made additions necessary.

[snowcat]

http://collegefootballtalk.nbcsports...rence/related/

God and Country Conference must be setting up a side deal with the BE.

[TripletDaddy]

Bronco sez, "it's the CULTure, stupid."

http://www.ksl.com/index.php?sid=178...er-stand-alone

[Blueintheface]

Bronco sez, "it's the CULTure, stupid."

http://www.ksl.com/index.php?sid=178...er-stand-alone

Wants to pair with Boise? I pity the conference that takes on these fanbases.

[SeattleUte]

Bronco sez, "it's the CULTure, stupid."

http://www.ksl.com/index.php?sid=178...er-stand-alone

Duh. What else would it be at this point?

[Uncle Ted]

Daddy DeLoss Dodds on WVU joining the Big 12...

Dodds denied that a deal has been struck, however, going so far to state to me that no invitation has been extend to West Virginia by the Big 12. He commented that 'it could happen' indicating at the very least that West Virginia has been in the conversation but he was highly critical of reports that it was a done deal stating that he 'doesn't even know where they come up with this stuff.'

ESPN and their 'sources'. Reminds of that cougar board shit.

[Mormon Red Death]

is Notre Dame closer to the ACC than any others?

14. 500 words or less
Well, it's nice to see that Notre Dame is only a few dotted I's and crossed T's from joining the ACC as a full-time member. Like many of you, I can't wait until the big ND-North Carolina State game.

Oh, wait -- an ACC merger deal with the Irish isn't done yet? I'm confused.

Can John Swofford lure Notre Dame to the ACC? It remains to be seen.
Didn't ACC commish John Swofford recently and openly discuss a hypothetical involving the possible availability of Notre Dame? Hasn't Duke hoops coach Mike Krzyzewski all but given his powerful blessings to the move, but with one provision: ND has to agree to equal revenue sharing? Didn't NC State basketball coach Mark Gottfried, when discussing ACC expansion and the Irish, tell ESPN's Andy Katz, "I don't think this is over yet"?

So now the ACC is just waiting for the paperwork from Notre Dame and we're good to go, right?

Not exactly. But the ACC, which is getting a major blood transfusion from Big East defectors, remains the leader in the Notre Dame clubhouse -- if the Irish decide to give up their precious indie status.

The ACC will continue to do its expansion dance with UConn and Rutgers as the conference's 15th and 16th teams, but Notre Dame is its obvious prime target. Then UConn and Rutgers would have a death-cage match for the remaining ACC spot.

Don't know if you noticed, but the new athletic director at North Carolina is Bubba Cunningham, a Notre Dame grad and former ND associate AD.

Wake Forest president Nathan Hatch is a former Notre Dame provost and history professor. All three of his kids are ND grads.

Duke athletic director Kevin White came to Durham from -- wait for it -- Notre Dame.

Gene Corrigan, a former Notre Dame AD and former ACC commissioner, lives in ACC country (Charlottesville, Va.) and remains a valuable resource.

Those are a lot of dots to connect, but the point is this: Notre Dame will have a safe, comfortable academic and sports haven if it joins the ACC, especially if you divide the 16-team conference into something like this:

North: Notre Dame, Pitt, Syracuse, UConn, Maryland, Boston College, Virginia and Virgina Tech.
South: Duke, Carolina, Miami, Clemson, Georgia Tech, North Carolina State, Wake Forest and Florida State.

Truth is, ND's division is more Big East than ACC, which is what the Irish would prefer anyway. Major parts of their alumni base and recruiting are located in the Northeast markets.

Meanwhile, the Big East is doomed. Notre Dame, which is a member of the league in all sports but football, won't stick around for the wake. Combine that with a possible future change in the postseason football dynamic, and the Irish could be in options mode.

Equal revenue sharing? Sorry, I don't think ND is going to give up its NBC money. But some sort of transitional deal could be worked out with its new ACC brothers.

Resistance from ND traditionalists who want the school to keep its football independence? Sure, but nothing that ND athletic director Jack Swarbrick and ND president Rev. John Jenkins can't overcome.

13. 250 words or less
Notre Dame -- Part II.

Brian Kelly and the Irish would have a better chance of winning the ACC on an annual basis than the Big Ten.
I know what you're thinking: What about the Irish joining the Big Ten? (And if you're not thinking it, I am.) Wouldn't that make more sense?

After all, the Big Ten has the Rose Bowl, its own Bureau of Engraving and Printing (otherwise known as the money-making machine Big Ten Network), a national schedule and some creative possibilities with a conference such as the Pac-12.

So, yes, an ND-Big Ten alliance would make a lot of sense if Notre Dame hadn't already stiffed the league twice. Or if ND wasn't infatuated with looking East. Or if the Irish wanted to play against true heavyweight football programs and compete regularly against Megatron-like athletic departments with $100 million-plus and near-$100 million revenue (Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin, Nebraska).

But from a pragmatic football standpoint, it's easier to win the ACC than the Big Ten on a consistent basis. I'm not saying Notre Dame is scared of Big Ten competition, but the ACC does have less hair on its football chest.

And don't kid yourself: The Big Ten has a long memory. If you took a vote today, I'd bet the Big House that a quarter of those Big Ten presidents would lean toward keeping Notre Dame out.

For what it's worth, the expanded ACC will feature five private institutions (Wake, BC, Miami, Syracuse and Duke) -- six, if ND comes along. In hoops, the Irish (coached by former Duke assistant Mike Brey) already have a history of playing against BC, Syracuse and Pitt in the Big East.

[Mormon Red Death]

Good Article about ESPN's role in conferene expansion saga. IMO ESPN has not been the news/rumor breaker that I would expect. I guess they are playing conservative due to the conflict of interest issues.

[USUC]

Bronco sez, "it's the CULTure, stupid."

http://www.ksl.com/index.php?sid=178...er-stand-alone

I can't imagine negotiations are still ongoing after comments like that... or at the least aren't going well. Can't we at least get some 1:1 games scheduled from these negotiations? Geeze.

[BemidjiCoug]

Good Article about ESPN's role in conferene expansion saga. IMO ESPN has not been the news/rumor breaker that I would expect. I guess they are playing conservative due to the conflict of interest issues.

Does anyone else think that it's ridiculous that ESPN writes articles about itself and expects people to take them seriously?

[YOhio]

The Big-12 is so jr high



http://collegefootballtalk.nbcsports...ss-conference/

So Jr High....

West Virginia’s plans to join the Big 12 have gone from “done deal” to delayed to possibly not happening at all all within a span of 24 hours.

Yesterday, reports surfaced that WVU was the leading candidate to replace Missouri if the Tigers leave for the SEC, and by most accounts, even within the Big 12, Missouri’s departure was imminent. West Virginia and/or Louisville have been considered for weeks now to be the next in line to join the Big 12 if there was any further, but WVU appeared to be in the lead to replace MU.

Naturally, that all could change.

According to a story from West Virginia MetroNews citing sources familiar with the situation and another report from Drew Rubenstein of the Dominion Post, the Big 12′s plans to add West Virginia have hit a snag, possibly because of a late push by Louisville to be added over the Mountaineers.