The Big 12 expansion groundswell

[creekster]

The state legislature has said that A&M can't make anything official until the higher education committee meets on Tuesday.

On ESPN radio this morning the schmuck from the TX leg they interviewed said only he HOPED they wouldn't do anything official until after Tuesday's hearign.

[UteStar]

don't you remember what happened last year and when the B12 was first created? Of course the legislature has a legal say in it. If they didn't then nobody would take their threats seriously.

No, I don't. What happened last year? Did the legislature invoke an existing law preventing contraction? Please expound.

The SEC has already extended the invite. aTm already accepted. It doesn't sound like anyone is taking their threats seriously.

I think you are both correct. I do not believe that the State legislature can stop aTm from leaving the Big 12. They don't have the power to do that. They do have the power though to make things a bit harder for aTm in funding issues down the road. More of a threat, but it can be enough for a university president to get nervous if he feels that it will hurt some future atypical funding research projects. The Aggies can leave, they will just get some outside pressure to stick around.

[Uncle Ted]

Does the Texas legislature have a legal say in whether aTm moves to a different conference? Seems like that sort of jurisdiction would be entrusted to the university president/chancellor.

There has been a lot of chest puffing on the part of the legislature, I understand. But I question whether they can veto this decision.

The state is going to be hard pressed to argue that aTm moving to the SEC would hurt the other Texas public universities after it stood by and did nothing to prevent TLN from becoming a tool of financial destruction against aTm and everyone else.

TAMU going to the SEC may lead to UT becoming independent or going to the PAC-12+N. This may leave baby brother Tech in a bad place and needing tax payer funding to support their football/athletic programs.

As for the LHN, the rumor is UT approached TAMU on partnering on a network a few years back. TAMU rejected the proposal.

If the SEC wants to avoid the Texas legislature getting involved they should just take Baylor. Ann Richards is no longer around and so I don't think anyone will have a problem with that now. I think the Big 12 would even pay the SEC to take them.

[TripletDaddy]

don't you remember what happened last year and when the B12 was first created? Of course the legislature has a legal say in it. If they didn't then nobody would take their threats seriously.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/201...sec/index.html

What can the legislature do to stop a move? Officially, nothing. Unofficially, legislators can apply pressure because they control schools' funding. And in a state the size of Texas, plenty of schools have voices in the legislature, and everyone wants to know how a move would affect their school. "Those implications have a broader effect on the schools in our state," Branch told SI.com on Friday morning.

[pellegrino]

No, I don't. What happened last year? Did the legislature invoke an existing law preventing contraction? Please expound.

The SEC has already extended the invite. aTm already accepted. It doesn't sound like anyone is taking their threats seriously.

I'll let the texans discuss it, but as I see it, the legislature determines how the universities get funded. That's where their legal authority is important.

[TripletDaddy]

I think you are both correct. I do not believe that the State legislature can stop aTm from leaving the Big 12. They don't have the power to do that. They do have the power though to make things a bit harder for aTm in funding issues down the road. More of a threat, but it can be enough for a university president to get nervous if he feels that it will hurt some future atypical funding research projects. The Aggies can leave, they will just get some outside pressure to stick around.

TAMU going to the SEC may lead to UT becoming independent or going to the PAC-12+N. This may leave baby brother Tech in a bad place and needing tax payer funding to support their football program.

As for the LHN, the rumor is UT approached TAMU on partnering on a network a few years back. TAMU rejected the proposal.

If the SEC wants to avoid the Texas legislature getting involved they should just take Baylor. Ann Richards is no longer around and so I don't think anyone will have a problem with that now. I think the Big 12 would even pay the SEC to take them.

Why would the SEC care if the Texas legislature got involved? What is the Texas legislature going to do? Stop funding Texas Tech? What does the SEc care about that

[creekster]

Fox sports analyzes what impact aTm to the SEC would have on everyone. Interesting point...if the SEC does go to 14 teams, forget about any of them ever playing an away game against a quality OOC opponent. That was already a rarity. It will now be obsolete.

http://msn.foxsports.com/collegefoot...-Aggies-081411

Btw, BYU isn't even mentioned as a possible expansion team. Gut check time folks!

Perhaps this is because it is a fox sports source and BYU and TX are ESPN slaves while Fix has the B-12 contract.

[TripletDaddy]

I'll let the texans discuss it, but as I see it, the legislature determines how the universities get funded. That's where their legal authority is important.

Whether the Texas higher education committee has "important legal authority" is not at issue nor were we discussing it. We were discussing whether they can stop the move from one conference to another. I think we all know the answer to that now.

[Uncle Ted]

Commissioner/AD DeLoss Dodds on the Big 12, TV money, and the "independent thing" a few months back...

[YOUTUBE]A_vWxElAmHc[/YOUTUBE]

[TripletDaddy]

Interesting that as of a year ago Dodds was referencing numerous "talks" that UT had with the Irish. I wonder how close those two schools really are?

On a side note, one possible reason I have read to motivate the SEC to keep Texas pols happy.....avoiding a tortious interference lawsuit. That could get ugly, I suppose.

[Uncle Ted]

Why would the SEC care if the Texas legislature got involved? What is the Texas legislature going to do? Stop funding Texas Tech? What does the SEc care about that

TAMU holds its hand out and gets money from the state just like everyone else. If TAMU doesn't want to play nice with the legislature then they could, for example, take all the money needed to prop up Tech's athletics from TAMU's budget for messing things up. If the budget gets cut TAMU may need to cut funding to programs. Of course, this may help TAMU fit in better with the rest of the SEC in terms of academics.

[Babs]

I think you are both correct. I do not believe that the State legislature can stop aTm from leaving the Big 12. They don't have the power to do that. They do have the power though to make things a bit harder for aTm in funding issues down the road. More of a threat, but it can be enough for a university president to get nervous if he feels that it will hurt some future atypical funding research projects. The Aggies can leave, they will just get some outside pressure to stick around.

UteStar is, not surprisingly, as fabulously right as ever.

[TripletDaddy]

TAMU holds its hand out and gets money from the state just like everyone else. If TAMU doesn't want to play nice with the legislature then they could, for example, take all the money needed to prop up Tech's athletics from TAMU's budget for messing things up. If the budget gets cut TAMU may need to cut funding to programs. Of course, this may help TAMU fit in better with the rest of the SEC in terms of academics.

You are suggesting that if aTm goes to the SEC without the states blessing, the state will stop giving any athletic money (not to mention other budgetary money) to the university?

And earlier in the thread we were wondering whether anyone took these threats seriously.

[TripletDaddy]

UteStar is, not surprisingly, as fabulously right as ever.

Someone should let the regents at aTm know about all of these risks because the last I checked, they accelerated the timing of their meeting specifically to blow off the legislature.

[SteelBlue]

Anyone else think it's odd that Florida is apparently ok with adding FSU and now possibly Miami too?