Anyways, Chip Brown from Orangebloods.com reports OU may apply to the Pac-12 by the end of the month.
Oklahoma will apply for membership to the Pac-12 before the end of the month, and Oklahoma State is expected to follow suit, a source close to OU's administration told Orangebloods.com.
Even though Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott said Friday the Pac-12 was not interested in expansion at this time, OU's board of regents is fed up with the instability in the Big 12, the source said.
The OU board of regents will meet within two weeks to formalize plans to apply for membership to the Pac-12, the source said.
Messages left Sunday night with OU athletic director Joe Castiglione and Oklahoma State athletic director Mike Holder were not immediately returned.
If OU follows through with what appears to be a unanimous sentiment on the seven-member Oklahoma board of regents to leave the Big 12, realignment in college athletics could be heating back up. OU's application would be matched by an application from Oklahoma State, the source said, even though OSU president Burns Hargis and mega-booster Boone Pickens both voiced their support for the Big 12 last Thursday.
There is differing sentiment about if the Pac-12 presidents and chancellors are ready to expand again after bringing in Colorado and Utah last year and landing $3 billion TV contracts from Fox and ESPN. Colorado president Bruce Benson told reporters last week CU would be opposed to any expansion that might bring about east and west divisions in the Pac-12.
Currently, there are north and south divisions in the Pac-12. If OU and OSU were to join, Larry Scott would have to get creative.
Scott's orginal plan last summer was to bring in Colorado, Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State and put them in an eastern division with Arizona and Arizona State. The old Pac-8 schools (USC, UCLA, Cal, Stanford, Oregon, Oregon State, Washington and Washington State) were to be in the west division.
Colorado made the move in June 2010, but when Texas A&M was not on board to go west, the Big 12 came back together with the help of its television partners (ABC/ESPN and Fox).
If Oklahoma and Oklahoma State were accepted into the Pac-12, there would undoubtedly be a hope by Larry Scott that Texas would join the league. But Texas sources have indicated UT is determined to hang onto the Longhorn Network, which would not be permissible in the Pac-12 in its current form.
Texas sources continue to indicate to Orangebloods.com that if the Big 12 falls apart, the Longhorns would consider "all options."
Big 12 commissioner Dan Beebe held an emergency conference call 10 days ago with league presidents excluding Oklahoma, Texas and Texas A&M and asked the other league presidents to "work on Texas" because Beebe didn't think the Pac-12 would take Oklahoma without Texas.
Now, it appears OU is willing to take its chances with the Pac-12 with or without Texas.
There seemed to be a temporary pause in any possible shifting of the college athletics' landscape when Baylor led a charge to tie up Texas A&M's move to the Southeastern Conference in legal red tape. BU refused to waive its right to sue the SEC over A&M's departure from the Big 12, and the SEC said it would not admit Texas A&M until it had been cleared of any potential lawsuits.
Baylor, Kansas and Iowa State have indicated they will not waive their right to sue the SEC.
It's unclear if an application by OU to the Pac-12 would draw the same threats of litigation against the Pac-12 from those Big 12 schools.
Originally Posted by Saul Good:
I was one of 40,000 who enjoyed watching them win at Arrowhead and one of 22,000 who enjoyed watching them win at the Sprint Center. Thanks
I love combining attendances from multiple games. HAY GUYZ I WAS ONE OF THE 200,000 TO ENJOY WATCHING KU WIN! [Reply]
Considering that KU was beaten by 30+ points 6 times during the season, then leading at halftime, to only losing by 14 points to the powerhouse MU. Again, good job on barely beating the worst team in the country.
Good job on clearly being the worst team in the country. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Saul Good:
I was one of 40,000 who enjoyed watching them win at Arrowhead and one of 22,000 who enjoyed watching them win at the Sprint Center. Thanks
And yet here you are. Completely focused on what Kansas does..... day in, and day out
Originally Posted by Saul Good:
I was one of 40,000 who enjoyed watching them win at Arrowhead and one of 22,000 who enjoyed watching them win at the Sprint Center. Thanks
"But it's a holiday week"
"It's deer season"
"Walmart is having a sale"
"People won't travel to 2 hours KC to watch a game"
"People won't go to games in Columbia because the opponent isn't good"
Well provided they have a state of 8 million people and Kansas has less than 3 million and has to split their fanbase with another BCS level institution I would hope mu could get a couple more fans out to the games. [Reply]
It was Wickeson-esque in its logic; borderline Stewie in nature.
MU fans are even disappointed in the basketball attendance right now, but that's just the way it is. We're not a basketball school, it's not a blue-blood basketball program and folks just aren't going to drive from KC and STL to see them play a weak-sister on a Wednesday.
It's annoying, but your 'point', such as it was, was pretty damn stupid. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Wickedson:
Well provided they have a state of 8 million people and Kansas has less than 3 million and has to split their fanbase with another BCS level institution I would hope mu could get a couple more fans out to the games.
Columbia is in the middle of the state. St. Louis & KC don't want to travel there to watch games. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Mr. Plow:
"But it's a holiday week"
"It's deer season"
"Walmart is having a sale"
"People won't travel to 2 hours KC to watch a game"
"People won't go to games in Columbia because the opponent isn't good"
So, which excuse is it now?
The funniest part was Saul Good saying that people don't want to travel to Columbia for a bball game only for the fans to post abysmal attendance numbers in KC. :-)
Columbia, much like Kansas City must just be a Kansas town. [Reply]