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 BWillie:
KU fans don't care about football anyway, I mean, not really. If we were MTN WEST for Football and Big East for basketball I wouldn't even care. Big East is a major in bball.
UCONN
Villanova
Georgetown
Marquette
Seton Hall
Xavier
Originally Posted by Pitt Gorilla:
Not sure why the big 12 allowed them so much influence.
Yup. Them strong arming stuff, starting their own channel is why I didn't really blame Nebraska and Mizzou for leaving. Though Nebraska has been pathetic since they left.
Sent from my motorola one action using Tapatalk [Reply]
Originally Posted by Prison Bitch:
Why do people bash Tex but not OU? They’re both moving. Why is one worst than the other? Never understood the hate for either, they’re simply doing what any of the Rump schools they ditched would do.
The Longhorn Network basically de-stabilized the Big 12.
Oklahoma was a member of the Big 8 before the Texas schools joined.
Oklahoma also wasn't the member that basically de-stabilized the conference 10 years ago.
Oklahoma's AD didn't speak down on record about other schools programs, unlike Texas' AD at the time.
Originally Posted by Prison Bitch:
No. ACC is perfect
And that’s where we’re headed.
Honestly, that would make more sense than the B1G from a market stand point. Reach into the KC market with some STL-neither of which were covered by ACC before. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Rams Fan:
Honestly, that would make more sense than the B1G from a market stand point. Reach into the KC market with some STL-neither of which were covered by ACC before.
SEC nearly completely locked down STL now - to the extent they watch college sports, which is dubious. It’s (1) Cards (2) Cards (3) Blues Hockey (4) Cards and (5) whatever else.
The key to KU-ACC is: National. ESPN research shows big matchups draw more eyeballs than “conference” games. They’re going big. A junior pro model. And they plan to win! [Reply]
Originally Posted by Prison Bitch:
SEC nearly completely locked down STL now - to the extent they watch college sports, which is dubious. It’s (1) Cards (2) Cards (3) Blues Hockey (4) Cards and (5) whatever else.
I'd say St. Louis is split like the following for college sports fandom-mind you I'm throwing numbers out of my ass:
I don't think Mizzou has as strong of a foothold in interest as some people think in St. Louis. It's by far the most popular collegiate sports fan base in the area, but the other schools still have a decent presence and I don't see the top 2 schools in terms of interest changing any time soon.
Originally Posted by :
The key to KU-ACC is: National. ESPN research shows big matchups draw more eyeballs than “conference” games. They’re going big. A junior pro model. And they plan to win!
For basketball, yes. KU would be a huge draw. I just don't know if that alone offsets how poor of a following (and performance) the football team has.
Granted, Rutgers has also been horribad and has nowhere near a national following in any sport like KU does for the B1G, but they also are able to bring in some of the NYC market.
Of the remaining members of the B12, I'd argue KU is probably the best positioned to find a decent landing spot because of basketball. After that, IDK. Iowa St. and Oklahoma St. are the little siblings of their states, but at least Ok. St. has some semi-balance of historic and current success along with basketball.
Kansas St. has almost no national following what so ever. Tech, Baylor, TCU will probably end up in something like the American, though I'd argue TCU could have an argument for being in a power conference more-so than Tech or Baylor. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Prison Bitch:
No. ACC is perfect
And that’s where we’re headed.
I mean if the ACC will have us, thats the money play but man if UK comes along too like you say that's almost too many Blue Bloods in one conference. Duke and UNC will still always be the darlings of that conference. [Reply]
Originally Posted by BWillie:
I mean if the ACC will have us, thats the money play but man if UK comes along too like you say that's almost too many Blue Bloods in one conference. Duke and UNC will still always be the darlings of that conference.
I do not believe UK has any interest in leaving the SEC currently. Plus, a large draw for recruits coming to UK in football is to play in the SEC. It makes no sense for the school to change affiliations. Alumni would not be happy and I think there's something to be said within the state as to looking down as Louisville as inferior-meaning whatever conference that Louisville is in, by default, is inferior to whatever UK is in because it has Louisville in it.
