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 lawrenceRaider:
When all your school has is SEC, SEC, SEC, it is an admission of having given up on the actual school and living vicariously through the better teams in the SEC.
I’ve alwsys found it weird when fans brag about money. I honestly didn’t know people actually did that until I discovered the internet. [Reply]
I like the additions of Houston and Cincinnati. I would rather have Wichita State and either Tulsa or Memphis over UCF and BYU. That would be a pretty good basketball conference. [Reply]
Originally Posted by ROYC75:
I knew/know ND will not do it, but be aggressive, show the country that the B12 is here to stay. I agree that B10 can't do it, why the B12? The only reason is , a ticket to the playoffs! They could, for the most part run thru this conference and have their ticket to the playoffs.
Same for Colorado, PAC 12 is vulnerable now. If the B12 got BYU, Boise State and Utah, they would have closer traveling with KU,KSU for budgeting and a chance to win the B12/err B16 for playoff football. Plus to have have an increased recruiting into some more bigger markets than just the West Coast, Orlando, Miami ( USF ) Houston, etc a greater exposure across the country? It's not far fetched to think about!
Now if Colorado did not jump back, sure a Co.State would help maximize the BYU, Boise St., Utah, western part of states of scheduling schools.
Just grabbing big name schools is not enough, there has to have some logistics involved within traveling in schools budgets.
Aggressive! B12 has to get aggressive to get things rolling or else, the the pickings will be gone and no one left to jump ship as conferences will get get creative with figuring out how to keep schools from jumping ship to other conferences.
Colorado is not leaving the PAC 12 where they fit culturally to rejoin a depleted B12 that lost their biggest rival in Nebraska. The PAC 12 is struggling but it is shielded from poaching by its location. [Reply]
Originally Posted by ROYC75:
B12 screwed up by not adding 4 more, going to 16 teams
Should have went after USF, Boise State, and whomever else they could pry away, Notre Dame, Colorado, Utah, Memphis ( but only basketball purposes ) Coastal Carolina. Anybody that could pull some football revenue and /or a large basketball revenue with a mediocre football market..
How? They need to establish some brand stability before expanding more.
Let's look at your list:
ND: :-) Never happening. They will join the ACC first.
Colorado isn't returning
Utah isn't leaving the stable PAC 12 to join the same conference as BYU.
Memphis will be available whenever the BIG 12 wishes to pluck it.
Coastal Carolina had ONE GOOD SEASON. You don't make expansion decisions off a single season and a COVID season at that.
USF: Why? The school is struggling and UCF brings the Florida market well enough. The War on I-4 is a great rivalry but it has little national cache.
Boise State is a regional academic school and their football luster is wearing off. Like Memphis, the BIG 12 can pluck them whenever they please. [Reply]
Originally Posted by lcarus:
I like the additions of Houston and Cincinnati. I would rather have Wichita State and either Tulsa or Memphis over UCF and BYU. That would be a pretty good basketball conference.
Really? WITF would any serious conference want WSU? KU is pathetic at football, but at least we have football.
Tulsa has zero pull due to proximity of OSU.
UCF and BYU both bring many more eyes for TV than Memphis.
Originally Posted by lawrenceRaider:
Really? WITF would any serious conference want WSU? KU is pathetic at football, but at least we have football.
Tulsa has zero pull due to proximity of OSU.
UCF and BYU both bring many more eyes for TV than Memphis.
Do you not understand TV economics?
Wichita State has value to conferences like the A-10 and Big East. But not to a P5 conference. P5 conferences don't do associate members for football or basketball.
Tulsa is a great story. Small little private school that has historically punched above its weight class but they don't bring anything to the BIG 12.
Memphis would be a fine addition to the BIG 12. They just happened to be the fifth best option where there were only four slots. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Carr4MVP:
How? They need to establish some brand stability before expanding more.
Let's look at your list:
ND: :-) Never happening. They will join the ACC first.
Colorado isn't returning
Utah isn't leaving the stable PAC 12 to join the same conference as BYU.
Memphis will be available whenever the BIG 12 wishes to pluck it.
Coastal Carolina had ONE GOOD SEASON. You don't make expansion decisions off a single season and a COVID season at that.
USF: Why? The school is struggling and UCF brings the Florida market well enough. The War on I-4 is a great rivalry but it has little national cache.
Boise State is a regional academic school and their football luster is wearing off. Like Memphis, the BIG 12 can pluck them whenever they please.
Why not poach the Big East? Is their football really that bad? I'd like to get some nice bball programs in here. U-Conn would be cool.
Not sure why Villanova doesn't want to try to get into FBS football, but maybe down the road for them.
I think BYU is a HUUUGE get. But not too jazzed on the other three. But honestly they are the best possible 4 we could probably hope for that aren't already in P5 conferences.
I don't know that I'd look to expand as it may water down the conference even further, but here is where I would look, in order:
U-Conn
Boise State
Memphis
Colorado State
South Florida
UAB
Temple
Wyoming
Obviously not much there. I think the Big 12 did pretty well [Reply]
Originally Posted by TribalElder: :-) Mizzou is in the best college conference in the world and the KU folks keep trying to take shots at them
hilarious
BIG12 gonna extend an offer to Johnson County Community College next :-)
Hilarious is joining a conference, then a decade later cheering as that conference adds not one, but two really premier football programs (that MUtts have been using as an excuse to leave their previous conference and calling those programs weak and non CFP worthy).
But, as is the way of the MUtt, you can always stand on the shoulders of tall folks to watch the parade as a “so happy to be here”, but utterly impotent participant. [Reply]
1. Texas
2. Ohio State
3. Alabama
4. Michigan
5. Notre Dame
--------------
29. Kansas State
30. Oklahoma State
39. Kansas
43. Iowa State
56. Missouri
60. BYU
65. Central Florida
KU football program alone is valued higher than Missouri even DESPITE not being in the SEC. KU Football is a sleeping giant, meaning if they can figure out how to ever even be perennially .500 they are going to churn $$$
Now the loss of Texas and OU hurt - no doubt - but the loss of Missouri is not even a big deal. Big 12 just invited two teams of similar value to Missouri to the conference. [Reply]
Originally Posted by lawrenceRaider:
KU could be in the SWMESW conference and we would still be a better athletic program than MU just on our basketball program.