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.
The ACC isn't going to live the length of its TV contract. It all blows up when ESPN wants Clemson to join the SEC.
I do think Oregon, Washington, and Stanford all join the Big Ten, not sure about Cal.
The big remaining domino is the ACC. Once it gets opened up look out. Florida doesn't want Florida State in the SEC, they probably feel the same way about Miami. I think the SEC takes one of them, lets say Miami. I think the Big Ten would love to take on a Florida State, which would really embrace their national footprint.
Notre Dame is interesting. I think they could become truly independent, but it would be the death of their program. I can's see the Big Ten allowing them to schedule 4-5 games a year vs Big Ten schools when you have 20 plus teams to schedule.
Originally Posted by Hoover:
The ACC isn't going to live the length of its TV contract. It all blows up when ESPN wants Clemson to join the SEC.
I do think Oregon, Washington, and Stanford all join the Big Ten, not sure about Cal.
The big remaining domino is the ACC. Once it gets opened up look out. Florida doesn't want Florida State in the SEC, they probably feel the same way about Miami. I think the SEC takes one of them, lets say Miami. I think the Big Ten would love to take on a Florida State, which would really embrace their national footprint.
Notre Dame is interesting. I think they could become truly independent, but it would be the death of their program. I can's see the Big Ten allowing them to schedule 4-5 games a year vs Big Ten schools when you have 20 plus teams to schedule.
ACC survives like the Big 12.
In the upcoming P2, being independent is a death sentence of irrelevance. [Reply]
Brett Yormark, the former co-chief operating officer at Jay-Z’s Roc Nation, has emerged as a polarizing figure in the college football realignment discussions. The Big 12 commissioner been on a “listening tour” but this week he decided to do some talking.
Yormark was visiting the University of Cincinnati on Wednesday. Yormark told reporters that when it came to potential expansion targets, his conference wants to go “out west” in the fourth time zone.
“A program that has national recognition,” Yormark said. “One that competes at the highest level in basketball and football, stands for the right things, is a good cultural fit.”
The Big 12’s commissioner declined to get more specific. When he says “out west” is he talking about San Diego State? How about Fresno State? Or maybe Utah, Colorado, Arizona or Arizona State?
Said one “four corners” Pac-12 ADs: “I have no idea what he’s talking about. He just continues to throw stuff out to disrupt. Seems like some level of desperation.”
I’m fascinated by the 180-degree difference in strategy between Yormark and Pac-12 commissioner Georgia Kliavkoff. Outside of Kliavkoff’s spicy Media Day appearance in July, he’s remained silent.
In fact, the Pac-12 commissioner was in Atlanta for the Oregon-Georgia game and didn’t do interviews. Presumably because the Pac-12 is amid a media-rights negotiation. On the same day, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey conducted a lengthy impromptu news conference in the Mercedes-Benz Stadium press box.
The Big 12’s Yormark was also asked on Wednesday about his conference’s media rights negotiations. There’s some confusion about whether the Big 12 is — or isn’t — in the exclusive negotiating window.
“That process has started,” Yormark told reporters. “I met with ESPN last week... I’ll be meeting with FOX in the next week... My gut tells me that both FOX and ESPN would like to (negotiate early) but I’ll know for sure...in the next week.”
Some interesting semantics at play here. I bounced Yormark’s quote off two TV-industry insiders. They agreed that it sounds like all Yormark has is an indication from ESPN that they’d like to talk outside the exclusive-negotiating window. Per the contract, the Big 12 can only talk with ESPN and FOX at this point. The networks like it that way, too. If they’re not in an exclusive, 30-day negotiating window, there’s no ticking clock.
It’ll be interesting when the Big12 gets numbers, and if Fox is actually as interested as it sounds. Fox wasn’t even interested in giving the PAC a lowball offer like ESPN did, they said they had no interest in giving them an offer. ESPN will also be interested in overpaying for the Big12, in an attempt to get OuuT in 24.
It seems like the B1G isn’t done with adding from the PAC either. I’m guessing they have it on pause at the moment obviously trying to entice ND, but also so they don’t have to give the other PAC schools a full share right away like USC/UCLA is getting.
The new playoff format is fantastic, but I wonder how Notre Dame feels knowing they have a 0% chance at a first round bye as they won’t be a top four conference champion. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Hoover:
The ACC isn't going to live the length of its TV contract. It all blows up when ESPN wants Clemson to join the SEC.
I do think Oregon, Washington, and Stanford all join the Big Ten, not sure about Cal.
The big remaining domino is the ACC. Once it gets opened up look out. Florida doesn't want Florida State in the SEC, they probably feel the same way about Miami. I think the SEC takes one of them, lets say Miami. I think the Big Ten would love to take on a Florida State, which would really embrace their national footprint.
Notre Dame is interesting. I think they could become truly independent, but it would be the death of their program. I can's see the Big Ten allowing them to schedule 4-5 games a year vs Big Ten schools when you have 20 plus teams to schedule.
ACC survives like the Big 12.
ESPN isn't touching that ACC contract. It's gonna take a handful of schools to grenade it all to end it early. [Reply]
Originally Posted by GloucesterChief:
Gonzaga doesn't play the full slate of sports the Pac12 requires.
Same with the Big12, but apparently they are willing to change.
Basketball only is interesting, I wonder what type of a payment they would get. I’d assume it isn’t much of a bump for the rest of the schools, but obviously not taking money away either. I think it’s just an idea of getting more eyeballs on the Big12 brand.
That or just a little pressure on the PAC schools thinking about jumping. [Reply]
While I think its a dumb road to go down (ie the Big East route) until the power conferences pull away from the NCAA and can keep the tournament money, if B12 adds Gonzaga they have to add another basketball only school, right? Why not Villanova, and why weren't they ahead of Gonzaga? Nova has been some level of power since the 80s, has multiple titles, and is in Philly. [Reply]