BIG EXPANSION NEWS ON RIVALS

[abezontar]

Does anyone else feel as though the world would be a much better place if the NCAA still controlled the TV money for college football?

[Hoop Fan]

At some point college football is just the NFL minor league. Maybe they can narrow Division 1 down to about 30 huge schools and Texas can play Tennessee every week and it can look like the NFL. Beebe alluded to it in his comments today, but he is just crying cuz he is about to be out of a job. He didn't give a damn when it was somebody else on the business end of that stick.

[rich59]

The way this is shaping up one would think that at some point the Federal Government may get involved with some anti-trust proceedings. A new SWC is starting to look better and better to me.

[SMU89]

Bleacher Report

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/4009 ... on-unfolds

Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images
Let us go ahead and layout the blueprint for college football's expansion. 

Everyone has their own ideas about who will go where and how much money is involved.  Now lets get right down to the where the rubber meets the road.  The expansion is all about television money. 

The Big 10 is looking for the cable dollars, the SEC is not going to get left behind, and everyone else is looking to survive. Two BCS Conferences will not. One new BCS conference will emerge. 

This is how the story line will likely emerge. 

In June of 2010, the Mountain West Conference will officially invite Boise State to join it's membership.  Boise State will take all of 5 seconds to answer yes. The Mountain West will have met the primary requirements for AQ status and beginning in 2011-12 have an automatic bid for their conference champion.

In the fall of 2010 Notre Dame will have a better than average season, let's say 9-3, and adamantly deny any intent of joining any conference. This is fine with the Big 10, who has never officially asked them to reapply for membership. However, the Big 10 does move forward with there 16 Team Super Conference Plan. 

Who gets the invitations you ask? It really is simpler than anyone believes. 

(1) Nebraska- AAU member, National Name recognition for their football program, and while the state only has a little over 600K people, all of them are immediate Big 10 Network subscribers.

(2) Missouri- AAU member, two of the largest TV markets in the Midwest and a total state population of 2.5 million.

(3) Rutgers-AAU member, history associated with the 1st college football game, great basketball, and access to the New York Market.

(4) Kansas- Yes Kansas, AAU member, primary alumni group controls the KC TV market, huge basketball following, and already controls a state wide Jayhawk channel with the whole state as subscribers.  It doesn't hurt that they are the 3rd largest earner in the BIG 12 behind Texas and Oklahoma, who would have known?

(5) Syracuse- AAU member, reinforces the NY TV market.

Of course they all accept.  Why wouldn't they.  The dominoes all begin to fall.

The SEC, ACC and PAC10 all jump in to high gear. The SEC extends invitations to Texas, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, and Oklahoma State. The Texas legislature is immediately involved as no one has read the fine print of the last law passed when the SWC imploded. 

Under current legislation, all four of the BCS Texas Schools must be in the same conference. You can't cherry pick. While legislators try to sort through the mess, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State accept and join the SEC.

The PAC 10 steps up and offers to accept all 4 Texas schools so that the state legislature doesn't have to spend so much time on the issue. The SEC flatly refuses to accept Baylor and Texas Tech. The PAC 10 also extends offers to Colorado and Utah.

The ACC immediately offers Pitt and UConn, as they fit with the academic tradition and the basketball legacy of the ACC. Both accept.

The SEC elects not to wait on the Texas Legislature to sort things out. They extend invitations to Virginia Tech and the University of Miami (FL).  Miami accepts immediately. Virginia Tech is also going to accept until the state legislature steps in saying "We forced the ACC to accept you in their last expansion round.  We can't just let you leave without Virginia."

The debate rages on. The SEC is not prepared to wait on any state legislature and withdraws Tech's invitation. All the while FSU has been whispering how they would love to be extended an invitation. Florida seconds FSU nomination and the invitation is extended and accepted. The SEC is now at 16, just like the BIG 10.

With the SEC at 16, the Texas schools join the PAC 10, along with Colorado and Utah to form the new PAC 16.

The ACC begrudgingly extends invitations to South Florida, West Virginia, and Central Florida.  After  much debate Louisville agrees to raise their admission standards and their academic profile and are allotted the last slot in the ACC bringing them to 16 members.

Cincinnati is left out as the Big East is no more.  Big 12 leftovers Kansas State and Iowa State are in the same position. The Mountain West is the only surviving BCS Conference without super conference numbers. They lost only Utah, so they stand with nine members. They take the three leftovers from realignament and add Houston, Fresno State, SMU and Nevada to become the 5th and final BCS Conference.

I am not saying the realignment will be better or worse for college football.  What I am saying is if it's all about the Benjamins then think like an accountant and not a college football fan. This scenario is much more probable than anyone wants to admit right now. If your question is what happens to Notre Dame, then the short answer is up a creek with no paddle.

 

[skyscraper]

This is the Twitter feed for the Iowa newspaper guy who covers Iowa/ISU
http://twitter.com/ScottDochterman
Apparently the Big XII commish canceled tonight's press conference.
All hell is breaking loose in Kansas City right now.
The change is happening right now folks.

[Stallion]

Chip Brown doesn't roll with this story unless he had some big time sources-now he could be being used by Texas bigwigs to put Missouri and Nebraska in their place and force their hands to commit without reservation to the Big 12-I kinda could see that possibility but if Missouri, Nebraska and Colorado have indicated they have one foot out the door-then I think this story is the very likely scenario.

[mathman]

Ok Thad. Time to step up to the plate.

[max the wonder dog]

The original Rivals story is now on the free portion of their site. Here's the URL:

http://texas.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1090747

[Pony ^]

The original Rivals story is now on the free portion of their site. Here's the URL:

http://texas.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1090747

Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Colorado AND the rest of the PAC 10. Damn that would be a good conference!

[Dooby]

Not saying this is or isn't going to happen, but what exactly does Texas Tech bring to the table? Wouldn't Utah make more sense for the PAC 10?

[RGV Pony]

The original Rivals story is now on the free portion of their site. Here's the URL:

http://texas.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1090747

Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Colorado AND the rest of the PAC 10. Damn that would be a good conference!

those teams plus Arizona and Arizona State are the East Division. OU-Texas decides the division, winner plays USC for the Conference championship

[skyscraper]

I'm surrounded by plenty of Kansas alums at work (random, I know).
Was interesting hearing them today when this leaked out. One guy doesn't believe any of this is going to happen, almost in denial.
Another guy jokingly asked me if Kansas would be welcome in CUSA. He said it seems like their leaders weren't proactively looking ahead when it became apparent there could be big changes. Echoes of SMU and the demise of the SWC almost. A school believing everything would be fine until the moment everything started shifting.

[Water Pony]

If CO, TX, A&M, TT, OK, and OSU join the Pac10.

Big Ten grabs NE, MO and KS, plus Rutgers and Syracuse. Second, 16 Super BCS Conferences.

Then, SEC takes Miami, FSU, Clemson and GA Tech for a third BCS Conference.

ACC grabs Conn., Pitt, Louisville, Cincinnati, WVA, Memphis, East Carolina, USF. Fourth 16 team Conference.

Big XII is gone and BE becomes BB only.

The fifth Super BCS Conference, MWC would add Boise State, Houston, SMU, Baylor, K State, Iowa State, and Fresno or Tulsa.

Non BCS CUSA takes from Sunbelt schools.

[NavyCrimson]

"... A school believing everything would be fine until the moment everything started shifting."

Yeah, our auto industry in '73. LOL!!!

[NickSMU17]

I really don't think this lines up very well for us...I was sure Utah would get nod over Texas Tech...maybe when MWC added Boise they knew they could keep their conference and rivalries...

We needed the Big 12 and MWC to have casualties....now that the Big 12 goes away and the MWC stays in tact, they get the pick of the litter...and unless our alum really go and fight we are in serious trouble....