New Era in College Football Begins

[Stallion]

And Oklahoma Responds With a Network of their Own

http://www2.tulsaworld.com/sportsextra/ ... eUni869373

[StallionsModelT]

Texas as an independent is very likely. They are becoming the evil empire of college athletics.

[DiamondM75]

What happens when they start losing their non-profit status?

I can see the IRS taking long hard looks at large college athletic departments making tons and tons of money and hiding under the college non-profit status.

[LVPony]

And Oklahoma Responds With a Network of their Own

http://www2.tulsaworld.com/sportsextra/ ... eUni869373

One more reason the Big XII-II is dead. Why should the South carry the North and why should the North put up with all the crap the South is going to force feed them. The North may not have any place to go at the present but it won't be long before they figure something out and jump. Lots of animosity toward the South from the remaining North schools.

[EastStang]

Why would they dump UT? That's a guaranteed sellout every four years in the north. If UT goes indy, it would find after awhile the price of getting visitors to come to Austin where UT Network games would be played would be prohibative. Also, CUSA teams may get shut out of UT games due to the Fox vs. ESPN war that will be coming.

[Stallion]

The reduction to 10 teams is actually the greatest thing that could happen to the North. Now they will get to play Texas teams 4 times a year. The only option those schools possibly have is the Big East. There are no football players in the East. Missouri, Kansas, KSU and Iowa St need Texas football players.

[Mexmustang]

What happens if opposing teams begin to say no? Who will they play? If OU and UT both have private networks, who gets to broadcast? Will OU take a 40/60 split? One day UT is going to find some of their traditional games will be cancelled--just like this years game with Nebraska.

[Water Pony]

Summary from Wall Street Journal:

The Lone Star State – and many outside of Texas – cares about its Texas Longhorns, but you knew that. But Wednesday’s announcement of a partnership between ESPN and the University of Texas on a new all-Texas, all-the-time sports network still contained some jaw-dropping elements. Starting with the concept of a network that broadcasts every Texas sport and extending to the price tag – the partnership will pay Texas $300 million over the next two decades – the planned Texas network is something new, and somewhat startling.

“The yet-to-be-named network (TXPN?) could benefit Texas more than just financially,” Jerome Solomon writes in the Houston Chronicle. “Twenty-four-hour, seven-days-a-week access into the living rooms of football recruits should give UT a huge advantage. Exposure doesn’t win football games, but it wins recruiting wars. Schools that win a bunch of the latter tend to win more of the former.”

In the Austin American-Statesman, Kirk Bohls argues that the new network highlights the great and growing power of mega-programs like Texas. “While [the new network] doesn’t suggest Texas is seriously considering striking out on its own as an independent, that may only be semantics,” Bohls writes. “Texas is already operating as an independent to a large degree.”

[Charleston Pony]

given the option, have to believe Kansas and Missou would jump on Big 10 (14?) invites, and I think they would be good fits...but I doubt the Kansas legislature sits back and allows KU to leave KSU in the lurch and I don't see the Big 10 feeling there is "value added" by bringing in 2 Kansas schools and the relatively small markets they add.

Big 12 north schools' best bet is if the Big East football/bball schools eventually split and the football group invites KU, KSU and Missou to join TCU, Louisville and Cincy in a western division. Of course, there is the issue of "who owns the Big East brand?" Today's Big East could easily add Navy for football only, see Nova move up to FBS level and invite UCF (tremendous potential) for all sports creating a 12 fball/18 bball member conference. That way, they keep the bball tradition they were founded on and add a football championship game they could play in a dome or in FL.

[ponyscott]

This is a major game changer for BCS football and UT WILL go independent before long at all and the Big 12 is on life support now, if it wasn't before. Good luck to BU when that happens. This announcement is the most important event of the past year in BCS football, IMHO. The dominos are about to start falling......The remnants of Big 12 may become very important to SMU in Conference alignment in the very near future. Which conference will pick up OSU, BU and TT and Iowa State, KU and KSU? Oklahoma, Mizzu and TAMU we know will go big....
Very interesting indeed.....