Who is Freaking out the Most About Pac-10/Big 12 Speculation
If we thought the Big Ten speculation was crazy, all we had to do was wait until the Big12 conference meetings. Suddenly the whole world is the Chicago Sun Times with the Pac-10/Big12 sniping or merging conversation. While I am sure everyone at Baylor and Iowa State and Kansas is freaking out, I think the most internal pressure today has to be on Jack Swarbrick and John Jenkins, the AD and President of Notre Dame, respectively. I think Swarbrick's public comments about the Big Ten-fueled expansion landscape were really a test of constituent reaction, just like the 96-team March Madness leak. Deep down, I think both men know that they will have to make a move if the entire landscape of college football changes. However, they also now know that all of ND Nation would excommunicate them if they pulled the trigger. As Delaney quashed fire after fire from media speculators, the ND brain trusts seats got cooler and cooler. We all thought that the Big Ten's deliberate approach would allow things to play out more slowly. This would allow the landscape to change in front of the nation and if ND joined a conference in the aftermath, their fan base would have already seen the writing on the wall. Suddenly all hell is breaking loose at break neck speed and the landscape may be completely different before Touchdown Jesus can turn the independent water into conference wine.
If I were Delaney, I would call Swarbrick today, just to see how he is doing.
Then again, this could be another case of MSM running with unnamed sources and everything could be back to normal by Wednesday. Weren't we supposed to see USC's sanctions today? Oh that's right. ESPN's "sources familiar with the situation" were wrong.
This is an interesting conversation to have. The MGoBoard might be a better place to have it.
My internal outline was diary-esque, but the final content is definately better suited for the board.
Not me.
now that ND has turned down the Big Ten a million (more or less) times, maybe we can just let them stay independent and create the superconferences anyway. Then ND can just fade into oblivion and cease to exist and we can all forget about them. Now that would be progress for College Football.
I'm thinking pretty much the same thing. Either ND gets on board NOW, or they're left to find shelter in what's left of the ruins.
I know that Brandon doesn't really favor this, but I would take ND off of all Big Ten football schedules. At the very least, I would only play them every other year (that way, all students could see a home game once per four years).
It seems to me that ND can't make that much more money via the NBC contract than if they took their share of the Big Ten revenue sharing pie. On top of that, the school would save a ton in travel expenses for non revenue sports. Besides, do they really want to be in the Big East after Pitt, Rutgers and/or Syracuse are picked off by the Big Ten (not to mention that the ACC will go after Big East schools if/when they lose Miami and FSU).
Personally, I would have no problem picking up Kansas and their great basketball tradition over ND and their alleged football tradition. I know that basketball barely makes a ripple in this equation but it would be nice to have Kansas in the fold (along with 'Cuse possibly).
The Big Ten offers ND the most shelter in this storm. They need to decide soon.
I can already hear the (former) ND fans boasting about how they "took the high road, like Chicago, and got out of the nastiness of college football, and it was our plan all along."
Especially if this is a package deal with Lou Holtz.
Maybe Kansas.
as well as KSU and Baylor. The Big East probably isn't feeling too secure either.
All ur teamz are belong to us.
I've been surprised at how no one seems to want Kansas. The other three are pretty much dead weight, but KU's had recent success in football and iw one of the all-time great basketball programs. Could they really end up shipped off to Conference USA or something? I feel like I'm taking crazy pills.
Im just hoping that with super conferences, the NCAA will deem it necessary to mandate a 13 or 14 game schedule. (3 OOC + 10 In). More football hooray.
That would be a real chore for them to schedule because you are also adding 2-3 weeks of extra tournament play, which means up to 18 games for the teams in the championship game. They also wouldn't be able to go home for Christmas, most likely.
I figure they had a big speed dating thing at the past BCS meetings. Then just the commissioners got together and worked out thier picks.
The Big Ten then leaked the we invited Rutgers, ND, Mizzou, Nebraska and someone yet to be named as a flyer.
ND denies to appease their constituents.
We back off a bit.
All along the plan was to turn up the heat with this Pac 10 / B12 thing ... and then the SEC and ACC make some comments. (If the Big East has a meeting, it goes similar to the Big 12 one.)
All of a sudden ND fans see 16 team super conferences forming without them - implication - no BCS bowls or NC possibility .... ND base goes into a panic and swings around.
The final dating occurs - maybe we pick up Kansas or Pitt. ACC fills in with Big East football after being shorn of Miami and Fla State.
This all takes about the time the B10 has put out there to fall into place, but the final deals are decided (if not inked) before signing day next spring. The best recruits flock to super conference schools. Uppity mid-majors (Utah, Boise, etc.) talking about new parity loose ground in recruiting and TV revenues. The BCS puts a plus one playoff system in place and tells Hatch to pound sand.
Bingo. Wasn't Pitt already announced as the new member of the B10 weeks ago?
All this reminds me of what happens every Presidential election year. Once somebody appears to have the Pres nomination locked up, the speculation about his Veep choice begins. Until the choice is actually announced by the Pres nominee, every 24 hours there's a new round of breathless speculation about some new sure-fire Veep choice who is already a done deal, and half the time it's somebody who isn't within miles of the short list.
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/columns/story?columnist=ohlmeyer_don&id=…
I think it is funny that this guy based his 5000 word review on unnamed sources, then a week later ESPN's College Football section is the ONLY outlet saying that USC's fate would be announced today. None of the other major outlets would even say "ESPN is reporting". When no one else mentioned it by Wednesday night, I was predicting this story would fall apart. Hell, the story didn't even spend much if any time on the front page of ESPN.
They have to be freaking out the most, where is their storied basketball team going to go?
Baylor never should have been here in the first place. The bell might finally toll for them some 15 years after it should have. Iowa State and Kansas State don't bring anything to the table.
Kansas actually has something athletic to sell--men's hoops--and right now they have nobody who wants to buy it.
...everybodies' guns are drawn on each other, and each is awaiting the first shot. The Big Ten has one very important thing going for it, they are the least risky option. In any business situation when uncertainity abounds, the least risky option usually becomes the most diserable. If the shat does hit the fin I think Delaney will have his pick of the litter by being able to offer the safiest harbor.
I truely believe when it is all said and done Texas will be added to the Big Ten. It just makes too much sense. The only obstacle is location, and once that is taken out of the equation UT is a perfect fit.
If it is necessary to add Texas A & M for political reasons so be it (although it is starting to feel like that is not the case). After that I would go after Nebraska and Oklahoma. They don't have huge media markets, but they have great brand names.
Then it comes down to Notre Dame. If the Irish pass, which in all honesty I think it would be imposslbe for them to do, then I would go after one of the eastern schools, take your pick, although in all honesty this is were you pick the very best media market, so Rutgers is it.
Finally I would split up into four 4 team divisions (which would preserve most of the rivalries), and I would have 2 rounds of playoffs.
This seems to me too profitable of an avenue not to be explored by all parties involved.
I'm not going to lie, I think Texas will roll on pretty much all of the Big Ten indefinitely with the stacked in-state recruiting they have. I just don't think we can compete with that and may get relegated to the kind of status that Purdue and Iowa typically have where they're usually middle of the pack to bad with one or two years every decade or two where they contend.
I'd be real satisfied with some combination of Missouri/Nebraska, some group of Big East Schools surrounding the NY Market (UConn/Syracuse/Rutgers) and Notre Dame.
I just hope someone "pulls the trigger" ASAP. However it is going to "shake out," I would like to see it start happening now. It almost doesn't even matter which conference moves first. The Big Ten will end up in great shape whatever eventually happens. I just want it to happen soon, because the sooner it happens, the closer we are to a playoff and a true champion.
i was really hoping this was going to be some kind of high tech statistical internet sweep of how many posts there are across the internet containing "[school name]", "expansion", and "end of the world" followed by fancy scatter plots
Same, we are spoiled when it comes statistics, I think.
they might just have lucked themselves into kansas, kansas state, and baylor (maybe even iowa state) on top of boise state who will be joining to ...
they will become a top 5 basketball conference
they will get the bcs bid vacated from the big 12
I'm the one who is "freaking out the most About Pac-10/Big 12 speculation..."
This is all so thoroughly weird; the deliberate destruction of great historical traditions for the sake of television networks.
I can hardly wait for the Texas A&M v. Northwestern game.
Or the quarterfinal game between Michigan and Ohio State.
Hey guys,
Long time reader over here. I am an ISU alumn and huge Cyclone fan as well as Wolverine fan. I can tell you that ISU fans are in panic mode right now. There really doesn't seem to be a direction for us to go. We really are at the mercy and everyone knows it. In fact, our AD and President sent a letter out today saying just that. Right now, I think everyone is prepared to go to the MWC as most don't believe there is a chance for anything else. My opinion is that we could fit well in either the PAC 10 or Big Ten for one reason or the other. I certainly don't expect anyone else to hold that opinion but I do think we bring some positive things to the table. In the two major sports, well, we have had no recent succes, however, we do seem to be on the upswing on the football side. As far as basketball it is hard to tell. Academically, any major conference could take us. ISU is a member of the AAU and a relatively large research institution. At one point recently we were in the Top 5 land grant inttituions in the nation academically.
If I am honest, I have no clue what to expect. I know we won't get into the Big Ten. I think the only way we get into the PAC 10 is if it almost a complete merger. You guys take Nebraska and Mizzou and then the rest merge with the PAC 10. That's a long shot. If I had to lay money down today I would say that we end up in the MWC. That is not ideal by any means but at least we would find a home somwhere. IN the end I think that conference becomes an AQ conference and a really strong basketball conference with Baylor, Kansas and KSU added as well.
I have also been surprised at the lack of talk around Kansas. I think the main reason for that is that they are a basketball school. Conference means very little in that sport. You can succeed from anywhere in America. They really don't care about football or any other sport for that matter. They are also bound to KSU. I don't believe the state will allow them to separate. I know I am coming from ISU, but honestly, does anyone really want KSU? Have you been to Manhatten? Ames and Waco are both better places than that shithole.
Take this for what it's worth. Also feel free to check out CycloneFanatic.com. We usually have some good info over there if you can sort through the BS.
Kansas State is also fearful of being left out of the big conference mergers. There may have to be a conference of misfits formed, from the leftovers of the big 12 and big East conferences. I don't see this odd man out conference getting any BCS love!
Comments