ESPN: Texas A&M has notified B12 it is withdrawing
COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- The New York Times is reporting Texas A&M has notified the Big 12 it will withdraw from the conference.
The newspaper reported on its website Monday night that Texas A&M President R. Bowen Loftin sent a letter to Missouri Chancellor and Big 12 board chairman Brady Deaton to inform the league it was leaving.
http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/6907754/texas-notifies-b…
August 30th, 2011 at 12:51 AM ^
For real this time?
August 30th, 2011 at 2:45 PM ^
or Bearpigman?
August 30th, 2011 at 1:02 AM ^
I'm not enough of an expert on the subject. Can someone here tell me what Shakespearean character Texas is?
August 30th, 2011 at 1:08 AM ^
And a&m is Brutus?
August 30th, 2011 at 1:13 AM ^
I was just going to say that, except I think Oklahoma is Brutus.
August 30th, 2011 at 1:14 AM ^
And you A&M?
August 30th, 2011 at 1:16 AM ^
Yet.
August 30th, 2011 at 1:50 AM ^
Furthermore, I think A&M fits the role of Cassius better. Cassius killed Caesar for monetary gain.
August 30th, 2011 at 1:14 AM ^
Only character I can think of is Marc Antony. Seduced by a tempting mistress (ESPN) causing him to ignore the problems of his homeland (Big 12) and main rival for the throne (Oklahoma) at his own peril which causes his eventual downfall
By the way, A&M is definitely Antony's trusted lieutenant who switches sides mid-battle.
August 30th, 2011 at 6:37 AM ^
And under this scenario, Oklahoma is Octavian. OU fans won't like to hear that, but it fits.
August 30th, 2011 at 1:30 AM ^
sucks to be Dan Beebe
August 30th, 2011 at 2:02 AM ^
et tu A&M?
August 30th, 2011 at 2:10 AM ^
August 30th, 2011 at 7:16 AM ^
Best analogy ever
August 30th, 2011 at 8:32 AM ^
Is with a new guy, rolling around in stacks of cash, sweet cars, fine vacations. He is definitely cheatin on her, but she never has to work again and every once in a while she gets to exhibit her watercolors at a small gallery in Florida. Occasionally you run into her on the street, you remember old times but more specifically you both remember the lies you tell yourselves that you are better off now, she with her manipulative new guy and his sycophant friends, you with your stacks of cash and even more less average looking girls, who you know even less well and they sure don't really "get" you the way she did. You realize there was comfort in that tension, that father figure role fit some inner need you had, and as you call out to her to give you another chance, to come home, it's not about the money, its about making special times and a life together, a crimson Lamborghini rolls up, the doors open upward an she hops in, and you just stand there, alone, before heading home to sit, looking at old photos from that shoebox under your bed. The answering machine is playing messages from ugly whores who would be flattered if you called them lamprey to their faces "hey, its me, kansas state, wanna come over and play?" "hey big sexy texas, its me, iowa state, see you this weekend!" "call me, its baylor"
Hoorah independence!
August 30th, 2011 at 8:34 AM ^
That was a little too real to spring solely from a fertile imagination. That, or you watch a ton of chick flicks.
August 30th, 2011 at 8:49 AM ^
You win the internets for today.
August 30th, 2011 at 9:01 AM ^
Is the reason I keep reading this board.
August 30th, 2011 at 9:08 AM ^
disturbed or amazed by the thought that went into nailing that.
I am a bit horrified by the thought of all the dirty things Iowa State lets Texas do to them.
August 30th, 2011 at 9:46 AM ^
Sounds like a really perverse (i.e., excellent) porn flick.
August 30th, 2011 at 11:19 AM ^
Well this brought back memories :(
August 30th, 2011 at 2:37 PM ^
a single thread where we'd ever expect to see "The answering machine is playing messages from ugly whores who would be flattered if you called them lamprey to their faces"
Spectacular.
August 30th, 2011 at 2:53 AM ^
A&M has to know something the rest of the world doesn't know. Last time this came up the SEC said they were not exploring expansion "at this time." Therefore, either the SEC was playing possum or A&M plans on going somewhere else.
On another note, I'm surprised more teams don't jump ship and form there own conference. The Big 12 doesn't offer teams equal shares of the profits and basically let's Texas get richer and better and run the entire show. It's BS. The Big 12 is basically supporting Texas' attempts to dominate the conference economically and hence, competetively.
August 30th, 2011 at 6:28 AM ^
That was my thinking also....what has changed in the last couple of weeks, assuming it is the SEC that A & M is heading to, and then, who is the other team which will keep things even and join the SEC.
The bigger question is if the SEC really starts growing and reaches 14 or 16 teams, what with the B1G do? Delaney can be happy with the status quo for now, but if the landscape changes, I would think it will be better to be early in to get the wheat and not the chaff.
August 30th, 2011 at 7:31 AM ^
i dont think the SEC had a choice! they either plated possum or open themselves up to a lawsuit.
and it makes sense the B12 is the conference everyone is looking to poach from!
August 30th, 2011 at 10:29 AM ^
Why! Are! You! Using! Exclamation! Marks! So! Much!?
August 30th, 2011 at 8:06 AM ^
After one last gasp, the Big 12 will eventually be split up as part of the Pac 16 or 18, and the giant amalgamated Big East/ACC/Big 12 leftover conference, with a team or two going to the B1G. I think four "supers" and a new division classification are a lot closer to reality than it currently appears.
The Big East has eight teams, the Big 12 has ten, and the ACC has twelve. That works out to thirty. If the Big Ten, SEC, and Pac 12 each add four teams from any combination of those conferences, that leaves a total of 18 if they contract into one conference. It also leaves room for ND and BYU to join a conference, making another have 18 teams.
That makes four superconferences: two with 16 teams and two with 18. Even if there ends up being five, I don't see the Big 12 making it past 2017. The northern teams will be split between the Pac 12 and the B1G.
Most of all, Texas will have to stop wrecking conferences and be a team player. "Because we're Texas" isn't going to be a good enough reason for a superconference to let them have a disproportionate share of the money.
It may look like tomato cans don't deserve as much money from the conference TV and bowl contracts as the "big boys" do, but having teams that lose is just as important as having teams that win. If there aren't a few tomato cans in any conference, those 11-1 and 12-0 records can turn into 8-4 and 7-5. While it's great for competition, it's terrible for the mythology we build around our "champions."
August 30th, 2011 at 5:12 AM ^
"I THOUGHT WHAT WE HAD WAS SPECIAL!"
August 30th, 2011 at 7:15 AM ^
this would be like Sparty deciding it wants out of our conference. Not sure where they plan on going unless little brother in Texas wants to be an independent.
August 30th, 2011 at 7:57 AM ^
I don't follow....
August 30th, 2011 at 9:09 AM ^
A&M knows they're guaranteed to end up better off leaving.
August 30th, 2011 at 7:15 AM ^
It is only a matter of time before we have mega conferences. I just hope the B1G is able to attract the schools that they want to admit. Though I hate Notre Dame, they would be a perfect fit.
August 30th, 2011 at 7:18 AM ^
4 super conferences of 16 teams = conference champions in a 4-team playoff for the NC. Maybe...
August 30th, 2011 at 7:55 AM ^
Yup. That is pretty much the only good thing that would come of it.
August 30th, 2011 at 8:25 AM ^
August 30th, 2011 at 8:36 AM ^
The fact that I hate Notre Dame so much is part of the reason why they would make such a perfect fit in the B1G
August 30th, 2011 at 8:40 AM ^
does it really follow that the B1G must follow suit to remain competitive?
If it’s only about money, only so many schools add value, whether in football or research, let alone both. And even with additional revenue there's more slices taken from the pie.
If it’s about TV exposure, 12 is plenty with a conference championship game and the BTN.
I'm not arguing against further expansion, just against the idea its a given.
As for why A&M's moving, my take as a lifelong Big8/BigXII fan is that it’s more complicated than "little brother", Texas hate, or money. Those are all factors. But I think it’s hard for Michigan fans, who've enjoyed the stability and collegial ways of belonging to the oldest college conference, to really appreciate what a house of cards the XII is. That was the number one reason Nebraska left.
Basically everyone in the XII that has any other viable option is exiting (Colorado, Nebraska, A&M) or wants to (Mizzou). The only exception is Oklahoma, who for many reasons I won't go into in this post, will be the last man standing.
August 30th, 2011 at 9:12 AM ^
Will you go into the reasons Oklahoma will be the last one standing in your next post, please?
August 30th, 2011 at 10:43 AM ^
as long as they continue their ties with Texas.
1. They are each other's biggest rivals and always have been, even when in separate conferences. That's why Oklahoma dropped the annual Nebraska game when the XII was formed. The Red River Rivalry has been played 105 times (predating Oklahoma's statehood) with most of the games at the "neutral site" of Dallas. And of course it's a border rivalry.
2. Oklahoma recruits primarily from Texas. Outside of Oklahoma, Texas is where the greatest number of Sooner fans and alumni live. Oklahoma's AD has publicly stated many times in no uncertain terms that they want to preserve and continue their close relationship with Texas.
3. The XII still works for Oklahoma, as they are the only other top-tier program in the conference and benefit from the unequal revenue distribution system used by the conference.
4a. Oklahoma doesn't have many other good options. Their president is on record that he is not interested in joining the SEC, as he wants to elevate OU's academics through conference affiliation just like Nebraska did. The B1G probably wouldn't take them for academic reasons and the cultural fit is far from perfect. The PAC12 isn't the best cultural or geographic fit (picture Sooner fans sipping white wine with Stanford fans in Palo Alto or traveling to Pullman Washington) although they appeared to get an invite last year and many Sooner fan boards seem to think that's where they'll land.
4b.They are also closely tied to Okie St having a place to go-not legally but politically.
August 30th, 2011 at 9:59 AM ^
My family roots on both sides are in Missouri, so I grew up with as much of an acquaintance and appreciation for the Big 8 as I did the Big Ten. I believe that the heart and soul of college football has always been found in regional rivalries, and the Big 8 made total sense in that way.... It was a conference with some intense and long-standing historical rivalries, and it was all ruined the day that they merged with the remnants of the old SWC and brought in that home-wrecker Texas. OK-Nebraska was as big a rivalry back in the '70s as Michigan-OSU was, and it was destroyed after the merger. Colorado makes no sense in the PAC-10, nor would MIssouri make any sense in the Big East or the ACC. Those who keep pining for Texas to join the Big Ten have no idea what sort of hell they'd be unleashing. All they can see is that she's a smokin' red-hot chick who makes you look good when you walk into the bar with her, and they just can't understand that as soon as you're out of her sight she's playing hide the salami with some new guy she's just met who she thinks has a fatter wallet than you do.
August 30th, 2011 at 11:14 AM ^
OU-Nebraska was huge. That was my favorite game of the year, other than UM-OSU. After that, it was USC-UCLA and Texas-Texas A&M. Bama-Auburn was always one-sided, since Auburn was still learning how to effectively cheat.
August 30th, 2011 at 10:08 AM ^
Unfortunately money talks in this business (talking to you "NCAA") If mega conferences align the Big Ten will have to consider expansion (as will Norte Dame) as the amount of money will no doubt increase as new conferences negotiate new deals. The money is too large to not consider (if other conferences do so).
August 30th, 2011 at 10:38 AM ^
I don't follow. Shouldn't the B1G (as well as the other conferences) be concerned about the amount they receive per team? How would a 16 team SEC or Pac16 negatively impact B1G revenue?
August 30th, 2011 at 11:18 AM ^
Larger TV contracts for a 16-team SEC. The money to pay for it has to come from somewhere, there's a finite number of television sets.
August 30th, 2011 at 1:09 PM ^
Wouldn't adding more teams to the B1G necessitate them grabbing even more of that money?
There's pretty much a finite number of games that will be broadcast every week regardless of conference realignments. I don't see any reason that B1G games become less attractive just because another conference expands, nor do I see why they automatically become more attractive if they were to expand. The losers should be the conferences losing teams.
I think the SEC will have a hard time profiting from going to 16 teams. Their revenues have already been going up. They would need to add an extra 33% just to break even on expansion.
August 30th, 2011 at 9:14 AM ^
Old News....
August 30th, 2011 at 10:04 AM ^
Since last year I've always felt the Big XII would disintegrate into oblivion. Texas has already established itself as the uber-independent and A&M just flipped the bird to Texas as retaliation to the Big XII monetary disbursement system. The Big XII is beyond flawed and supports only the top programs as far as revenue sharing goes. A&M is a HUGE loss as they are obviously capable of being a top tier program. Super conferences are among us. 7