I think most of us have basically come to ignore what public figures involved in the expansion process have to say. It is so often spin and PR, with no content. Well, this leaked Big 12 memo actually demonstrates that fact:


ESPN article on leaked Big 12 memo

Basically, everything the memo tells them to say seems to be lie. Everything it tells them not to say seems to be accurate.

True fitting conclusion to the Big 12 mess.

One other don't they should have added.

DON'T LEAK THIS MEMO TO ESPN.

Why does everything that it tells them to say necessarily a lie? Why does everything it says not to say accurate? Actually when you look at it honestly and objectively, almost everything in both sides is a shades of gray thing that depends on context and opinion.

Wikileaks reveals that the Big 12 is rigged.

I wonder who would want ESPN to have this? Someone who wanted to expand?

It's funny...you read about how Houston (?) saw the breakdown of the Big XII formation as something Texas wanted away from hangers-on that didn't add into the pot. To hear it from how things went, you had the leading programs wanting expansion, but they were forced back by schools adding little to no value to the conference looking for their own gain. Equals on paper doing their part to counterbalance the influence of stronger programs.

This gets the ball rolling to break up the conference, imo. It doesn't help when the AD of one of the members likens his institution with seven others as saying they're a mid-major without two prominent members with them. You have a guy basically saying their product is junk when it comes down to it. So, why parade it around as something other than that, or force people to believe it has a credible, relevant conference for the next, what, eight or nine years? No thank you.

Consider Monday the beginning of the divorce. Here's hoping it's a fast one.

I don't think Monday began the divorce. It may have begun the official divorce proceedings but these fissures have been very visible to the rest of the "neighbors" for quite some time.

It looks like ESPN found another version of this that included Bowlsbys notes on each item!

Do:

• Indicate the Board arrived at a "Unanimous Consensus."

Quote:Leave out the part where we have to start each meeting with a game of "Bevo Says"

• [Say] the Board was unanimous in its desire and commitment to stay at 10 members.

Quote:This sounds much better than "No good P5 program wants to join!"

• Refer to the conference as equal to our peer group.

Quote:Be vague here and don't say exactly who our "peer group" is

• Revenue alone does not win championships.

Quote:point to the UT athletic department as proof of this if questioned on this point

• We are not going to publicly discuss consideration details.

Quote:Boren, I swear to God...

• We were exhaustive in our research.

Quote:Plays much better than " we asked UT and OU if they could sell season tickets for these candidates"

• We have the most competitive competition model in college sports.

Quote:Try to ignore anyone pointing out that entire goal of adding more teams is to get away from this model as quickly as possible

• Refer to 2024-25 as an opportunity to explore the media landscape and how to use new technologies to deliver content to our fans.

Quote:Try to spin our lack of a network as a good thing. Were not the losers who are the only power league without one because the networks dont think we're worth it! Were bold pioneers who are ahead of the next technology curve....someone will buy that.

• The sunset of our Grant of Rights agreements allows the Conference to be in an active marketplace.

Quote:Try to make it seem like we're going to be "confident buyers" rather than "desperate sellers" in said future marketplace

• Expansion is no longer an active agenda item.

Quote:Unless they start questioning us again about why we've done nothing to punish Baylor, then its "back on"

Don't:

• Say we are at a competitive disadvantage.

Quote:ESPN does this enough already

• Say revenue determines strength.

Quote:The SEC is announcing their revenue next week and its gonna make us look like were running a lemonade stand

• Say expansion is dilutive.

Quote:Hey are TCU and WVU getting full shares yet?

• Say candidates were not deemed Power 5 worthy.

Quote:Say that it's "us" and not "them"

• Refer to any specific expansion candidate/school by name.

Quote:Or derogatory nicknames like "Coog High"...Looking at you Bevo

• Indicate that TV influenced decision.

Quote:Yes I know, just try not to giggle or laugh too much when you say this

• [Say] we are psychologically disadvantaged.

Quote:Dammit Boren, again!

• Discuss 2024-25 as a grant of rights issues.[/quote]

Quote:But if pressed, at least dont refer to it as "throwing women and children off the lifeboat in a desperate attempt to flee the Titanic as it sinks...looking at you Pollard

Countdown to Texas and Oklahoma start planning to bolt in 2023

(10-19-2016 08:00 AM)The Cutter of Bish Wrote:  This gets the ball rolling to break up the conference, imo. It doesn't help when the AD of one of the members likens his institution with seven others as saying they're a mid-major without two prominent members with them. You have a guy basically saying their product is junk when it comes down to it. ...

And, "shockingly", the AD from one of the two programs whose main FB product reliably is junk, year after year.

Of the "Big 8 Five" who seem to have vetoed Houston+X, there's a legit King program in Oklahoma, two programs that have at times put runs on the board in Kansas State and Oklahoma State ... and then there's Kansas and ISU.

At least Kansas is among the top ten blue bloods in BBall.

As far as I can tell, ISU's main claim to fame is that there isn't much to do in that part of the country on a Saturday in the Fall, so people go to the football stadium to watch the visiting team show the home team how football is played.

If we are talking about ISU and Kansas football ... yes, that is Mountain West level, and not even top tier Mountain West level.

Okay. I am seeing this now.

Fox is against expansion.

ESPN is for expansion.

How much would ESPN give to Texas if they did expand with schools to have the new teams be shown on the Longhorns Network for content, and expand the network into other states?

I look at this very cynically. I think this was a ploy all along. To be honest, I think it was a two-pronged approach and I also think it was completely boneheaded.

I think this was an effort to shake down the networks for our money. In that regard, it obviously worked. I think they were also hoping/half – expecting another P5 school or two to come forward and express interest in joining/rejoining that conference.

On that front, they failed so spectacularly that they have now cemented themselves perception-wise as the fifth strongest league in college football. That was really, really stupid. Equally foolish was the insane level of transparency – real or otherwise – that they showed. All that did was further expose themselves to everyone as being a hot mess.

You don't think Big Ten schools have knock down/drag out battles behind closed doors? The same goes for every other conference as well. However, those leagues don't seem to need to do it quite so publicly.

This is the analogy I often use in similar situations when dealing with dysfunctional groups. The tone and type of conversation you might have with your teenage daughter about her idiot boyfriend is different at your family's dinner table than it would be at say, Applebee's. And the level/tone of discourse changes further if you go to a nice restaurant.

The B12 has ignored all of those simple principles for a few years now and these talking points are a futile was to try and reel them back in. However, the truth is it is way too late for them and the damage is now done. That horse left the barn ages ago.

I think reasonable people can disagree about whether the Big XII ultimately made the right decision. What for the life of me I can't understand is why anyone in this day and age puts anything in writing. Whether it be a memo or an email, it can never come to any good end. If you wanted to get this message across, it should have been done behind closed doors, with no outsiders in the room, and all cell phones confiscated beforehand.

Anyone who thinks transparency is a good thing is an idiot.

Iowa State should stay quiet and be happy that they were grandfathered in.

Why. In a few years, it probably won't matter anyway.

(10-19-2016 07:35 AM)firmbizzle Wrote:  Wikileaks reveals that the Big 12 is rigged.

A video from a hidden camera also reveals that Putin is behind it.

From what we've gathered, the Big 12 expansion committee did not participate (either in person or by GoToMeeting) in the presentations made by the ~10 schools who made the cut and were invited to Dallas.

Rather, Bob Bowlsby was in attendance.

Bear in mind, Bowlsby spent his entire career working for university presidents as either AD or commissioner. For 30 years, he's been the one making presentations to presidents.

But during that fateful week in September, school presidents and wealthy regents made presentations privately to him.

I'm sure it was quite an ego trip for Bob.

However, I'm also sure that most presidents and VIPs of the applicant schools would have preferred to present to their peers on the Big 12 expansion committee.

Against this backdrop, you can imagine the dismay at Boren's comments that "we did not discuss any individual schools." You can understand why UConn and others released their presentation material -- nobody was sure the Big 12 presidents even saw it!

PS Not blaming Bowlsby. Pretty sure he was against expansion, and only went through the exercise because the presidents instructed him to. In fact, Bowlsby probably knew it would end in embarassment, and still had to go through the drill.

To read it like that, Cougar, you'd think more schools would have outright said something like "yo, forget it...Bob just did us a favor and gave us a minute...committee wasn't there." Could have called this stuff out and forced a different discussion about the integrity of this conference (or lack thereof).

I don't ever remember getting a job where some of the people I was supposed to meet with didn't show up. It reeks of "I don't need to see this person because I'm not interested." And anyone ever coached is basically trained not to make that leap, even though, more times than not, it is a bad sign for your chances.

I really hope nobody really spent a ton of money on getting themselves ready to get into this thing, be it facilities-wise or with promotional content. The fix was in from the start.

Big 12 screwed themselves out. With all the latests coming out of the Baylor rape scandal? Baylor could faced a Penn. State or an SMU penalty. If Baylor gets the SMU treatment? Big 12 will be down to 9 schools. The reason that the Big 12 needed to expand is because both Baylor and Kansas are having issues that they could be facing from the NCAA and by the feds. Big 12 needed to expand now before any punishments come down to those 2 schools.

(10-19-2016 08:29 AM)Dr. Isaly von Yinzer Wrote:  I don't think Monday began the divorce. It may have begun the official divorce proceedings but these fissures have been very visible to the rest of the "neighbors" for quite some time.

Fissures? Hells Bells Yinz! Four of them left with other lovers! Hello!

We got ours! F all y'all trying to get yours!! - signed the Big 12, ACC, SEC, Pac 12, Big 10