CSNbbs

This is from Stewart's mailbag, article here.

"I'd say the conference upgraded"

Stewart Mandel Wrote:Stewart, seeing how West Virginia crushed Clemson in the Orange Bowl, and TCU won the MWC and finished in the top 15, can you give a grade to how the Big 12 did by replacing Texas A&M and Missouri and getting West Virginia and TCU?

...in terms of football, today, I'd say the conference upgraded. Mountain West or not, TCU has firmly established itself as a top 15 program under Gary Patterson. The Frogs will contend in the Big 12 from the go, which is more than A&M had done in the past 13 years. West Virginia and Missouri have been fairly comparable programs the past few years. The Tigers had become a regular contender in the former Big 12 North, which is about equivalent to what the Mountaineers were doing in the Big East. While their Orange Bowl performance was spectacular, remember West Virginia was barely a Top 25 team going into the game.

Having said that, the Mountaineers carry some cachet from having won three BCS games in the past seven years (Mizzou hasn't been to one), and you've got to like their future prospects under Dana Holgorsen. Having coached at Texas Tech, Houston and Oklahoma State, he'll have some pull in Texas recruiting circles. WVU could also contend in the Big 12 immediately, which could make for a very interesting race next season with Landry Jones returning to Oklahoma and Texas likely continuing to improve while the Cowboys try to reload.

It's an upgrade in basketball as well IMO, Mizzou's success this season not withstanding. Bobby Huggins is going to give the Big XII fits...

West Virginia is a great basketball program, better than either Missouri or Texas A&M. However, TCU doesn't have a whole lot of basketball history with only 7 NCAA tournament appearances. All-time they are pretty even with TAMU in hoops, although the Aggies have been much better recently.

If TCU could even get the 2nd tier talent in Fort Worth and Arlington to stay local then the Frogs could field a NCAA caliber basketball team. That isn't even talking about Dallas and the other DFW suburbs. Recruiting is looking up for the Frogs, hopefully the basketball program can at least get to a consistent NIT type program with an occasional NCAA appearance.

I think being in the Big XII will be good for Frog's basketball, if you have a good coach, and put some resources into the program...

I think that these are two fine additions to the conference.

Unlike football, you only need a few good players to make a difference in basketball. TCU definitely has a chance to improve their hoops program if they can land a few impact players. Gary Patterson is just 51, so there's plenty of time for him to continue his good work on the football side.

WVU has good programs in both of the flagship sports, with a passionate fanbase and good history. The only negative is distance, and frankly that's more of an issue for their fans than it is for the remaining Big 12 teams. I do hope that we expand back to 12 or even 14 to fill in a mid-eastern presence for the conference.

As for what we've lost, A&M is a big school with some unique traditions and a passionate fanbase, but their on-field and on-court performance rarely seemed to match their potential. Missouri also had some solid teams during their Big 12 tenure, but they weren't worldbeaters, either. While they have an energetic lunatic fringe, their fanbase as a whole hasn't seemed as engaged as they could be. It could be that the move to the SEC will give them the lift they need, although I think that on the gridiron they'll find things to be a lot different than they were in the Big 12.