(10-11-2020 01:47 PM)JRsec Wrote: (10-11-2020 01:14 PM)Thiefery Wrote: (10-11-2020 11:55 AM)XLance Wrote: (09-30-2020 11:53 AM)Fighting Muskie Wrote: (09-30-2020 05:22 AM)XLance Wrote: There are several scenarios where ESPN could shift multiple schools around if they can get complete control of the Big 12.
One such scenario would involve moving TCU to the SEC (2nd Texas presence, DFW market) with Missouri moving to the Big 12 along with Louisville from the ACC and Cincinnati from the AAC. Notre Dame then slides into a permanent home in the ACC.
SEC=14
ACC=14
Big 12=12.
I don’t see anyone making a voluntary shift away from the SEC unless Vanderbilt deempasizes sports.
I would disagree.
In the hypothetical situation where Oklahoma and Kansas join the B1G as the Big 12 starts to fall apart. What does the rest of the Big 12 do?
The question actually becomes: what does Texas do?
That answer would determine outcomes for multiple schools.
What if Texas agrees to move to the SEC, but with the stipulation that they bring two friends with them (17 is not a good number for a conference, the SEC won't take Texas as a partial, and ESPN won't make payments for an 18 team SEC)?
Does the SEC turn them down or ask one school to transfer to the ACC?
The Texas leverage is that they could always join the ACC as a partial ,take their two friends and bypass the SEC all together.
Texas wouldn't make the stipulation to bring 2 other schools, just one in Tech.. Which coincidentally was the way they envisioned it when forming the Big12. UT/Tech/aggy.
I also wonder if ESPN does a deal to let UT keep the LHN network til the deal runs out.. Or maybe flips it to a SEC/TX SEC/West package. Where they will show tier 3 games between the Tx schools/arkansas? Espn writes a check to make the difference?
If Texas should decide to leave the Big 12 and join another conference, and that's a big if, Texas and Tech to the SEC actually makes the most sense for them for a number of reasons. Oklahoma in the Big 10 with Kansas also fits that Texas narrative in that scenario.
Texas and Tech and A&M guarantee Texas 7 games inside Texas annually, their 6 home games which includes one of Tech & A&M at home and one away. If they keep the RRR, and there is no reason not to do so, that's 8.
Oklahoma to the Big 10 gives Texas a relatively undisputed prominence in recruiting the region. L.S.U. has always done well in Houston and Arkansas used to do well in Dallas. With Oklahoma in the Big 10 their presence recruiting Texas will diminish a little bit. At least enough that any gains by Arkansas wouldn't be as great as gains by Texas.
And if Texas joins the SEC they negate the A&M branding advantage which is also to their favor.
furthermore if Auburn and Alabama move to the East then the West becomes Texas, L.S.U. (solid but not Oklahoma caliber) and A&M as their primary obstacles.
The moves would satisfy everyone but A&M. ESPN has control of Texas the school and state more completely. The SEC does as well. Arkansas would relish a return to more of their history and l.S.U. out from under Alabama's shadow may be better off to boot.
The Big 10 would be happy to have Oklahoma to bolster the West and Kansas is a solid enough traveling companion.
With those matters settled perhaps W.V.U. makes a move to the ACC. It would benefit the conference, but old animus may reign.
Why would the SECs take Tech to get Texas? Because without Texas we likely have to take OSU to get Oklahoma. Either way we double up a state. It's probably more profitable to take Tech as a third school in a state of 27 million than it is to take the Pokes as a 2nd school in a state of 4 million.
First of all, let's take money off of the table, because we all know that ESPN can slide income to any school as easily as a SEC booster can slip $100 dollar bills into a players helmet.
What does ESPN own? The SEC, the ACC and the AAC.
If Oklahoma and Kansas exit the Big 12 for the B1G......Not even Texas could hold together an eight team conference and maintain P status.
So if (BIG IF) the SEC could somehow convince Texas to lower themselves to join the SEC with Texas Tech, that leaves 6 orphans.
The AAC with 10 full members and one football only member (Navy) could easily absorb all of the orphans provided one school could be moved to the ACC to pair up with a full time Notre Dame.
This would give ESPN three 16 team conferences (SEC, ACC and AAC) which would include almost all of the content of the Big 12 (sans Oklahoma and Kansas).
I would imagine this would give us a SEC west of : Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, LSU, Arkansas, Missouri, Ole Miss and Mississippi State; with Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Kentucky and South Carolina in the east.
The ACC/AAC split could be simple. Navy moves to the ACC in an attempt to placate Notre Dame and solve to extra Big 12 school problem. Voila.....3 X 16 in a marketable format for ESPN that encompasses the majority of the college football watching population in the USA.
This gives a west division of the AAC as: Tulsa, Iowa State, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, SMU, TCU, Baylor, and Houston. In the east: Tulane, Memphis, UCF, USF, Cincinnati, Louisville, East Carolina and Temple.
In the ACC (where divisions are always a challenge) I'll just throw out these two:
Notre Dame, Navy, Pitt, Syracuse, Boston College, Miami, West Virginia and Virginia Tech. Plus: Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech, UVa, Carolina, Wake Forest, Duke, and NCSU.
I moved Louisville to the AAC as a tribute to CardinalJim, who, in an earlier post lamented the the sacrifice the Cardinals had to make when they were separated from traditional rivals Memphis and Cincinnati. Who wouldn't want to see some of those Louisville/Memphis basketball classics?