(07-26-2021 05:34 PM)Ranger Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 04:56 PM)JustAnotherAustinOwl Wrote:  Big Ten Only Interested in Adding AAU Schools: Report
https://www.heartlandcollegesports.com/2...jciraZ8tog

They're saying there's a chance!

There is a video blog which interviewed a supposed Buckeye insider. He said UT and OU decided to go as a group. They supposedly approached the BIG in February but the BIG would not take OU because it was not an AAU member.

That's too bad. UT could have sweetened the deal by bringing Rice Kansas. Given that Nebraska is not an AAU, this might have worked. But, being honest, there is much more money in the SEC.

wow...she no go to Rice, so she not too smart:

Quote:Dr. Kayse Shrum@drshrum (=OSU prez)
Replying to @drshrum

It is difficult to understand how an Oklahoma institution of higher education would follow the University of Texas to the detriment of the State of Oklahoma. Nevertheless we are turning our eyes to the future and looking at what is best for Oklahoma State University.

5:26 PM · Jul 26, 2021

it no difficult to understand OU; it difficult that you no unnerstand.

(07-26-2021 02:55 PM)WRCisforgotten79 Wrote:  I think it's looking highly likely that this fall's game against Texas will mark the last time the two schools meet on the football field. I realize that there is another game scheduled for Austin in 2023, but I can't see UT remaining in the Big 12 after this academic year. Once they join the SEC, old schedules will fall by the wayside.

The Whorns still have a vested interest in having an away game every few years in Houston.

And, they will never play UH in my remaining lifetime. Ever. The absolute enmity between Cooger High and the Whorns (not just athletics, but as schools) is off the charts for a number of reasons.

As an example, and as related by me from an individual at the meeting in question, when Herman was poached by the Whorns, there was an overture by the Coogs to try and do a 'not all the buyout in cash' business proposal.

In the main meeting, the Coog people threw the possibility of a home and home in lieu of a substantial portion of the buyout. The response was not diplomatic -- on the order of 'no fing way that will ever happen'. Needless to say, there were no more entreaties between the school officials on the subject, and the Whorns paid the buyout full up on behalf of Herman per the contract.

Mix that up with the years that Pardee and Jenkins rolled up scores on the Whorns and probably cost them some claims at titles, and the overall obstinance of the Whorns who tried to block UH from joining the SWC, and the overall efforts for 40 years of the UT system trying to actually compete with UH by proposing UT satellites in various Houston locations, the rancor between the schools is astronomically high.

But, UT has a good pressure to 'play in front of' what is probably their largest population of Whorns in the nation -- seems that really only one school fits that bill now and for the immediate future (that is until Rice drops off a cliff sports-wise).

(07-26-2021 01:40 PM)GoodOwl Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 11:39 AM)westsidewolf1989 Wrote:  Tx Tech / Ok State probably only has the Pac 12 and maybe the Big 10 to look at. Their poor academics will hurt them. Additionally, while they would bring eyeballs in Texas/Oklahoma, I'm not sure Texas Tech is a huge boon for any conference from a recruiting perspective. Lubbock is very far away from the state's population centers and thus very far away from the top recruits in Texas. Out of the top 50 TX 2021 recruits, only four are outside the Texas Triangle: two from Texarkana, one from a small town east of Abilene and one from Lubbock. If you're USC and making trips to Lubbock every two years for football games, it's not easy to get a recruit from the Houston/DFW area to fly/drive to Lubbock (relative to driving to Austin or College Station).

PAC-12 is working on other welcoming other "blue-chip parners" right now...

Quote:LOS ANGELES - The Pac-12 announced today that Campbell Snacks, maker of some of America’s favorite snacks and baked goods including Goldfish crackers, Snyder’s of Hanover pretzels, Late July tortilla chips, Kettle Brand and Cape Cod potato chips, and Pepperidge Farm cookies and breads, has been named the Conference's official sweet and salty snack and bakery product partner, and an official partner of the Pac-12 Football Championship Game.

“We welcome Campbell Snacks as our newest blue-chip partner,” said Steve Tseng, Pac-12 Networks Executive Vice President of Sales

Campbell Snacks named official partner of the Pac-12

Dude, seriously, post more! Your wit is so sharp it's what keeps me coming back to this site. And your special brand of Rice-positivity!!

(07-26-2021 04:06 PM)westsidewolf1989 Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 02:55 PM)WRCisforgotten79 Wrote:  I think it's looking highly likely that this fall's game against Texas will mark the last time the two schools meet on the football field. I realize that there is another game scheduled for Austin in 2023, but I can't see UT remaining in the Big 12 after this academic year. Once they join the SEC, old schedules will fall by the wayside.

I'm not sure why. If I'm Texas and playing a nine-game SEC schedule, which will potentially involve several top-25 teams, I would want to make sure that all (or at least two) of my three non-conference games are gimmes. That's how their non-conference schedule is crafted through 2026 (two G5, one P5), so I wouldn't see them wanting to make it harder on themselves. Under the (potential) new playoff, the SEC champ plus probably at least three (and maybe even five) of the six "at-large" playoff spots are going to the SEC, so you basically just need to be a SEC division runner-up and you're in the playoff.

I've been reading about the possibility of a quick realignment, whereby P5 teams will play only other P5 teams. Things are about to move really fast, and September, 2023 is a long ways away.

Hiring a producer of broadcasts. New position? I know our quality needs to step way up if we move into a new conference.

https://twitter.com/greg_sandercox/statu...53987?s=21

If the Big 12 stays together I think it’s good to note Bowlsby is from Stanford. Not that he’ll have a job for long imo.

(07-26-2021 03:56 PM)franklyconfused Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 01:57 PM)Ranger Wrote:  I think our biggest obstacle is whether JK, Leebron, and the BOT care and, if they do, if they are aggressively pitching Rice.

When the XII put on their dog and pony show of threatening to add teams in 2016, JK and Leebron made a pitch at the in-person second round. I have no doubt that JK cares (it would be a massive promotion for him even if we take the cynical view that he's only concerned about resume building). Leebron obviously sees some value in major conference athletics if he not only allowed the process but participated in it, though I think the prevailing attitude on this board is that he doesn't value it highly enough. I'm not privy to those conversations, but I can't imagine that the BOT was left in the dark in 2016 nor that this ongoing situation up the road has gone completely under their radar. I am confident that something is being done. I am not confident that it will be successful, nor am I deluding myself that we might leap from C-USA to the PAC or B1G by virtue of our AAU status. Hell, UH spends more in research dollars now than we do. What argument do we have over them, either on or off the field?

My impression from the Big XII beauty contest is that we put on a conventional pitch and talked about our "strengths" like hey, we're in Houston, we'd bring the conference GPA up, etc. But I did not get the impression that we addressed the elephant in the room -- that we currently have no fanbase, no TV appeal . . . the main things that a conference wanting to grow the pie would be looking for -- and were prepared to actually leverage our most important advantage over every other beauty contestant: WEALTH.

There's only one way Rice had any chance of getting a "yes" out of that process and that was to promise investment, paying extra dues/taking a lesser share, etc., and generally using *our* resources -- not conference handouts -- to pull ourselves up to a reasonably equal footing as soon as possible. But we gave no reason to believe that we would not end up just being the old, apathetic, taking-but-never-giving Rice that several of them knew all too well from our SWC years together.

Sure, I think Leebron was prepared to accept a Big XII invite, if by some miracle one was thrown our way after his entire tenure of doing nothing towards actually earning one.

And so I am quite pessimistic that if we are out there pitching conferences again, that we are doing anything other than telling them what they already know about us. That won't cut it.

(07-26-2021 10:07 PM)cr11owl Wrote:  If the Big 12 stays together I think it’s good to note Bowlsby is from Stanford. Not that he’ll have a job for long imo.

After being asleep at the wheel on this deal, I think Bowlsby is walking dead in tis job. Even if his job and the XII itself aren't walking dead.

(07-26-2021 11:27 PM)illiniowl Wrote:  And so I am quite pessimistic that if we are out there pitching conferences again, that we are doing anything other than telling them what they already know about us. That won't cut it.

I remember when the SWC broke up and we went to the WAC. We got a visit from WAC commissioner Karl Benson. It was a big deal, big meet and greet social event for Owl Club members (I remember that I liked the guy), interviews in paper(s) and on TV, and the like. I was told later that privately Bobby was given a list of improvements that we needed to make, basically what I had been told the SEC had wanted a year or two earlier, and that he was quite stunned that the WAC would require the same things that the SEC did. We didn't make them then, and the Denver Airport happened.

(07-26-2021 11:27 PM)illiniowl Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 03:56 PM)franklyconfused Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 01:57 PM)Ranger Wrote:  I think our biggest obstacle is whether JK, Leebron, and the BOT care and, if they do, if they are aggressively pitching Rice.

When the XII put on their dog and pony show of threatening to add teams in 2016, JK and Leebron made a pitch at the in-person second round. I have no doubt that JK cares (it would be a massive promotion for him even if we take the cynical view that he's only concerned about resume building). Leebron obviously sees some value in major conference athletics if he not only allowed the process but participated in it, though I think the prevailing attitude on this board is that he doesn't value it highly enough. I'm not privy to those conversations, but I can't imagine that the BOT was left in the dark in 2016 nor that this ongoing situation up the road has gone completely under their radar. I am confident that something is being done. I am not confident that it will be successful, nor am I deluding myself that we might leap from C-USA to the PAC or B1G by virtue of our AAU status. Hell, UH spends more in research dollars now than we do. What argument do we have over them, either on or off the field?

My impression from the Big XII beauty contest is that we put on a conventional pitch and talked about our "strengths" like hey, we're in Houston, we'd bring the conference GPA up, etc. But I did not get the impression that we addressed the elephant in the room -- that we currently have no fanbase, no TV appeal . . . the main things that a conference wanting to grow the pie would be looking for -- and were prepared to actually leverage our most important advantage over every other beauty contestant: WEALTH.

There's only one way Rice had any chance of getting a "yes" out of that process and that was to promise investment, paying extra dues/taking a lesser share, etc., and generally using *our* resources -- not conference handouts -- to pull ourselves up to a reasonably equal footing as soon as possible. But we gave no reason to believe that we would not end up just being the old, apathetic, taking-but-never-giving Rice that several of them knew all too well from our SWC years together.

Sure, I think Leebron was prepared to accept a Big XII invite, if by some miracle one was thrown our way after his entire tenure of doing nothing towards actually earning one.

And so I am quite pessimistic that if we are out there pitching conferences again, that we are doing anything other than telling them what they already know about us. That won't cut it.

Your "impression"? Serious question-- did you see the Big12 pitch or are you just assuming what was and what wasn't in it?

(07-27-2021 06:54 AM)waltgreenberg Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 11:27 PM)illiniowl Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 03:56 PM)franklyconfused Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 01:57 PM)Ranger Wrote:  I think our biggest obstacle is whether JK, Leebron, and the BOT care and, if they do, if they are aggressively pitching Rice.

When the XII put on their dog and pony show of threatening to add teams in 2016, JK and Leebron made a pitch at the in-person second round. I have no doubt that JK cares (it would be a massive promotion for him even if we take the cynical view that he's only concerned about resume building). Leebron obviously sees some value in major conference athletics if he not only allowed the process but participated in it, though I think the prevailing attitude on this board is that he doesn't value it highly enough. I'm not privy to those conversations, but I can't imagine that the BOT was left in the dark in 2016 nor that this ongoing situation up the road has gone completely under their radar. I am confident that something is being done. I am not confident that it will be successful, nor am I deluding myself that we might leap from C-USA to the PAC or B1G by virtue of our AAU status. Hell, UH spends more in research dollars now than we do. What argument do we have over them, either on or off the field?

My impression from the Big XII beauty contest is that we put on a conventional pitch and talked about our "strengths" like hey, we're in Houston, we'd bring the conference GPA up, etc. But I did not get the impression that we addressed the elephant in the room -- that we currently have no fanbase, no TV appeal . . . the main things that a conference wanting to grow the pie would be looking for -- and were prepared to actually leverage our most important advantage over every other beauty contestant: WEALTH.

There's only one way Rice had any chance of getting a "yes" out of that process and that was to promise investment, paying extra dues/taking a lesser share, etc., and generally using *our* resources -- not conference handouts -- to pull ourselves up to a reasonably equal footing as soon as possible. But we gave no reason to believe that we would not end up just being the old, apathetic, taking-but-never-giving Rice that several of them knew all too well from our SWC years together.

Sure, I think Leebron was prepared to accept a Big XII invite, if by some miracle one was thrown our way after his entire tenure of doing nothing towards actually earning one.

And so I am quite pessimistic that if we are out there pitching conferences again, that we are doing anything other than telling them what they already know about us. That won't cut it.

Your "impression"? Serious question-- did you see the Big12 pitch or are you just assuming what was and what wasn't in it?

The Powerpoint deck was made public, at least to Owl Club members.

(07-27-2021 09:04 AM)illiniowl Wrote:  

(07-27-2021 06:54 AM)waltgreenberg Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 11:27 PM)illiniowl Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 03:56 PM)franklyconfused Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 01:57 PM)Ranger Wrote:  I think our biggest obstacle is whether JK, Leebron, and the BOT care and, if they do, if they are aggressively pitching Rice.

When the XII put on their dog and pony show of threatening to add teams in 2016, JK and Leebron made a pitch at the in-person second round. I have no doubt that JK cares (it would be a massive promotion for him even if we take the cynical view that he's only concerned about resume building). Leebron obviously sees some value in major conference athletics if he not only allowed the process but participated in it, though I think the prevailing attitude on this board is that he doesn't value it highly enough. I'm not privy to those conversations, but I can't imagine that the BOT was left in the dark in 2016 nor that this ongoing situation up the road has gone completely under their radar. I am confident that something is being done. I am not confident that it will be successful, nor am I deluding myself that we might leap from C-USA to the PAC or B1G by virtue of our AAU status. Hell, UH spends more in research dollars now than we do. What argument do we have over them, either on or off the field?

My impression from the Big XII beauty contest is that we put on a conventional pitch and talked about our "strengths" like hey, we're in Houston, we'd bring the conference GPA up, etc. But I did not get the impression that we addressed the elephant in the room -- that we currently have no fanbase, no TV appeal . . . the main things that a conference wanting to grow the pie would be looking for -- and were prepared to actually leverage our most important advantage over every other beauty contestant: WEALTH.

There's only one way Rice had any chance of getting a "yes" out of that process and that was to promise investment, paying extra dues/taking a lesser share, etc., and generally using *our* resources -- not conference handouts -- to pull ourselves up to a reasonably equal footing as soon as possible. But we gave no reason to believe that we would not end up just being the old, apathetic, taking-but-never-giving Rice that several of them knew all too well from our SWC years together.

Sure, I think Leebron was prepared to accept a Big XII invite, if by some miracle one was thrown our way after his entire tenure of doing nothing towards actually earning one.

And so I am quite pessimistic that if we are out there pitching conferences again, that we are doing anything other than telling them what they already know about us. That won't cut it.

Your "impression"? Serious question-- did you see the Big12 pitch or are you just assuming what was and what wasn't in it?

The Powerpoint deck was made public, at least to Owl Club members.

That deck did not include the more confidential part of the presentation (and for obvious reasons).

One thing that strikes me about all this is that it's not just us that will probably left out - people are talking about the remaining B12 schools essentially dropping down a notch. TCU and Baylor have been part of the playoff discussion very recently, and gone to BCS games. Baylor just won a national championship in basketball, FFS. It's just crazy.

Cowherd is suggesting the idea of the B1G raiding the PAC isn't as crazy as it sounds.

Not excusing our lack of action the past years/decades, but I find myself wondering if it would have done any good. I will always root for all Rice Owls sports, but I'm really losing interest in "College" football these days. Maybe a FBS leftover division will actually be more fun.

Or worst case, we end up dropping football and focus on our excellent women's programs and MBB and baseball. (Not advocating dropping football, to be clear...)

I guess we could end up in a league with both Texas Christian and Abilene Christian...

(07-27-2021 09:18 AM)waltgreenberg Wrote:  

(07-27-2021 09:04 AM)illiniowl Wrote:  

(07-27-2021 06:54 AM)waltgreenberg Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 11:27 PM)illiniowl Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 03:56 PM)franklyconfused Wrote:  When the XII put on their dog and pony show of threatening to add teams in 2016, JK and Leebron made a pitch at the in-person second round. I have no doubt that JK cares (it would be a massive promotion for him even if we take the cynical view that he's only concerned about resume building). Leebron obviously sees some value in major conference athletics if he not only allowed the process but participated in it, though I think the prevailing attitude on this board is that he doesn't value it highly enough. I'm not privy to those conversations, but I can't imagine that the BOT was left in the dark in 2016 nor that this ongoing situation up the road has gone completely under their radar. I am confident that something is being done. I am not confident that it will be successful, nor am I deluding myself that we might leap from C-USA to the PAC or B1G by virtue of our AAU status. Hell, UH spends more in research dollars now than we do. What argument do we have over them, either on or off the field?

My impression from the Big XII beauty contest is that we put on a conventional pitch and talked about our "strengths" like hey, we're in Houston, we'd bring the conference GPA up, etc. But I did not get the impression that we addressed the elephant in the room -- that we currently have no fanbase, no TV appeal . . . the main things that a conference wanting to grow the pie would be looking for -- and were prepared to actually leverage our most important advantage over every other beauty contestant: WEALTH.

There's only one way Rice had any chance of getting a "yes" out of that process and that was to promise investment, paying extra dues/taking a lesser share, etc., and generally using *our* resources -- not conference handouts -- to pull ourselves up to a reasonably equal footing as soon as possible. But we gave no reason to believe that we would not end up just being the old, apathetic, taking-but-never-giving Rice that several of them knew all too well from our SWC years together.

Sure, I think Leebron was prepared to accept a Big XII invite, if by some miracle one was thrown our way after his entire tenure of doing nothing towards actually earning one.

And so I am quite pessimistic that if we are out there pitching conferences again, that we are doing anything other than telling them what they already know about us. That won't cut it.

Your "impression"? Serious question-- did you see the Big12 pitch or are you just assuming what was and what wasn't in it?

The Powerpoint deck was made public, at least to Owl Club members.

That deck did not include the more confidential part of the presentation (and for obvious reasons).

Well that part must have been a real showstopper because look where it's gotten us.

The thing speaks for itself: We are where we are. If we were willing, as you imply, to spend whatever is necessary to get ourselves into a better conference and make ourselves into a P5-level program, why have we gone in no other direction but down for 25 years?

Either Rice isn't willing to spend what is necessary or it's vastly underestimated what is necessary.

(07-26-2021 02:40 PM)ExcitedOwl18 Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 02:33 PM)Ranger Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 02:18 PM)GoodOwl Wrote:  https://twitter.com/ESPNRittenberg/statu...6485918725

Quote:Adam Rittenberg@ESPNRittenberg

Heard today from several people that B1G only would be interested in adding schools from the AAU (Nebraska no longer, but was when it joined league). Texas is AAU member, along with Pac-12 schools like Cal, Washington, Colorado, USC, UCLA, Oregon, Stanford. Oklahoma is not AAU.

10:43 AM · Jul 26, 2021

BIG or at least its fans, are hoping for merging with, partial merger with, or poaching Pac schools, nine of which are AAU. Fallback is to poach ACC AAU members.

If that fails and they want to expand with AAU members, there are only8 available schools plus the Ivies.

KU, ISU,Rice, Tulane, UCD, UCI, Buffalo, Stony Brook.

Some are saying they'd return to their roots and readmit Case Western

Coming back as a pair with the University of Chicago.

(07-27-2021 10:44 AM)illiniowl Wrote:  

(07-27-2021 09:18 AM)waltgreenberg Wrote:  

(07-27-2021 09:04 AM)illiniowl Wrote:  

(07-27-2021 06:54 AM)waltgreenberg Wrote:  

(07-26-2021 11:27 PM)illiniowl Wrote:  My impression from the Big XII beauty contest is that we put on a conventional pitch and talked about our "strengths" like hey, we're in Houston, we'd bring the conference GPA up, etc. But I did not get the impression that we addressed the elephant in the room -- that we currently have no fanbase, no TV appeal . . . the main things that a conference wanting to grow the pie would be looking for -- and were prepared to actually leverage our most important advantage over every other beauty contestant: WEALTH.

There's only one way Rice had any chance of getting a "yes" out of that process and that was to promise investment, paying extra dues/taking a lesser share, etc., and generally using *our* resources -- not conference handouts -- to pull ourselves up to a reasonably equal footing as soon as possible. But we gave no reason to believe that we would not end up just being the old, apathetic, taking-but-never-giving Rice that several of them knew all too well from our SWC years together.

Sure, I think Leebron was prepared to accept a Big XII invite, if by some miracle one was thrown our way after his entire tenure of doing nothing towards actually earning one.

And so I am quite pessimistic that if we are out there pitching conferences again, that we are doing anything other than telling them what they already know about us. That won't cut it.

Your "impression"? Serious question-- did you see the Big12 pitch or are you just assuming what was and what wasn't in it?

The Powerpoint deck was made public, at least to Owl Club members.

That deck did not include the more confidential part of the presentation (and for obvious reasons).

Well that part must have been a real showstopper because look where it's gotten us.

The thing speaks for itself: We are where we are. If we were willing, as you imply, to spend whatever is necessary to get ourselves into a better conference and make ourselves into a P5-level program, why have we gone in no other direction but down for 25 years?

Either Rice isn't willing to spend what is necessary or it's vastly underestimated what is necessary.

I think both are equally relevant to the student educational experience.
Rice does spend money on things some might find superfluous. Its not the spending, it's the attitude on what is worth spending on. I don't think Rice produces well-rounded individuals, like I believe it once did some 60 years ago; that it is a shame that it does not use the opportunity of its history, especially from its past record of competing and succeeding at the nation's highest levels of collegiate sports to expose and encourage full participation in what is and will be a large part of the American culture when they graduate and get out into the world. It is an atrophy of their development of interest and ability to better participate in society and life, and this seems to encourage further marginalization of the average Rice grad in the larger world, which does nothing but harm the University itself.

What has been lacking is Rice using Rice's own resources to spur success in its athletics. Other conferences have recognized this, told Rice about it and what they must do to rectify it, and Rice refuses. It's no secret.

Illiniowl is correct when he intimates Rice is happy to use other peoples money but refuses to give much of its own. How hard can it really be for an AD or a University President to organize and announce a matching fund campaign specifically targeted for athletics? Few alums or others are interested or respect the idea of totally funding improving Rice athletics from primarily outside sources, when Rice is one of the richest schools in the nation, yet can't seem to commit to at the very least matching dollar for dollar donations that specifically target its area of greatest weakness and one that harms the University's public perception the most? Indeed, it has often been cited on these boards that targeting donations, whether corporate as many other successful schools do, or a simple campaign solely devoted to athletics with no additional strings is somehow "against the rules" of what random ideologies constitute the "Rice Way" which is a bunch of BS that hurts the University and the value of its degrees. Until the University shows it is willing to spend its own money, as other schools have done and will do, it will fail and slip farter to mediocrity, no matter how many arts centers it builds. Someone pointed out that UH spends more on research than Rice does at this point. Rice needs to get over itself already and join the real world. More people care about football than arts centers. Like it or not, that is the reality.

Rice fits the Pac-12 profile from an academic and cultural perspective. If they make a solid pitch and commit to make a substantial investment in athletics, I think they have a shot, especially when you consider the potential candidates for Pac-12 expansion: OK-State, Tech, TCU and Baylor. The other leftovers will attempt to get into the B1G (KU, KSU, ISU) and ACC (WVU). OK-State might prefer the B1G to the Pac-12.

Ideally the Pac-12 would like to add 4 schools if possible. Baylor will get rejected for the same reasons as BYU. I think they would reluctantly add OK-State, Tech and TCU to get into the central time zone and make themselves more relevant in football. Who would the 4th team be? Maybe they go with Rice to counter the the new members' fair-to-poor academics.

If some or all of the remaining "Big 8" stay together and add teams, I think UH, SMU, Memphis, UCF/USF and/or Cincy get the nod over Rice.

There's also rumors of complete Pac-12/B1G and SEC/ACC mergers. Not sure how the "Big 8", AAC or mid-majors would be impacted by that consolidation.

Scanning message boards, I get the sense that many posters (who fortunately are not the decision makers) believe that Rice adds little value. They discount the value of Rice's location for eyeballs and recruiting. They remark on Rice's almost non-existent of its fan base.

The key objection is that Rice will not bring in enough revenue to offset the cut the other schools will have to take by sharing with an additional member. I think it goes without saying that Rice must be willing to agree initially to a partial share of revenues, which rises over a period of time to a full share.

As far as strategy, I think that the worst thing for Rice is for the BIG and PAC to merge. Next worst is for BIG to cherrypick four or six PAC schools, in which case the remnants of the PAC and XII would join. If either happens, I see few options for Rice. The good news is, the BIG commissioner is apparently incompetent and may be unable to pull this off.

(07-27-2021 12:15 PM)Snozberry Wrote:  Rice fits the Pac-12 profile from an academic and cultural perspective. If they make a solid pitch and commit to make a substantial investment in athletics, I think they have a shot, especially when you consider the potential candidates for Pac-12 expansion: OK-State, Tech, TCU and Baylor. The other leftovers will attempt to get into the B1G (KU, KSU, ISU) and ACC (WVU). OK-State might prefer the B1G to the Pac-12.

Ideally the Pac-12 would like to add 4 schools if possible. Baylor will get rejected for the same reasons as BYU. I think they would reluctantly add OK-State, Tech and TCU to get into the central time zone and make themselves more relevant in football. Who would the 4th team be? Maybe they go with Rice to counter the the new members' fair-to-poor academics.

If some or all of the remaining "Big 8" stay together and add teams, I think UH, SMU, Memphis, UCF/USF and/or Cincy get the nod over Rice.

There's also rumors of complete Pac-12/B1G and SEC/ACC mergers. Not sure how the "Big 8", AAC or mid-majors would be impacted by that consolidation.

(07-27-2021 12:20 PM)Stugray2 Wrote:  Pac-12 is not taking anybody.

George's statement was a classic non statement.

I guess it's necessary for the Little 8 to go through the exercise to verify the escape pods don't work before focusing on themselves as a group. to that end: Kansas is verifying the B1G is not expanding for a good while; West Virginia is verifying that Notre Dame is not joinng the ACC in the near future, so the complimentary spot they could slide into is not there; Texas Tech and Oklahoma State are verifying that Pac-12 interest is dependent upon their big brothers who just went to the SEC; Baylor and Tech are verifying that a symbolic bill in the legislature wont keep Texas in the Big 12, despite the power of prayer; All of the schools were verifying that taking a $4-5m haircut annually and giving that to OU and UT wont change their mind about moving to the SEC. Kansas State has been verifying the bourbon from Kansas corn is pretty decent stuff, but not much help in the search department. Meanwhile Iowa State instantly saw reality and is wishing they were bourbon testing with K State after looking at the expansion candidates and calculating the valuation of the league in the next contract negotiations.