All indications - multiple reports anyway - are that the 10 remaining Big XII teams will remain united and stay put.
Commissioner Dan Beebe, whom I berated last week for not being proactive, apparently gets some credit for saving this league. A new TV contract with Fox and Fox Sports Net - no ABC or ESPN - is close to being hammered out, meaning a game of the week will be on the national Fox network in football. It also appears FSN will also have a game at either the 11:30 a.m. or 6 p.m. time slot as it has for the last several years.
Yea baby!
That will reap each Big XII school up to $20 million per team and possibly even more. And, reports say the Big XII will keep its automatic BCS bid which will net the conference millions more.
Each conference school may end up with another $2 million each from departure penalties that Colorado and Nebraska will have to fork out.
Yea baby!
Earlier Monday, the Kansas Board of Regents got involved, contacting similar boards from most of the Southern teams to remain in the Big XII.
"A 10-institution Big 12 Conference appears to be a win-win for all involved," regent Jill Docking of Wichita, Chair of the Kansas Board of Regents, said. "Our universities, students, alumni and state would all benefit from K-State's and KU's continued affiliation in a Big XII consisting of the 10 remaining universities. A 10-institution Big XII would have an extremely bright future."
Earlier Monday, The Kansas City Star was reporting that Missouri and other schools were in discussions with Texas. KU officials were not commenting about the UT discussions.
There was speculation late Sunday that a plane carrying Pac-10 officials was headed to Kansas City to have discussions today with KU. The plane never arrived, and a flight tracking Web site said today the plane was returning to California.
"Our priority is to keep the Big 12 together and strong," Jim Marchiony, KU's associate athletic director for external affairs told The Star.
No word on if the new league will go to five two-team divisions or just one 10-team league. One possibility was moving Oklahoma to the North. Stay tuned.
5:30 AM UpdateBasically the way I see it, one of two things will happen concerning the 10 remaining Big XII schools. Of course, all hinges on what the Texas Longhorns do, probably as early as tomorrow, when the Texas Board of Regents meets in Austin, Texas. Not only will the eyes of Texas be upon them, but the eyes of the whole country as well.
Situation 1: UT votes to leave the Big XII, goes to the Pac-10, and takes OU and O-State with them. If A&M wants in, the fourth and final slot goes to them. If A&M opts for the SEC, look for Kansas to be invited to the Pac-10. (The Pac-10 commish's plane landed in KC around 10 pm Sunday, reportedly to visit with KU officials today.)
If Situation 1 occurs, the four remaining schools (K-State, Iowa State, Baylor and Missouri) will join forces with the 10-member Mountain West Conference. KU will be in this mix if A&M heads west. From what I've been able to read, the Big XII will remain the Big XII, and television revenue will be distributed the same way it is now to the member schools: the more you're on TV, the more money you collect. Also, the Big XII would keep, at least from what I'm reading, its automatic slot for a BCS game, which is HUGE, people! H-U-G-E! We're talking millions here!
Chances of Situation 1 occurring? 60 percent. Up until Sunday, I was looking at 80 percent.
Situation 2: UT turns up its nose at the Pac-10 and remains in the Big XII. Tech stays. A&M now has to choose between the Big XII and the SEC. Now the eyes turn to the Sooner State where their Regents meet Wednesday. Look for the Sooners & Cowboys to remain Big XII brothers.
KU and MU I haven't been concerned with all along, and I stated this on my blog Saturday. K-State, because it doesn't have the basketball name that KU has, has been a concern. But I'm feeling better about the Wildcats' chances of landing/staying in a BCS conference as each moment passes.
While I'm only saying there's a 40 percent chance Situation 2 occurs, I look at it this way. It's late July in Kansas, it hasn't rained in 5 weeks, and the thermometer registers 105 degrees daily. Your local meteorologist on the 10 pm news says there's now a 40 percent chance of rain tomorrow instead of the 20 percent he predicted on the 6 pm news. Forty percent chance of rain is sounding pretty good!
Maybe by 10 pm today, that chance of Situation 2 holding true will be much higher! I'm keeping my fingers (and toes) crossed, how about you?
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