Would you Big East guys be interested in only 3 of the four with KU potentially going to the Pac16?
While most everyone is upset with Texas, it's really easy for Nebraska to be flapping their lips now they're safely placed in the Big 10. For basically all oh the Big 12's existence, they've been one if the "haves" in terms of revenue and power. Nebraska was never really all that upset when they were part of the voting block that included Texas, OU, and A&M that prevented the smaller schools from getting larger shares of revenues and/or better TV contracts (as far as voting goes, it takes 9 votes to pass resolutions, and as long as those 4 voted together they retained power over the conference. As far as better TV deals, we could have had a Big 12 TV network years ago, but Texas has always shot that down because if a Big 12 networked form they couldn't create their own Longhorn TV network). What Nebraska really got torqued over is the vote to keep the football championship game at the JonesDome in exchange for keeping the basketball tournament in KC. This is a win for everyone because the football game in Dallas would generate significantly higher revenues, while the north schools really want the basketball tournament in KC. Well, except for Nebraska, who felt "betrayed" by their north brethren because they wouldn't have home field advantage against Texas in the championship game. Yet they've been working over those very same brethren they're upset at now for years in terms of revenue - they could have shown us goodwill years ago with a more fair revenue sharing. I mean, we made nearly 50% less in conference payouts opposed to Texas - rather understandable why JP was always upset about that. And it explains why Nebraska comes off exceptionally hypocritical when they lay all of the breakup blame on Texas - they share plenty of blame and refuse to admit it.
Would you Big East guys be interested in only 3 of the four with KU potentially going to the Pac16?
I think BE should definitely pick you 3 up even if Kansas does leave for the PAC 16. We should add UCF or Memphis to go to 12 if Kansas does leave.
Memphis makes the most sense as far as losing a basketball powerhouse (Kansas) and replacing them with a basketball powerhouse. Plus they make more sense geographically for an East/West configuration. With UCF you'll have to grab Pitt/WV or one of UCF/USF and put them in the West. Neither would happen. Plus the $10 million a year isn't shabby. I'd prefer TCU honestly, for the Tier 1 academics, the Texas recruiting, and the football pedigree. But out of those two I want Memphis.
Okay but I want to say something that is bugging me. FedEx CEO Fred Smith has said he'll pay the new conference $10 million a year to accept Memphis. That will probably be more than they make a year in the new conference for a few years. Why not just take that money and, I don't know, invest it back into Memphis to make them a more attractive candidate so he doesn't have to bribe a conference to take his school? Just thinking out loud. Unless it comes in the form of advertising for our tournaments and a bowl game or two. But just giving up $10 million a year seems a bit strange.
You said it yourself - academics. Memphis makes K-State look like a top notch educator. Memphis is tier 4 - it's going to take a lot more than just a couple of $mil a year to change that status.
When is this conference realignment supposed to end?
The 12th of never. Either it's going to be found that the extended travel from Texas and Oklahoma to the West Coast isn't all it's cracked up to be and a significantly greater drain on the budget than first anticipated causing these superconferences to fracture, or they're going to find out that thses superconferences work out better than they could have ever imagined and they're going to, in an effort to "trim the fat" that is the Washington States, Iowas, Mississippi States, and Vanderbilts of these BCS conferences and keep even more of the revenues to themselves, realign even further into only two 16-team superconferences with only the largest schools in the largest media markets, run much like a professional leagues would be run, only with college teams.