***Official Big 12 Expansion Thread '16***
- Thread starter cyclones500
- Start date
True, it's going to be speculation for a few months, that'll have to count as "news."
A few recent views:
ESPN: Big 12 Mailbag
DMR: Peterson peers into crystal ball
Sporting News: How the Big 12’s expansion candidates should be ranked
I guess I don't really get why academics really matter in the case of an athletic conference. Outside of the Big Ten, there is no formal structure for academic cooperation as it relates to the athletic affiliations of the schools. Nobody would have to collaborate with Memphis, and it wouldn't prevent collaboration with others. The B12 is down to 3/10 schools with AAU membership as is, we aren't fooling anybody that we are some sort of academic juggernaut.
No one has shown me any evidence that Memphis is at all qualified with the exception of having a basketball tradition in years past. Horrible academic reputation, and they don't even have their own football stadium. This one makes no sense.
http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/football_records/Attendance/2015.pdf
Here are some attendance figures for 2015. The top of page 3 is interesting and since people are talking about Memphis, here is one positive statistic. For those that went to the liberty bowl, what was the stadium like? I know it's quite old
Here are some attendance figures for 2015. The top of page 3 is interesting and since people are talking about Memphis, here is one positive statistic. For those that went to the liberty bowl, what was the stadium like? I know it's quite old
I'm starting to warm up to Houston (still not my first choice). They fit the mold of someone who can "grow" into the conference. Plus Houston seems to be more of a pro-A&M market, so why not re-strengthen our presence in that market? People are still moving to Texas; let's put the state on lockdown.
Although I put Memphis on my Friday 5 list instead of UConn, which I think I'd rather have, I'm viewing Memphis right now as sort of a "bridge choice" between the main Big 12 region and Cincy/WVU, but that alone isn't enough to consider it among favorites — geography seems like an afterthought anymore. Most analysis I've seen recently tends to have Memphis not on the "probable" list, at best it's next tier with UCF, UConn, Colorado State.
In theory, I have hesitance to put even more "power" in Texas, but honestly, the league is Texas-centric regardless if UH is added or not. Considering what else is available, it would seem nonsense not to take Houston, but choose somebody like Colorado State or UCF instead. I don't feel like those "new markets" take precedence over dominating the Texas region, although I obviously could be shortsighted on it.
Here is what I want (though I realize this is not going to happen, just what I would do).
Pick up Tulane, UCF, UConn and Cincinnati. Break down the divisions Texas, Baylor, KSU, TCU, Texas Tech, Tulane and UCF in one division, and Oklahoma, OSU, ISU, Kansas, WV, UConn and Cincinnati in the other division. You pick up Orlando, New Orleans, Cincinnati and New York markets for TV deal. Additionally, you pick up Florida, Ohio and LA as recruiting territories. I especially like that Tulane and Cincinnati would only be the second schools in such a fertile recruiting territories to be a Power 5 school. Tulane being such a great academic school is also nice (they can kinda be our Northwestern). I don't buy that Houston adds much. Locking down old aTm territory seems kinda silly. If ISU goes into Houston for a kid right now and they go against Houston, they hold an advantage. If Houston joins the Big 12 that advantage goes away. Finally, I Iike how this expansion plan goes all east and keeps the conference from spreading out too far. It also make WV a more natural geographical partner. If we are gonna go West then I want BYU, CSU, UNLV, and San Diego State.
Pick up Tulane, UCF, UConn and Cincinnati. Break down the divisions Texas, Baylor, KSU, TCU, Texas Tech, Tulane and UCF in one division, and Oklahoma, OSU, ISU, Kansas, WV, UConn and Cincinnati in the other division. You pick up Orlando, New Orleans, Cincinnati and New York markets for TV deal. Additionally, you pick up Florida, Ohio and LA as recruiting territories. I especially like that Tulane and Cincinnati would only be the second schools in such a fertile recruiting territories to be a Power 5 school. Tulane being such a great academic school is also nice (they can kinda be our Northwestern). I don't buy that Houston adds much. Locking down old aTm territory seems kinda silly. If ISU goes into Houston for a kid right now and they go against Houston, they hold an advantage. If Houston joins the Big 12 that advantage goes away. Finally, I Iike how this expansion plan goes all east and keeps the conference from spreading out too far. It also make WV a more natural geographical partner. If we are gonna go West then I want BYU, CSU, UNLV, and San Diego State.
You'll probably get flack for choosing Tulane, and I think TU won't be chosen, but this is at least an intriguing North-South division split going purely east, and with those markets, as you said, to the extent those matter. That plan makes adding UConn a little less of isolated situation (UCF still on an island, though).
Edit: Switching KSU to North and WV to South would give UCF one easterly partner (I still assume they won't split Oklahoma or Kansas schools, those'll move as a unit)
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The Liberty Bowl is an off-campus dump at the fairgrounds. The MBB arena is nice but also off-campus. Combine that with their commuter school academics and I don't know why they are even being considered.
Glad you posted 4 times for emphasis.
I think there is a thought that if invited, they would have a brand new FedEx stadium under construction by the time they join. They also open up a new region that we're not in yet.
I don't know how realistic they are, but they do have the potential to be a school that could grow into a P5 school if given the opportunity.
Let the flight tracking begin:
(Pulled from a Mountain West Conference Board)
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N345FM/history/20160725/2012Z/KPVU/KFNL
Private Flight from Austin to Fort Collins to Provo to Houston...
(Pulled from a Mountain West Conference Board)
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N345FM/history/20160725/2012Z/KPVU/KFNL
Private Flight from Austin to Fort Collins to Provo to Houston...
