Why all the TCU hate? First, I was staying within the MWC because of the news about Utah. The schools you've mentioned aren't affected by the move of Utah. Second, TCU sits in a town called Fort Worth. The Metroplex has 13,000,000 people living in it. Don't know what you're talking about as far as TV viewership. TCU added to the conference would be a huge boost to the university and I can't imagine rivalry games between them and the other Texas schools wouldn't bolster their popularity within the Metroplex. SMU is a great example (before they got the death penalty and the SWC folded). Since they stopped playing the big named schools they've dropped off the map, but in their day SMU football was huge. I think TCU in the Big 12 would have the same results.
You want to know where the fallacy exists in that argument? It's the same reason why ISU won't ever get an invite to the Big 10 - the VAST MAJORITY of those 13,000,000 people living in the Metroplex are already covered by Texas, A&M, and, to a lesser extent, Texas Tech. I'd say the combination of Texas and A&M fans in the Metroplex outnumber TCU fans by around 100-1. Not to mention that 1 fan out of 100 is already covered by whatever TV contracts that are or will be in place. TCU doesn't give the Big 12 the Metroplex because the Big 12 ALREADY HAS the Metroplex! Or, in case you forgot, the Big 12 offices are in Dallas, any future Big 12 football championship will be played in the JerryDome in Arlington, etc.
I like TCU - I really do. I was cheering for them a lot last year. But quit pretending that they give the Big 12 anything that the Big 12 doesn't already have.
And by the way, the only reason why SMU was huge and "won" a national title was because they WERE paying their players. If every small Texas school was playing by the rules, Texas and A&M would have owned that conference every single year.
