The Big 12 dropped the ball when Louisville said "yes" without ever even being asked. Their football program has been to 13 bowl games since 1998, including appearances in the Gator, Orange, and Sugar Bowls since 2006. Both basketball programs are exceptional. But they're stuck in the ACC now, so there's little chance of us paying an exit fee to get them to jump ship.
I could get over the idea of having to adjust scheduling for BYU (no Sunday games), because I think they could potentially bring a lot to the league. Their sports draw exceptionally well, even after moving to the WCC (which surprised me) in everything but football. My main concern is that they would spread the league out SO much east-to-west that it starts to be even more of a strain for olympic-type sports to travel. If WVU was not in the Big 12, I think it would be much less of an issue. However, that's just not the case.
I've also never had a serious problem with taking on a "project" institution like Colorado State. They are primed to succeed on a larger stage if given a chance - large university, athletics programs with some successes here and there (football 10-2 this year), near a large population center (Denver) in a rapidly growing state, a desire to upgrade facilities, more geographically situated near other northern Big 12 schools. If a lower-tiered university was brought in with the understanding that full $ compensation would not be established until a certain amount of time has passed, say 5 years with increasing amounts paid each year, for argument's sake, a move like that could end up producing a very good fit for the league.
Sometimes, we have to look far down the road to see what can potentially be of the greatest benefit to the league, and not simply look at how things seem today.
