[College Football] Big Ten, Texas have initial talks

That's the funny part of the whole thing, college football is a huge money chase but ultimately (and I think this is a structural deficiency that can't be fixed due to the nature of the sport) only a few teams end up winning the big prize and the rest of the schools end up spending millions just for the illusory chance of someday being in the black.

 

Boise really is THAT bad from a conference perspective. Tech at least brings West Texas. Boise brings... Idaho. That said, Tech has benefit of the pull of being connected to Texas.

 

I've been trying to follow most of this thread...and this might have been posted already (so sorry in advance if so)...but why is Nebraska seemingly so valuable to the Big 10 (and even to the Big 12)?

 

Keep in mind that the MWC is in line for an automatic bid in 2012 or so. There's a system in place that gives those conferences auto-bids if they reach certain standards, and their success the last few years makes it likely they'll get one. The MWC is arguably as good a football conference as the Big East and the ACC. The Pac10 doesn't want Boise at all, and there's no way they end up in the SEC or Big10, so I'm not sure what their better options are. The MWC is a substantial upgrade for them and gives that conference 3 potential top-15 type teams in TCU, Utah, and Boise. The top of that conference is better than most conferences.

The only other possibility for them would be some decrepit Big 12, but the MWC is a better fit and a more stable conference than whatever might be left there. In fact, the MWC is more likely to gobble up the B12 than vice-versa. The last thing Boise would want is for a few B12 teams to come available (KU, KSU, Missou), the MWC to jump on them, and then close off expansion at 12 and be left out again.

 

Does Iowa State threaten to win the Big XII?

Does Mississippi State threaten to win the SEC?

If they did, you can bet your ass they'd be out of there rather quickly.

Even those dog programs still have a larger following than Boise, though.

 

If you've never taken a trip with a mass of kids, you don't understand. Going to arizona or cali is different than going to pullman. I'm not talking about football , I'm talikng the other sports like basketball in the middle of the week. They talk about student athletes, but those mid week games are very,very hard. I played at swt and when we had to go to NW and NE Louisiana(Natchitoches and Monroe) for thursday and saturday games, i was very,very hard on school work. Whe we played Kentucky when mashburn was there, it was a thursday game and it was difficult also. Now we're talking about a 2000 mile trip to washington, tthats alot different than a trip boulder.

 

Nebraska and Colorado officially gone , ten teams left in the Big 12 as of now.....

 

These aren't kids - these are 18-21 year olds. The only difference is that they spend an extra hour on a plane.

Well, you said "It hard packing up a 100 or so people" - that implies football. As for basketball or other sports, they already criss-cross the country in nonconference games. There would be limited changes there too.

A trip to Washington as opposed to Boulder involves a grand total of 4 extra hours of travel time, round trip. Or, Texas (for example) can just trade their @UConn game for their game in Washington, and go play Mizzou or Kansas out of conference. End result is the same amount of travel.

 

lebigeez, did you make all of your college trips by stagecoach and paddle steamer?

These days, an extra hour or two in the air really ain't that big of a deal.

 

Can you name a single team that's been drummed out of a conference for "threatening to win"? I mean generally conferences try to hold on to these teams. Especially if they actually do win.

 

I think it's the usual "Texas fears UH!" rhetoric.

 

RT @bigtenconf: Big Ten has announced that Nebraska will become the 12th member,effective for the 11-12 academic year. http://bit.ly/afmtFm


Farmagedon is on like Donkey Kong!

 

So now Baylor people are going to route for TAMU to go the SEC. This is getting crazy.

 

Boise is actually a great little city, it's like a mini-Austin North. But, no one wants to play on a blue field.

that is wicked retahted

 

18-21 yr olds in a hotel 2000 miles away. The stuff that doesn't get reported is far worse than what does get reported. Its not the plane trip thats the issue major, its everything else.

Sam, it has been a long time, bu we flew to some and we hit the charter on the close ones. The hotel scen used to be crazy to say the least even in the early 90's.

 

Wait - so you're saying these students act worse when they are 2000 miles away instead of 1000 miles away? And that would be a reason to not join a conference?

 

Hearing that UH is pushing hard for a MWC invite.

Not sure who the 12th member would be, but Houston will likely have a great resume for the 2008-2012 BCS evaluation period, and it's BCS or bust for the MWC right now.

The MWC will likely wait and see if the bomb goes off with the Big 12 next week, and if it does, will likely try to poach either 1 or 3 teams, hopefully along with UH.

Hey, a cougar is just another term for mountain lion, right?

 

It's being rumored that C-USA will also offer the remnant teams of the Big 12 should all this go through.