There are too many influential people to not have this game played for very long. Playing the game (football-wise) is actually much worse for A&M than Texas. UT needs the SOS bump, while A&M certainly will already have its hands full. That said, I want the game to continue even though it adds to an already difficult schedule.
They are looking into it because they have political connections with certain universities and want to make sure their favorite university doesn't get messed up athletically.
Yes, I get that, but the legislature is looking into this very thing, though with Perry as Governer, I doubt they could get it through. DD
Right, they are looking into it not because they are concerned about the tax payers but because they are concerned about the sports program at their favorite university.
Uhh..the last time SOS was a factor for national title games for Texas was in 2008 and 2009, when sub .500 Texas A&M teams knocked Texas down in the computer polls.
In the worst stretch you can find for UT football, they had 3 SWC titles, a Big XII title, 4 top-15 final rankings, and a Heisman trophy. The longest stretch in school history of finishing unranked occurred in that era, 3 years, a far cry from A&M's unranked decade between 1999 and 2010.
man you guys love slingin' some **** someone call me when we get back on topic. 1-800-Sec-ede8 or 9 depends on the poll you look at.
Edit: nice one, justtx! Actually, I didn't really buy it. The recruitment part made no sense (now I know why) and a simple google search produced nothing. Thus, the question marks and the confused icon that I used. You got me though I suppose nonetheless..some of you guys have too much time on your hands. LOL This story has a been a roller-coaster ride since last summer and it'll continue to be so. As I stated, I'm hoping this part of it ends soon. Spoiler :grin:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/sportsmoney/2011/09/01/big-12-should-snap-up-the-university-of-houston/ Big 12 Should Snap Up The University of Houston With Texas A&M’s official announcement that it is leaving the Big 12, at least one school can expect a call from the conference. I think the case can be made for several schools to the Big 12, which is why I think now is the time for the conference to get back to twelve members and attempt to solidify its future. This is one of four pieces making the case for University of Houston to receive an invite to the Big 12. The other pieces can be found at BusinessofCollegeSports.com and ChuckOliver.net. Links follow this piece. Media Market Gallery: Slide Show: The World's Most Valuable Sports Teams Gallery: In Pictures: The Most Overpaid College Hoops Coaches We all know in this day and age that media market is the most important factor considered in conference realignment. It’s why TCU and Utah are in automatic-qualifying conferences and Boise State is not. It’s also a huge reason the Big 12 should be considering University of Houston. The City of Houston is the fourth-largest in the United States. Although the Big 12 already gets a portion of the Houston market with its other Texas schools, adding U of H opens additional doors. Being in the market is different than simply having access to the market. Houston is the nation’s 6th largest radio market and 10th largest television market. Houston is also the second-most fertile recruiting ground in the Big 12’s footprint, with 140 prospects from Houston signing letters of intent for FBS schools in 2011. If that’s not enough, twenty-five of the companies listed in the Fortune 500 are headquartered in Houston, the third largest concentration in the United States. Five of the six major energy companies in the United States are based in Houston. Take a look at some of the following ratings data for the Houston market: 8.1 Houston vs. Texas Tech (2009) 5.9 Average ratings of Big 12 games on ESPN in 2009 5.8 Average ratings of Big 12 games on ESPN in 2010 5.5 Average ratings of Big 12 games on ABC in 2010 4.7 Average ratings of Big 12 games on ABC in 2009 4.7 Houston vs. East Carolina (2009) 4.5 Houston vs. UTEP (2010) 1.5 Average ratings of Big 12 games not feature Texas-based schools I came away with several thoughts when I saw these numbers. Is it shocking that ratings were higher in the Houston market when U of H played a Big 12 opponent? No. But an 8.1 rating in the nation’s 10th largest television market is nothing but good for the Big 12. Imagine if they could do that five or six times a season. Not to mention U of H fans living in Houston would have even more reason to watch other Big 12 matchups. The Big 12’s first-tier television deal with ESPN is complete in a few years. It already pales in comparison to every first-tier deal in automatic-qualifying conferences except the Big East. It certainly wouldn’t hurt the Big 12 to have added a school in the nation’s tenth-largest television market. University and Academics Adding U of H gives the Big 12 the ability to have the three largest universities in the State of Texas. With 38,750 enrolled students, U of H would be second in size only to University of Texas in the Big 12. More enrollees means more fans, both as students and alumni, which means a greater national presence for the Big 12. U of H also fits in well with the Big 12 academically. According to the Carnegie Foundation for Advancement of Teaching, U of H is one of only three Tier One “Very High Research” public institutions in Texas. The total number of degrees awarded at U of H (7,230) would be second in the Big 12 only to University of Texas (13,120). U of H also would be second for number of National Academy members. According to US News & World Report, U of H has nationally-ranked programs in Creative Writing (#2), Healthcare Law (#4), Intellectual Property Law (#8), Part-Time Law (#10), Chemical Engineering (#36) and Social Work (#36). The Princeton Review also designated U of H as one of the nation’s premiere undergraduate programs. U of H has the athletic facilities to join a major conference as well. There’s a new football stadium planned and renovation and expansion of the basketball arena. The indoor track and field complex annually serves as the Conference USA Track and Field Championships site. The $4 million Tom Tellez Track at Carl Lewis International Complex has hosted one Conference USA Track and Field Championship and expected to host future events. Cougar Softball Stadium is a $2.1 million facility that has hosted one NCAA Regional, one NCAA Super Regional and two Conference USA Championships. Similarly Cougar Field, the baseball stadium, as been a host site for two NCAA Regionals, one NCAA Super Regional and two Conference USA Championships. The John E. Hoff Tennis Courts have six hard courts and a 150-seat spectator area, which played host to the 2008 Conference USA Championship. The $53 million swimming and diving facility has hosted eight Conference USA Championships, two NCAA Zone Diving meets and the NCAA Division III Men’s and Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships. The addition of U of H to the Big 12 would give the conference a great location for conference events, both in terms of facilities and the city’s infrastructure, and could also mean more NCAA events held at a conference school. This is one part of a four-part series. For pieces on the economic impact of U of H moving to the Big 12 and how it fits in both on the field and as a conference member, check out these links to the other three parts of the series on Forbes.com and ChuckOliver.net: The Case for University of Houston to Big 12: Economic Impact (by Kristi Dosh on BusinessofCollegeSports.com) Commitment Makes Houston Cougars Smart Choice for Big 12 Invite (by Chadd Scott on ChuckOliver.net) Houston Cougars Were An Athletic Powerhouse and Can Be Again (by Chadd Scott on ChuckOliver.net)
Obviously everything is subject to change, but I'm reading/hearing the Big 12 is not interested in replacing A&M with another school from Texas at all. Here's one place I read it: http://www.denverpost.com/henderson/ci_18810315 A Big 12 source said the conference has no interest in another Texas school when it still has Texas, Baylor and Texas Tech. Air Force has been mentioned, briefly, but it doesn't bring any high-end BCS juice.
Yeah, part of this for the Big12 is saving face, and trying to argue that they are "stronger than ever". Replacing A&M with any other school from Texas makes that case impossible, because A&M is the clear #2 school in the state. I'm fascinated by this, because it's going to say a lot as to the real strength of the Big12. I can see good reasons for all the major players to say no: ND: Obvious. BYU: They have plenty of money, walked away from money last year Pitt: May have an opportunity to join the ACC if VaTech goes to the SEC. That's a much better option for them. Then you get into the next tier like Air Force and Louisville. Or the last options would be the Texas schools, I'd think.
Here's an article from Frank the Tank talking about some of the candidates: http://frankthetank.wordpress.com/2...eave-big-12-in-soviet-texas-big-12-leave-you/
For the sake of the Big 12, I hope its at least a 3 team expansion, UH might have a shot if that's the case. I really think UH's best bet is to look at another BCS conference though, just not sure which one.
Big East would make sense, given a pairing with TCU. That geography is just brutal for a lone Texas school to go into. Not sure why the Big 12 is so anti-Texas school additions, that doesn't make a lot of sense. Especially given that 12 schools seems to be a very real option.
Irrespective of whether or not Houston is a good candidate, these pieces are really not very good. It just says "yes, the big 12 already has a portion of the Houston market but UH would bring more!..." and then goes on to basically spout random data points about the size of the Houston area without attempting to actually determine the dispositive question, how much of that "more" is, and whether it counterbalances the negative. Forbes' sports & sprots business columns are really quite horrid. Actually, Forbes regular columns are pretty bad also, but the sports stuff is really awful, I reembmer a few years agao they had an r "unbiased, advanced" Sports GM ranking that had obvious flaws from readin teh methodology, manifested in Kevin McHale being at or near the top for his T-wolves stewardship. (though this piece appears to be more some random chick's blog that they're conten-sharing with, in fairness).
