By the hair of our collective chiny chin chins, Big XII residents, fans, and alums (KU!) watched our conference emerge from the brink of destruction.
Sometimes it's the simplest things that do the trick. Word on the street, is that a collection of power brokers gathered to avert conference Armaggeddon for a very simple reason, money. Some of those power brokers did not like the direction this realignment was going. Some didn't see this benefitting anyone. ABC/ESPN did not want the departure of the Big XII South to the Pac-10, which is a FOX joint. They also wanted to avoid renegotiating contracts with the Big East and ACC if they should happen to lose member schools in this reshuffling.
The Frustrated Five: KU, K-State, ISU, Mizzou, and Baylor decided to pony up the exit fees that Nebraska and Colorado will pay to Texas, A&M, and OU as in incentive. A steep price, however, how much is keeping the conference together worth?
One website was front and center during this whole saga and you can read there posts here, (h/t to Chip Brown).
This post isn't about saving the Big XII, it's about what to do next? Obviously, the member schools lose their conference championship game so two replacement members are needed. Everyone from TCU, HU, SMU, Missouri St, CSU, Arkansas, to the AZ schools of the Pac-10 has been bandied about as a potential choice.
Stank-0 doubts the AZ schools nor Arkansas are going to seriously leave their conference to join the Big XII. In terms of ease of joining, the Texas schools have a clear advantage. They would add another market, Houston, so that makes financial sense. Importantly, they would fit in culturally as well, which is why the two departures make sense. Each fits in with their new respective conference.
To be very upfront, Stank-0 thinks a new member should come from Missouri. It further cements the Show Me State into the Big XII family, while at the same time letting Mizzou know that anymore Big 10(11) talk is not welcome and you can be replaced.
However, the frustrated five need not be so naive any longer. If it can happen once, it can happen again.
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