CFB Rumors

[JoeJoeBrown]

More smoke from Aggie-land. Seems that the move to the SEC is likely.

Once again the twitterverse has exploded with rumors of Texas A&M moving to the SEC. The latest story is that lawyers representing A&M has sent a letter of intent to the SEC and that all the member schools have already voted to accept the Ags. I was under the impression that A&M would announce their intention to join the Southeastern Conference this spring. The Ags did not want any distractions during football season and definitely did not want to receive the "officiating" that Nebraska got during their farewell tour of the Big 12 last year. It looks like the timeline has been sped up. Billy Liucci is reporting that although the Ags are not going to make a move this week or the next, the wheels are definitely in motion.




As you may imagine, the Ags are worried about possible political backlash so they have been trying to keep this quiet. With the recent rumors that Tech has been talking to the Pac 12 about moving West (and likely taking OU and OSU with them) we may not have to deal as many issues with the legislature as some had thought. Right now I would guess that Missouri would try to go to the Big 10 again. Kansas and KSU will make a move for the Big East. Baylor will do everything they can to go to the Pac 12 with everyone else.
I think Tech's recent overtures to the Pac 12 are due to ESPN and the LHN offering Tech a deal to televise the Tech-tu game this year. Supposedly ESPN and the LHN offered Tech $5 million to televise the conference game this year, and the promise to televise games against Nevada and New Mexico in future years on the LHN. To his credit, Tech President Kent Hance turned down the offer. It is plain to see from their actions (and Liucci stated as much) that tu and ESPN fully intend to broadcast a second football game on the LHN this year, and intend to go forward with televising high school games. It does not matter what Deloss Dodds and his puppet Dan Beebe tell you, they are going to try to televise those games this year. If I were a tu alum I would be embarrassed by the lack of integrity from my athletic director.

I was impressed with Hance's actions and I hope that Tech is accepted into the Pac 12. I hope none of the other teams in the Big 12 agree to take ESPN's bribe and let the LHN televise one of their games with tu this year. It looks like everyone knows what kind of people they are dealing with now, and are acting accordingly. I hope we can get this process done shortly. The SEC is where we belong and is the best option for the future of Texas A&M.

[proshoota25]

very interesting. i love reading about this kind of stuff. i would love to see the best football conference raid texas a&m and oklahoma..

[JoeJoeBrown]

Originally Posted by proshoota25

very interesting. i love reading about this kind of stuff. i would love to see the best football conference raid texas a&m and oklahoma..

Oklahoma would do well. Likely in the top tier with the elite teams. A&M would be middle-lower tier.

The SEC would be even more stacked.

[CashmoneyDrew]

I think it's mainly just a bunch of smoke being blown by TAMU fans and media at this point due to a couple of events recently that mainly have to do with recruiting. Slive doesn't seem like he cares to expand the SEC right now unless he's forced to.

[BigJohn98]

Rumor has it that if Texas A&M does join the SEC, the SEC would then ask FSU to join, and the FSU coaches are all for it.

Please happen. I can't stand the way the ACC treats FSU.

[sbh15]

Originally Posted by BigJohn98

Rumor has it that if Texas A&M does join the SEC, the SEC would then ask FSU to join, and the FSU coaches are all for it.

Please happen. I can't stand the way the ACC treats FSU.

yea, jimbo has been pushing in a big way to join the sec. i don't get it in terms of their championship chances, but i'd actually love to have fsu join. it would make the rivalry that much better.

[Hurricanes25]

Losing FSU would be a huge loss for the ACC. The conference would get a lot weaker.

[Cigaro]

TAMU supposedly accepted the SEC invitation, will formally vote on it Aug. 22nd.

Sweeeettttt.

[proshoota25]

Originally Posted by Cigaro

TAMU supposedly accepted the SEC invitation, will formally vote on it Aug. 22nd.

Sweeeettttt.

where did you see this broo

[ElectricEye]

Aggie subscription based site is reporting it, so no link yet.

[proshoota25]

Originally Posted by ElectricEye

Aggie subscription based site is reporting it, so no link yet.

either way, this is huge if true. this starts the break up of the Big 12

[ElectricEye]

http://tamu.rivals.com/

It's just their rivals site. I think I read something about the same site reporting something similar last year, so I think this is a "wait and see" kind of thing.

[JoeJoeBrown]

Originally Posted by ElectricEye

http://tamu.rivals.com/

It's just their rivals site. I think I read something about the same site reporting something similar last year, so I think this is a "wait and see" kind of thing.

Here's some B1G schlub saying that the B1G is making a push for A&M so it will be easier to bring in UT and ND. This guy is supposedly an insider but he sounds FOS to me. Still, fun to discuss :)

His position about adding UT while letting them keep the Longhorn Network is rotten. Hope they wouldn't add UT if they did that.

Rumors

Today was a very busy day in Park Ridge. For the Big Ten, the writing has been on the wall: we're going to 16-team super-conferences.

Invitations to join the conference remain in the hands of the appropriate parties at Notre Dame and Texas. The Big Ten believes that Notre Dame will join once Texas joins the conference. Texas wishes to join the Big Ten with its Longhorn Network, as a non-participant in the Big Ten Network. This scenario remains feasible.

The Big Ten is now operating under the presumption that A&M currently plans to leave the Big XII for the SEC. However, there is haste to consider an invitation to A&M immediately. The message to A&M has not yet been met with adequate response by the relevant parties at A&M. Though an invitation has not been settled upon, one likely will soon be forthcoming to Texas A&M. The Chancellors and Presidents have a conference scheduled to give provisional approval to invite A&M to the conference. It is expected that the Big Ten Chancellors and Presidents will find that A&M would add a unique level of tradition and academic prestige to the conference.

Separately, A&M stands to benefit the most from joining the Big Ten conference. In particular, A&M would reap the benefits from the Big Ten Network - which Park Ridge thinks would vastly outweigh the benefits that A&M would receive from the SEC. In particular, the Big Ten Network's reach is and likely always will capture a vastly wider audience than the Longhorn Network, and with A&M's addition to the Big Ten, will include the geographic footprint of the entire state of Texas.

With regard to the benefits A&M stands to gain from Big Ten membership, the Big Ten feels that the Big Ten Network would obviously more than offset the competition for eyeballs of recruits in the state of Texas from the Longhorn Network. The terms of the offer given to Texas include the right for Texas to maintain and independently operate the Longhorn Network, and thus not share in the financial benefit of the BTN. (Texas would receive equal voting rights and treatment in all other operations and activities of the conference aside from participation in the BTN.)

If A&M left the Big XII for the SEC, the Big Ten believes that the resulting political circumstances in the state of Texas would enable the University of Texas to leave the Big XII to join the Big Ten conference, regardless of the decisions made by the other Texas universities (with regard to the Big XII conference).

The Big Ten is actively pursuing the relevant parties at A&M and expanding discussions. This week, for the first time since the conference explored expansion possibilities, the notion that Texas and Texas A&M could join the Big Ten instead of Texas and Notre Dame as members 13 and 14 were openly considered. In such circumstances, the Big Ten believes that once Texas and Texas A&M join the conference, Notre Dame almost certainly would immediately follow, and several universities are in consideration for the sixteenth member, as I mentioned on the Rock. Should Texas and Texas A&M commit simultaneously to the Big Ten, the Big Ten expects to jointly announce the addition of four teams total to create a 16 team conference shortly thereafter.

We're currently in a period of acceleration of activity much like that which came before the invitation extended to Nebraska. The Big Ten seems poised to act immediately if A&M responds to certain overtures.

[diabsoule]

Looks like Florida State will be the next school invited by the SEC according to the Palm Beach Post

http://eye-on-collegefootball.blogs....56338/31275207

[JoeJoeBrown]

Originally Posted by diabsoule

Looks like Florida State will be the next school invited by the SEC according to the Palm Beach Post

http://eye-on-collegefootball.blogs....56338/31275207

Yeah I saw that. Makes sense, but it will be a harder road to hoe for the Seminoles if they join the SEC.

Hopefully the mega-conference thing starts gaining momentum. A 2 loss season would be an accomplishment in a 16 team league like the SEC, Big10, and Pac12.

I get excited thinking about it.

[diabsoule]

I love college football realignment but hate the idea of super conferences. Conference should be 10-12 teams, not 16.

[JoeJoeBrown]

Originally Posted by diabsoule

I love college football realignment but hate the idea of super conferences. Conference should be 10-12 teams, not 16.

If the game were like it was 20 years ago, I would agree. Stick with 10-12 teams and traditional bowls only.

With the current state of affairs, I'm all for professionalization and playoffs.

There is simply too much money to keep the genie in it's bottle.

[iowatreat54]

Originally Posted by JoeJoeBrown

Here's some B1G schlub saying that the B1G is making a push for A&M so it will be easier to bring in UT and ND. This guy is supposedly an insider but he sounds FOS to me. Still, fun to discuss :)

His position about adding UT while letting them keep the Longhorn Network is rotten. Hope they wouldn't add UT if they did that.

Rumors

The point I like best about the UT and ND talk by that guy, is that if it were to happen, he proposes letting UT keep the Longhorn Network. Yet, ND is supposed to give up the deal they have with NBC. While I know it's not apples to apples, does anyone really think ND would join a conference and give up one of their biggest perks, while another team joins at the same time and gets to keep essentially that same perk.

No way in hell, imo, does ND ever agree to something like that.

[JoeJoeBrown]

Originally Posted by iowatreat54

The point I like best about the UT and ND talk by that guy, is that if it were to happen, he proposes letting UT keep the Longhorn Network. Yet, ND is supposed to give up the deal they have with NBC. While I know it's not apples to apples, does anyone really think ND would join a conference and give up one of their biggest perks, while another team joins at the same time and gets to keep essentially that same perk.

No way in hell, imo, does ND ever agree to something like that.

Yeah, I think he's full of **** (hence my FOS statement). But it's fun to think about :)

[iowatreat54]

Originally Posted by JoeJoeBrown

Yeah, I think he's full of **** (hence my FOS statement). But it's fun to think about :)

Oh absolutely. I'm laughing at him (with you).

The only way ND joins is if they get their way and are the headliner of the addition. There's no way they join at the same time as someone like Texas, let alone while conceding something like that.

If they were to join with another team, it would be with somone like Mizzou or Rutgers, where ND would easily have all the headlines.

[ElectricEye]

Notre Dame would really be giving the Big East the middle finger by joining the Big Ten considering that they compete there in all other sports besides football. I wouldn't put it past them if they HAD to join a conference, in fact I can't see them doing anything else, but it would still be pretty funny. I doubt anyone can get Notre Dame to give up the independent status and the money and control it gives them. They've really got the best deal in the sports right now with the way they have things set up.

Wonder how the ACC and Big East will come out of all of this as well.

[JoeJoeBrown]

Originally Posted by ElectricEye

Notre Dame would really be giving the Big East the middle finger by joining the Big Ten considering that they compete there in all other sports besides football. I wouldn't put it past them if they HAD to join a conference, in fact I can't see them doing anything else, but it would still be pretty funny. I doubt anyone can get Notre Dame to give up the independent status and the money and control it gives them. They've really got the best deal in the sports right now with the way they have things set up.

Wonder how the ACC and Big East will come out of all of this as well.

In some ways they have a great deal. But wrt TV money, they make less than the B1G teams, Texas, and quite a bit of the SEC (I'm sure I'm missing teams, but you get the point).

When they re-up, they are going to still be second tier wrt money. They don't get the eyeballs that they used to.

I will laugh if they join the Big East. What a poor football conference, but it would suit their arrogance.

[703SKINS202]

I don't think the Big East will survive, the ACC will likely go after WVU if they lose FSU and that would start a domino effect in the Big East.

[ElectricEye]

Originally Posted by 703SKINS202

I don't think the Big East will survive, the ACC will likely go after WVU if they lose FSU and that would start a domino effect in the Big East.

I don't think West Virginia fits the ACC's academic profile very well at all. If you take that out of the equation it's a good fit for both sides, but I just can't see the ACC doing that.

It's a shame about the Big East if there is some sort of domino effect. I think they're headed in the right direction with the Villanova push...but there's just too many bad moves and slumping programs to make it all work. College football in the North East is going to be weaker and more divided than ever :/

[proshoota25]

these "superconferences" would have so much power and notoriety in them.... don't you think that would almost certainly make the NCAA change over to a playoff format? I don't think any teams could really run the table in these types of conferences....... and i think that would be great for college football.