Pac 10 about to rob the Big 12?

Let’s say you’re a college athletic director of a major conference BCS school right now.  If you’re a school that’s having their name tossed around in conference realignment discussions you probably feel pretty good.  You know your school is wanted by someone.

But what if you’re school isn’t being mentioned?  These have to be troubling times.  A major shakeup is coming and it appears to be coming sooner than later.

Just yesterday there was a report that the Pac 10 is ready to offer six Big 12 schools, Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Colorado a chance to join their conference.  Big 12 officials meeting in Kansas City seemed caught off guard.  While they’re trying to hold their conference together, apparently more than half the conference is trying to cut deals elsewhere.

While the Big 12 looks to be in a death spiral, it’s just the beginning.  When it all shakes out, we’ll likely have four super conferences out there, but who and how the teams are aligned is still a huge question mark.

Would you rather see conference alignments stay the same or is it time for a major shakeup?  It could be dicey for some schools.  

I know I went to Kansas and at the moment things don’t look good for the Jayhawks.  They have a ticket scalping scandal investigation going on and they come from a state with a small TV market.  They do have a premier basketball program and that’s their saving grace, but where they’ll end up is anyone’s guess right now.  

Big 12 meetings importance can't be understated

After a couple of weeks of quiet time it’s getting down to the nitty gritty for the Big 12 conference.  Just a couple of weeks ago rumors and speculation had the Big 12 crumbling from a raid by the Big Ten with Missouri and Nebraska possibly headed to the Big Ten and speculation that Big Ten commissioner Jim Delaney was even after Texas.

While Delaney indicated the league was sticking to its timetable of 12 to 18 months before a decision would be made, the Big 12 has been scurrying around trying to figure out what their next move will be.

With the conference’s annual meetings being held in Kansas City this week, you can expect a lot of talk and maybe some action.  Commissioner Don Bebe says it’s time for the conference and their member schools to have a frank discussion about who’s in and who’s out.  It’s kind of like your girl friend asking you just how committed you are to the relationship.  Just what kind of answer Bebe gets from some members remains to be seen.

This is a money issue and Bebe says the league is looking hard at how they can beef up TV revenues and get all of their football games on television.  He points to the ACC’s recent deal with ESPN for a reported 12 years and over $1.8 billion dollars as a good sign for the Big 12 since that deal was done in a down economy.  But it’s how the Big 12 splits their money and how they can elevate each schools earnings by 10 to 15 million a year that will be the big question.

If they can’t, there’s no question schools will leave for greener pastures if given the opportunity.  While each school is planning a what if scenario for how they can best take care of themselves if the league collapses, much of what happens depends on what the Big Ten decides to do and when they do it.

The Big 12 could unite with the Pac 10, but those discussions are in the infant stage.  After a week of meetings in Kansas City, that conversation could quickly heat up.  One thing is certain.  Monumental change is coming to the college conference structure.  Just how and when it happens remains to be seen.