There seems to be a lot of talk surrounding the Texas A&M football program and their potential departure from the Big 12 conference. Wait, haven’t we heard this story before though? However, this time it appears the last straw for the Aggies could be the Longhorn Network.
The Aggies are obviously upset about the LHN and a good portion of their base wants to take action. There are rumors swirling that by the end of the month A&M will make public it’s departure from the Big 12. This could be just another scare tactic that they are attempting to throw in the face of the Longhorns. One thing is for sure though, there is just too much smoke surrounding this for there not to be a little fire.
If realignment becomes a reality(again), how will that affect Oklahoma and Oklahoma State?
Here are 5 things I believe will happen if Texas A&M makes the move:
1) OU and OSU will stick together, too much at stake for them to separate.
2) OU and OSU will not be going to the Big 10 or SEC.
3) OU will keep the RRR alive with Texas.
4) The two Kansas schools will get the short end of the stick.
5) This will be a huge distraction throughout 2011 college football season.
While it would be fun to talk about all of the possible scenarios as far as where the two Oklahoma schools will go. I will save that for another day. If the Texas A&M decides not to pull the trigger, then all of the speculation is for not.
The next few weeks will be critical and it will be interesting to see who wins this stand off. Will the Aggies draw first and set in motion the domino effect or will they stand down in the face of the LHN.
So I ask the readers, what do you think? Will the Aggies make the move or stay put? Leave me a comment and let me know what you think.
2 Comments
Good points.
I agree with four of the five things that you think might happen. I also believe that OU and OSU will stick together – there is a symbiotic relationship there. And though the Big XII has stricken down historical football rivalries in the past (OU/KU and OU/NU), I don’t think these two universities will let their in-state connection go by the wayside.
However, I do think that interest in the SEC is there and on both sides. Who is to say that the SEC won’t make the first move toward the “superconference” of 16 teams? And if they do, it’s much easier to see them going for Oklahoma (in a football rich conference) than a Virginia (sorry Cavaliers). The overall market is a little smaller in the Oklahoma cities than in a couple of other areas, but college football is king in the Sooner state and there are ways to work around that.
I am just spit-balling here, but how about the University of Oklahoma, University of Oklahoma State, and University of Texas; try to move to the Pac-12 next season. In addition, try to snag the Broncos of Boise State to bring the number to 16 teams. If you draw a line from the western boarder of Oregon and Washington to Corpus Christi we could get the north and south divisions and up-hold many traditional rivalries. I think Boise State would be a solid fit and OU, OSU, and TU, would make the PAC 12 the best conference in the country. The broncos have been good and deserve a chance to play in a BCS Conf. What do you thank?