TIME TO FREAK OUT AGAIN ABOUT CONFERENCE REALIGNMENT! THE BIG 12 IS DEAD! MAYBE!

[aknowledgeableperson]

While a very small minority might think so the US Census Bureau among many others do not consider WVa a midwestern state. And Oklahoma and Texas is not in the Midwest.

[chingon]

Thanks. That was obviously something that needed earnest clarification.

[bobbyhawks]

It's funny how 3 geographically close BCS schools leave a conference, and the conference tries to replace them with 3 BCS schools that aren't as geographically close as those schools... wait, no... it is actually math. Can anyone blame the Big 12 for trying to improve itself in the same way the Pac 12, SEC, B1G, ACC, Big East, etc. have all tried to improve themselves? Other than TCU, what geographically close schools are there that fit the bill of a BCS caliber football program? The Big 12 will have to expand beyond contiguous states if it wants top tier teams. Would an invite have been sent to WVU had there been any inkling of hope that MU would stay? I doubt it. WVU = a reaction to MU leaving = a series of events initiated by MU's decision. The current atmosphere of BCS conferences is to poach schools. Every BCS conference has now engaged in this behavior. Let me know when the SEC would turn down Notre Dame because it is too far away.

[aknowledgeableperson]

Thanks. That was obviously something that needed earnest clarification.

Didn't want anyone to have a false impression of where WVa is or how people define its place in the good ol' USA. Afterall, shouldn't the information provided be correct?

[NDTeve]

While a very small minority might think so the US Census Bureau among many others do not consider WVa a midwestern state. And Oklahoma and Texas is not in the Midwest.

You are off as you've been this whole thread. I know plenty of people from Tulsa and OKC who consider themselves Midwestern.

[AllThingsKC]

Or, the Big 12 could do what the SEC, Pac-12, and Big 10 have done by NOT losing 33% of its schools in 2 years. Then, anyone the Big 12 adds wouldn't be a sign of desperation.

If the SEC adds ND, I could understand that. But, if the SEC must add ND because they need to stay at 10, that's a desperate move to me.

[NDTeve]

Or, the Big 12 could do what the SEC, Pac-12, and Big 10 have done by NOT losing 33% of its schools in 2 years. Then, anyone the Big 12 adds wouldn't be a sign of desperation.

If the SEC adds ND, I could understand that. But, if the SEC must add ND because they need to stay at 10, that's a desperate move to me.

Used to think that ND would never join SEC because of its horrible reputation for being weak academically and notorious cheaters. However, two of the last big scandals have been PSU and OSU. Big 10 Stalwarts. Think Auburn will be the next shoe to drop though with Cam Newtown...similar punishment that SC got for Reggie Bush. When does the hammer fall on Miami?

[AllThingsKC]

Oh, don't get me started on how I think the NCAA should come down hard on schools like Auburn, Miami, and Penn State.

It's a good thing the Big 12 never have any scandals, right Kansas?

[NDTeve]

Oh, don't get me started on how I think the NCAA should come down hard on schools like Auburn, Miami, and Penn State.

It's a good thing the Big 12 never have any scandals, right Kansas?

Crackas be Shakin'!

[AllThingsKC]

LOL. That's awesome.

[bobbyhawks]

Or, the Big 12 could do what the SEC, Pac-12, and Big 10 have done by NOT losing 33% of its schools in 2 years. Then, anyone the Big 12 adds wouldn't be a sign of desperation.

In other news, you can avoid catching the flu by not catching the flu. Some may call the Big 12 desperate, while others would say they are reacting to a climate created by unhappy schools abandoning the conference. The fact is, the Big 12 caught the flu. For whatever reason they caught it, that same reason is only helpful in trying to not catch it again. They are doing what they can to remedy the situation by replacing lost teams with equivalent or lower tier football programs. They have the potential to be back with 12 teams soon with better revenue sharing and contracts to renegotiate in under 5 years. Also, zero people know what the playoff scenario will be in the future or what its implications will be on the game. We think the conferences are powerful now... wait until an 8 to 16 team playoff body dictates how people qualify and how revenue is split.

[AJoD]

Here was Tom Shatel before Nebraska played Michigan St (a loss would have put the Huskers 3 games back with four to play). I definitely shared his sentiment. I take no joy in facing Michigan and Ohio St. as conference rivals, and not just because the Big 10 is in a down cycle.

This does not feel like a big game. There hasn't been that big-game buzz all week. The only hint that something might be going on was when Bo Pelini went back to playing charades with the media at his press conference. (Taylor? Taylor shop? Taylor Made driver? Taylor Swift? Oh, oh. Taylor Martinez.)

We know what big games are around here. Big, important, season-changing, open-up-the-earth games usually happen in the chill of November. And usually against someone you recognize.

A big game is Oklahoma. Barry Switzer. For a while, Colorado was the big game, and it came around Halloween, and Bill McCartney came dressed like a vampire. The Kansas State game was huge for a year or so. Then Missouri. And, of course, always, the Texas obsession.

These were games you thought about, and plotted through the year, even if you never, ever admitted it.

But Michigan State? I'm having a hard time with this one.

[MidtownCat]

Here was Tom Shatel before Nebraska played Michigan St (a loss would have put the Huskers 3 games back with four to play). I definitely shared his sentiment. I take no joy in facing Michigan and Ohio St. as conference rivals, and not just because the Big 10 is in a down cycle.

This does not feel like a big game. There hasn't been that big-game buzz all week. The only hint that something might be going on was when Bo Pelini went back to playing charades with the media at his press conference. (Taylor? Taylor shop? Taylor Made driver? Taylor Swift? Oh, oh. Taylor Martinez.)

We know what big games are around here. Big, important, season-changing, open-up-the-earth games usually happen in the chill of November. And usually against someone you recognize.

A big game is Oklahoma. Barry Switzer. For a while, Colorado was the big game, and it came around Halloween, and Bill McCartney came dressed like a vampire. The Kansas State game was huge for a year or so. Then Missouri. And, of course, always, the Texas obsession.

These were games you thought about, and plotted through the year, even if you never, ever admitted it.

But Michigan State? I'm having a hard time with this one.

Hmmmmm. It's almost like long standing, regional rivalries are part of the essential fabric of college athletics.

[KCFutbol]

Here was Tom Shatel before Nebraska played Michigan St (a loss would have put the Huskers 3 games back with four to play). I definitely shared his sentiment. I take no joy in facing Michigan and Ohio St. as conference rivals, and not just because the Big 10 is in a down cycle.

This does not feel like a big game. There hasn't been that big-game buzz all week. The only hint that something might be going on was when Bo Pelini went back to playing charades with the media at his press conference. (Taylor? Taylor shop? Taylor Made driver? Taylor Swift? Oh, oh. Taylor Martinez.)

We know what big games are around here. Big, important, season-changing, open-up-the-earth games usually happen in the chill of November. And usually against someone you recognize.

A big game is Oklahoma. Barry Switzer. For a while, Colorado was the big game, and it came around Halloween, and Bill McCartney came dressed like a vampire. The Kansas State game was huge for a year or so. Then Missouri. And, of course, always, the Texas obsession.

These were games you thought about, and plotted through the year, even if you never, ever admitted it.

But Michigan State? I'm having a hard time with this one.

I attended the NU - MSU game and it sure felt like a big game, both pre and post game. These games will get bigger with time.

[KCMax]

I just went to the Ohio State game last weekend and people were pretty excited (upset) over the Nebraska/OSU game. It will take awhile for them to "fit in" but I think they'll soon develop rivalries. Michigan State is kind of a poor example anyway because they're not a historically great program, and they're kinda having a fluky year in a down year in the Big 10. Buckeye fans were certainly excited about the Northwestern win over Nebraska.

[AJoD]

I know they will develop over time, and I was certainly excited about the Mich St win, but it was less satisfying than had it been over Mizzou. I understand why they moved, wish it wasn't that way, but probably would have made the same decision. I'll get used to it. But it has been weird to go through the Big 10, and in this first year I feel more nostalgia than excitement over the new opponents. Of course, I've always kind of hated the Big 10, so maybe it's just me.

[Highlander]

.

[pstokely]

It is funny to watch Missouri pretend it's a Southern state now.

When just 12 months ago they were really actually a Northern state during the Big 10 escapade.

I wonder if Mizzou fans will take up the time honored SEC tradition of flying a confederate flag at home game tailgates. That sounds about right.

It's alarming, for me at least, to see Missourians on sports forums claiming the 13th star on the confederate flag. When the confederate flag was made, they included a star for Missouri assuming they would leave the union (Missouri never did and continued to embrace the union throughout the war). One of the things that make me want to puke is the confederate flag avatars of the SEC folks who now visit Missouri forums. I find it glaringly hypocritical and enigmatic; these guys root on their mostly black teams while proudly displaying a symbol that any one of those black players would find unequivocally offensive. I was actually rather proud of Texas for saying no to confederate flag licenses this week.

http://blackconfederatesoldiers.com/

[phxcat]

http://blackconfederatesoldiers.com/

The myth of black confederate soldiers, with the exception of a handful of slaves who were forced into non-combat duties (and the last month of the war when the government recognized that they needed to free and arm the slaves to have any chance to survive), supported only anecdotally, is a myth propagated by lost cause southerners who wish to excuse the behaviors of their ancestors by making the case that the Civil War was not about slavery and that slavery was not that bad.

[eomaha.com]

These games will get bigger with time

The annual post Thanksgiving Iowa-NU game is one which has been long overdue... will be a far more heated rivalry than even the Oklahoma series was (I don't even KNOW anyone from Oklahoma). I think it was worth the move to the Big 10 alone. Nebraskans and Iowans absolutely hate each other... and it goes far beyond football.