Big Ten.
Texas A&M has been all about doing things the right way--graduating their kids, staying out of trouble in the NCAA, strong academics, and sports other than football. The Big Ten is the only conference that actually matches those ideals. You'd be able to improve your profile in other sports. In terms of research, and academics, you'd establish Texas A&M as a major national institution of higher learning. You'd probably be instantly competitive, especially if the divisions are split on a West/East basis: you'd have to think you could be an elite team in a division with, say, Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Illinois.
The SEC is a joke, academically, every last one of those programs is dirty, and you'd struggle for relevance in a conference with Alabama and LSU. Other than Vanderbilt and maybe Florida, there isn't a single school with a student body much smarter than Texas Tech's--you think the research department at A&M is going to be happy about that? Sure, they're a better fit geographically, but this is an ultimate sell out move. (Admittedly, I'm incredibly biased. But I think that the Big Ten offers so much more than the SEC, and you're all just getting caught up in the ESPN media hype of the OMGSECSPEED which is really just ridiculous.)
Don't close the door on the Big Ten, please?
[This message has been edited by PSUDevon (edited 6/10/2010 9:27p).]