Nice change-of-pace article. Thanks Art! - 'Desperate' Texas & OU Learn They Need Aggies' SEC Path
A decade ago, Texas mocked and ridiculed Texas A&M's move to the Southeastern Conference, a seismic shift in the college football landscape that eventually kicked off the seismic shift of last week. The impending move of Texas and Oklahoma to the SEC is all about the game plan laid down by the Aggies, even if the Horns and Sooners can't admit it.
You now need the SEC more than the SEC needs you. Sure, no conference is going to turn down two programs with the financial and cultural footprints of Texas and Oklahoma. In the never-ending arms race of TV money, influence, and playoff positioning, adding those two behemoths makes all the sense in the coming age of super conferences.
But the SEC didn't need to make this move. It's the Big Boy on the Block without UT and OU. What gets lost is the Big 12 defectors needed the move in order to stay relevant in what's to come in Big Boy college football.
The Orange and Crimson can conceivably make more money in the Big 12. The eight remaining leftovers also offered up a share-and-half of revenue to Texas and OU, pushing the yearly compensation to more than $55 million. Heck, the Big 12 would likely happily give up half or more of the $400 million-plus it currently generates yearly to the Red River Rivals.
If you're TCU or Baylor or Kansas State, you'll take the financial haircut because there's not a better option out there. Taking a cut to, say, $25 million in the Big 12 is a lot more palatable than $7 million in the American.
So, this move isn't really about money. It's about righting a wrong a decade in the making, realizing Texas A&M had the foresight to join the most powerful football brand this side of the NFL and what that means.
It means better recruits, better games for fans, better access to the playoffs. It just means more.
Texas can print money in the Big 12 and on its own. What the Horns can't do alone is precisely why they need the SEC. UT can't afford to fall further behind in a league that offers nothing more than a paycheck. Leaving the Big 12 a league that bends over backward to cater to every whim - says it all.
Cnt'd
A decade ago, Texas mocked and ridiculed Texas A&M's move to the Southeastern Conference, a seismic shift in the college football landscape that eventually kicked off the seismic shift of last week. The impending move of Texas and Oklahoma to the SEC is all about the game plan laid down by the Aggies, even if the Horns and Sooners can't admit it.
You now need the SEC more than the SEC needs you. Sure, no conference is going to turn down two programs with the financial and cultural footprints of Texas and Oklahoma. In the never-ending arms race of TV money, influence, and playoff positioning, adding those two behemoths makes all the sense in the coming age of super conferences.
But the SEC didn't need to make this move. It's the Big Boy on the Block without UT and OU. What gets lost is the Big 12 defectors needed the move in order to stay relevant in what's to come in Big Boy college football.
The Orange and Crimson can conceivably make more money in the Big 12. The eight remaining leftovers also offered up a share-and-half of revenue to Texas and OU, pushing the yearly compensation to more than $55 million. Heck, the Big 12 would likely happily give up half or more of the $400 million-plus it currently generates yearly to the Red River Rivals.
If you're TCU or Baylor or Kansas State, you'll take the financial haircut because there's not a better option out there. Taking a cut to, say, $25 million in the Big 12 is a lot more palatable than $7 million in the American.
So, this move isn't really about money. It's about righting a wrong a decade in the making, realizing Texas A&M had the foresight to join the most powerful football brand this side of the NFL and what that means.
It means better recruits, better games for fans, better access to the playoffs. It just means more.
Texas can print money in the Big 12 and on its own. What the Horns can't do alone is precisely why they need the SEC. UT can't afford to fall further behind in a league that offers nothing more than a paycheck. Leaving the Big 12 a league that bends over backward to cater to every whim - says it all.
Cnt'd