As you might expect, there is a diverse background of college educations at the space center.  My friends and I have been enjoying a spirited debate on what has become of the Big 12 in the last couple of weeks.  Frankly, as a Big 12 North grad, I couldn’t be more displeased with the outcome.  I know that it was touted that we Big 12 North schools were basically S.O.L. if the Big 12 folded because we weren’t exactly hot on the radar screen of any of the other big conferences, but the alternative we have now been left with is even worse.

The departure of CU and NU now has the center of gravity of the Big 12 conference lying somewhere on the I-35 corridor between Dallas and Waco in Mack Brown’s pants.  Great.  Make no mistake about it, the hail mary pass that Beebe threw in order to keep the conference together was thrown exclusively in UT’s direction.

Couple this with the fact that the departure of NU and CU from the conference was no mystery that it was heavily due to the southern bias that the conference has taken on since it expanded by bringing in the Texas schools from the Southwestern Conference.  Has this gotten better in the past couple of weeks?  Absolutely not.  In fact- it is even worse.  Money talks and it was the only thing UT was listening to.  In order to give them more of it, the unbalanced revenue sharing of the Big 12 can only get worse.  KU, KSU, MU, ISU, and Baylor basically just paid UT (and to a lesser extent OU) in order to keep the conference together.

To make things worse, it seems eyebrow raising that Beebe could claim that the new watered down Big 12 can garner a TV deal superior to that of the Big Ten whenever seven of our schools aren’t even worth a damn at football anyway.  Touting the CU and NU money as on-going revenue was genius!  I think I’ll go apply for a home loan with my upcoming severance check too!!!  Whenever the new Fox TV deal comes in much lower than Beebe was selling and the departure penalties run dry, we will be right back here again in two years playing the “who is courting who” drama of college athletics all over again.

I’m most disappointed with A&M in this whole exchange.  Having moderate first-hand experience with their hatred of UT weirdness, they finally had a chance to take the lead on something and not play second fiddle to the Longhorns.  With UT thumbing their nose at the Pac-10, A&M could have left for the SEC anyway, causing the Big 12 to implode in obvious defiance of UT’s wishes.  In fact, it would have been the ultimate triumph over their rival.  They would have left on their own accord while screwing UT in the process, and he who laughs last, well… you get the idea.

Instead A&M made it readily apparent that they enjoy living in their parent’s basement whilst simultaneously chastising their folks for infringing upon “their game”.  Sounds like fun; enjoy.

In the meantime, we get two years of conference championshipless, lame duck college football games in what is obviously a toxic environment and a marriage of convenience between the institutions remaining.  So… I would like to go on record coining the new name for these Big 12 leftovers; something that defines us for what we are, and a little alliteration couldn’t hurt either-

With that- I give you: The Texas Ten!