I’m guessing 50s for our class this year. I don’t think even our best class rank was in the 40s. And most of those guys never made it on campus or sucked (e.g. Leilon Willingham, Demarcus Smith, etc.) Edit: Im wrong. That class was ranked 39. So I guess it’s possible.
Not this season but I can see that coming soon especially with the playoff expansion. How easy is it going to be for him to go into these kids homes and say something like, “do you want to go get beat up in the SEC or come here and face a bunch of dog shit defenses, put up video game type stats and still make it to the playoff?”
I’m hoping that the time off has allowed him to decompress and take some of that pressure off himself and maybe focus on going back to what made his offense so successful in the first place.
Gus also spent years in the SEC West , that can burn you out a little worried about the playcalling but hoping a return to more of a Frost ‘run spread’ vs the Heupel offense . That is a forgotten part of Milton’s efficiency is that the run game and short passing game was used and way better . Even Milton’s efficiency went down in Heupel’s offense in 2018
So a Texas A&M beat reporter broke a story that Texas and Oklahoma are looking to jump to the SEC. Here we go again. From The Athletic... Spoiler Welcome back, Conference Realignment. Oh, how we missed you. The leaks, the rumors, the politics, the backstabbing … there’s nothing on TV that can match you for sheer entertainment value. But you know, it’s been a few years now. We’re more than a decade removed from Nebraska to the Big Ten and the ill-fated Pac-16. Some fans may be too young to remember that era, and others of you may just need a refresher course. Texas and Oklahoma possibly joining the SEC, as the Houston Chronicle reported Wednesday, is an absolute bombshell. All three parties immediately issued intentionally vague non-denial denials. Something is clearly afoot. But that doesn’t mean this is definitely happening, either. If there’s one golden rule of realignment, it is this: Believe everything and nothing. Let’s try to get to the bottom of this Texas/Oklahoma thing, shall we? Here now, some answers to the most common questions you might be asking as we dive knee-deep into a potential seismic change to the college football landscape. Q: Is this legit? A: It sure seems so. While Texas A&M beat writer Brent Zwerneman’s report Wednesday blindsided most of the industry, sources have since told The Athletic that A) Texas has been exploring possible conference contingencies for some time. And B) The Big 12 recently initiated conversations with ESPN about extending its contract (which runs through 2025) only to be met with tepid interest. Texas Tech’s president hinted at such in May, saying, “ESPN and Fox are not interested in acting preemptively with regard to our contract.” The timing of which lines up almost exactly with other sources that said they’d been hearing rumors about Texas and Oklahoma possibly leaving the Big 12 for “a couple months.” Q: What are Texas and Oklahoma saying? A: Texas issued a statement saying, “Speculation swirls around collegiate athletics. We will not address rumors or speculation.” Oklahoma issued a statement saying, “The college athletics landscape is shifting constantly. We don’t address every anonymous rumor.” Notice that neither of those statements included the words, “We’re happy to be members of the Big 12.” Q: What is the SEC saying? A: Commissioner Greg Sankey, who had the misfortune of being at SEC media days radio row when the news broke, told a group of reporters, “I’m going to focus on the 2021 season, gentlemen.” Notice that did not include the words, “We’re perfectly happy to remain at 14 teams.” Q: Why would Texas want to join the SEC? It can barely get to nine wins playing in the Big 12. A: You mean, besides $$$? Texas fans have been growing apathetic over their lost decade-plus, and an 11 a.m. CT kick against Oklahoma State or Kansas State doesn’t rev up the fan base the way a 7 p.m. date with Alabama or LSU would. Also, the sport is on the verge of ditching its four-team Playoff, where a 12-1 Big 12 champ is not guaranteed anything, to a likely 12-team Playoff where going even 9-3 against an SEC schedule might be good enough to earn an invite. Finally, the fact that SEC will be turning over all of its TV rights to ESPN beginning in 2024 might make for an easier absorption of the ESPN-owned Longhorn Network than continuing in a conference that’s split between ESPN and Fox. Q: Why would Oklahoma want to join the SEC? It wins the Big 12 every year. A: It’s not clear that it does. This feels a lot like 2010 when Texas was the main driver of the Pac-16 discussions. Only later did we learn that Texas A&M was never fully in on the pact (and, in fact, left for the SEC a year later). But even if Oklahoma would rather remain in the 10-team Big 12, it knows it couldn’t stay in a depleted, nine-team league with no remotely equivalent blueblood. Q: Why would the SEC want Texas and Oklahoma? A: You mean, besides $$$? … Actually, there is no “besides.” While it’s universally accepted that the SEC is the premier football conference, it remains in a two-team race with the Big Ten to be the most lucrative athletics conference. And the Big Ten is currently ahead. The league earned $768.9 million in revenue in 2020, about $40 million more than the SEC. And while the SEC has locked in a huge spike come 2024 for its Tier 1 package (moving from CBS to ESPN), the Big Ten’s deal comes up a year before that and will only widen its lead. Suffice to say, a 16-team SEC with Texas and Oklahoma would jump ahead, possibly by a considerable margin. Also: That 12-team Playoff. Sankey, one of the four members of the working group that authored the proposal, did so fully knowing his league would have a chance to send three or more teams a year. An even stronger SEC could grab still more berths. Q: Are we sure all the current SEC members are on board with this? A: Well, we know at least one that’s adamantly opposed. That would be Texas’ in-state rival. Note the timing of Wednesday’s bombshell, which came from a Texas A&M beat reporter, just as Jimbo Fisher was taking the stage at SEC media days, where he sarcastically joked of Texas and Oklahoma, “I bet they would (like to join the SEC).” AD Ross Bjork also just happened to be in the building (note: ADs don’t usually attend media days) in time to declare, “There’s a reason why we left the Big 12. … We wanted to have a stand-alone identity in Texas.” A&M, which loves lording its SEC membership over Texas, may be about to learn just how much clout it does or doesn’t hold, because it can’t unilaterally block a new member. Per SEC bylaws, it would take an 11-3 vote to approve expansion. Q: Well, if Texas and Oklahoma are on board, and 11 SEC members support it, what could possibly stop this? A: You must be new here. It took Oklahoma State only a couple of hours to issue a stern, “If true, we would be gravely disappointed” statement. Expect much worse than that. The last time we went through this, in 2011, Baylor threatened to sue Texas A&M for leaving the Big 12. And just wait for the politicians to get involved. Legislators with ties to the schools being left behind will threaten to withhold funding. The governor of Texas famously helped Baylor get into the Big 12 originally in 1994, and the governor of Virginia got Virginia Tech an ACC invite in 2003. The best way to blow up potential realignment is to let word get out before the contracts have been signed. Q: But if this does happen, what becomes of the Big 12? It becomes every man for himself. An eight-team Big 12 without its two flagship programs would no longer command Power 5-level demand from TV networks. The conference could try to add some of the top Group of 5 programs (Houston, UCF, Cincinnati, etc.) — which it frankly should have done years ago to help prevent this very scenario — and recoup at least some of its value. Perhaps the Pac-12, now with a new commissioner, George Kliavkoff, would welcome some of the remaining members. And if it’s not interested, Mike Aresco’s AAC certainly would be. No more having to settle for “Power 6.” It’s yet another reminder that football is all that really matters in realignment. Much like UConn’s prestigious basketball program got (briefly) relegated to the AAC when the old Big East imploded, it’s not inconceivable Kansas basketball could end up in the Mountain West. Q: How will we know if this is really going to happen? A: When the SEC holds a news conference. Until then, read every tweet with a cautious eye. Be leery of any story with the words “done deal” — especially if it also includes the phrase “barring a last-minute complication.” Remember: Believe everything and nothing. And enjoy the ride.
and another one... Spoiler ACC and SEC media days overlapped on Wednesday. The Big Ten gets its media days started on Thursday. As it turns out, however, much of the talk during the official start of talking season surrounds a conference that got its media days out of the way last week: the Big 12. The potential bombshell dropped shortly after 3:30 ET Wednesday, when the Houston Chronicle reported that Oklahoma and Texas had reached out to the SEC about joining the conference. Almost immediately, denials, non-denials and “I don’t knows” echoed throughout both Birmingham, Ala., and Charlotte, N.C., the respective sites of SEC and ACC media days. Throw this news — however serious it might be — on top of what has already been a groundbreaking summer for college athletics, and suddenly so much of what has been publicly discussed for the future could be thrown into chaos. A 12-team College Football Playoff, for one, would look significantly different with one of the Power 5 conferences down its two biggest breadwinners. There are other potential implications, too, be it the birth of a superconference in the SEC or a potential leverage play for the ACC — or something else entirely. — Matt Fortuna Oklahoma and Texas decline to comment on reports of their interest in joining SEC • Texas: “Speculation swirls around collegiate athletics. We will not address rumors or speculation.” • Oklahoma:“The college athletics landscape is shifting constantly. We don’t address every anonymous rumor.” What you should expect from the realignment rollercoaster If history is any indication, coverage of the potential moves could get pretty wild. Potential for political roadblocks As news broke about Oklahoma’s possible desire to move to the SEC, a common misunderstanding resurfaced on social media regarding the Oklahoma state legislature and its role. The Oklahoma state legislature holds no authority regarding the athletics conference of state schools. The University of Oklahoma and Oklahoma State University are governed independently by the University of Oklahoma Board of Regents and the OSU/A&M Board of Regents, respectively. Chad Alexander is the former Oklahoma Republican Party chairman and lobbied for the University of Oklahoma during the last round of conference realignment talks. He emphasized in a phone interview Wednesday that a lot has changed in the last 10 years. Term limits mean the legislature and boards of regents are filled with new faces. Longtime presidents David Boren (OU) and Burns Hargis (OSU) have both retired, with Hargis’ retirement coming just this month. During the 2011 realignment talks, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State were attached at the hip. Any deal sending the Sooners to the conceptual Pac-16 would have included the Cowboys. Much of that was due to Boren, both because of his relationship with Hargis, and because of Boren’s general philosophy that Oklahoma and Oklahoma State should compete in the same conference. Joseph Harroz Jr., the current OU president, worked many years for Boren, but his philosophy on that subject is unclear. Oklahoma State’s fiery statement Wednesday after news broke is a sign of just how important it is to remain attached to the Sooners — and also indicates that it might not feel protected in any legal sense should OU decide to make a move. Still, expect there to be significant political pressure from state lawmakers with ties to Oklahoma State. It’s also worth noting that Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt is an Oklahoma State alumnus, although he hasn’t made any public statements about this situation. Alexander and other sources told The Athletic that even if the state legislature were to pass a law mandating that OU and OSU remain in the same conference and even if the governor signed it, it probably wouldn’t hold up in court because of the way university governance is arranged in the state. — Jason Kersey Texas A&M’s on-the-record objection to the potential moves Texas A&M is the only school so far whose officials have offered any definitive on-the-record opinion about this possibility. Athletic director Ross Bjork made it quite clear Wednesday that Texas A&M wants to be the only SEC school in the Lone Star State. The move to break from the Big 12 also was a move to differentiate the program. Bjork reiterated this to me Wednesday night on the phone just before he and Texas A&M’s contingent took off after spending Wednesday at SEC Media Days in Hoover, Ala. But if you’re the SEC, how do you say no to adding two megabrands to an already stacked catalogue? The league needs 11 schools to vote yes to extend invitations to expand, and it’s unclear who else would be willing to vote no besides Texas A&M. Former Big 12 member Missouri? Former Southwest Conference member Arkansas? Maybe. The timing of the leak of the news seems to be an attempt to slow a very fast train. — Andy Staples The rest of the Big 12 reacts This current iteration of the Big 12’s board has been by all accounts quite collegial in nature. This group worked together with commissioner Bob Bowlsby to save the league’s football season last August, coming to agreement on a plan to stay the course despite their differing viewpoints. The animosity and leadership schisms of a decade ago in the heat of realignment mania, which devolved into fears, threats and departures, were thought to be long in the past. And Oklahoma president Joseph Harroz and Texas president Jay Hartzell are basically the newcomers in the room, as both were elevated to those roles from interim status in 2020. Alas, peacetime in this league has likely come to an end. And Oklahoma, Texas and SEC commissioner Greg Sankey responding with no denials and no comment only reinforces the suspicion among conference peers that this is more than just a little smoke. — Max Olson What would need to happen for new schools to be admitted to the SEC? SEC bylaws being what they are, 11 of the 14 current schools would need to confirm the addition of a new member. Reality being what it is, the conference wouldn’t want expansion to pass by the skin of an 11-3 vote. The league put on a united front under the late, great commissioner Mike Slive and the vibe has continued under Greg Sankey. That’s because the SEC really takes care of its members, offering granite-solid stability and mega earnings. If Texas A&M, Arkansas and Mizzou vigorously objected to Texas and Oklahoma joining the league, their voices would carry weight. Schools like LSU, Alabama and Florida also stand to face a tougher time recruiting the state of Texas if the Longhorns get to flash the SEC brand. Ultimately, there may be financial incentives too massive to ignore in realignment — and fans of the Razorbacks and Aggies actually might welcome the rebirth of rivalries. Whatever the outcome, Sankey will work to insure a consensus. — G. Allan Taylor Adding Texas and Oklahoma could solve some of the SEC’s current scheduling issues If the SEC added Texas and Oklahoma there would be plenty of big issues to address, but one would be easy: The division setup. In fact, it would solve a lot of the conference’s current scheduling dilemmas. Texas and Oklahoma would join the West, obviously, but Missouri could join them, and along with Arkansas you’d have a mini-Big Eight/Southwest Conference reunion. Then you move Alabama and Auburn to the East, evening up the divisions, as well as solving a scheduling headache: Alabama-Tennessee and Auburn-Georgia, currently a pair of cross-division annual rivalries, are now regular division games. Voila! Or the SEC could get even more creative, and go to four divisions or pods, which would allow more scheduling flexibility. Right now the conference, wedded to division-based scheduling, has too many teams that rarely face each other: Georgia has yet to visit Texas A&M, for instance, since the Aggies joined the league in 2012. If each team only has three permanent opponents and then rotates the other five, that isn’t a problem anymore. In fact, it’s a much better solution than two eight-team divisions — or the current two seven-team divisions. It may not be the sole reason to add Texas and Oklahoma, but it’s a nice byproduct. — Seth Emerson What would adding Texas and Oklahoma mean for SEC recruiting? At the moment, Texas high school stars have only one in-state option if they wanted to stay home and play in the SEC: Texas A&M. More SEC options within the region means the Aggies would lose their Lone Star State edge. Group of 5 reaction I asked Mountain West commissioner Craig Thompson if the Texas/Oklahoma news and upcoming conference TV deals could lead to another wave of conference realignment. “Texas, Oklahoma, potentially could be a tipping point,” he said. Like everyone else, Thompson didn’t know much about the news other than what he heard from associates when the report dropped. “I’ve had a couple commissioner friends ask for a chance to talk and compare notes. It’s normal business. We’re all reading this stuff like, ‘What the heck, what do you know about this?’” — Chris Vannini Want to read more on the realignment discussion? Initial reports that Texas and Oklahoma have reached out to the SEC with interest in joining the conference. Stewart Mandel’s conference realignment FAQ. Andy Staples on how Oklahoma, Texas and the SEC are having a hard time saying no to each other. Ari Wasserman on what the addition of Texas and Oklahoma would mean for recruiting in the SEC. Sam Khan Jr. on the far-reaching fallout of realignment. Max Olson on how the Big 12 was blindsided by the report of Texas and Oklahoma looking into joining the SEC. (Top photo: Andrew Dieb / USA TODAY Sports)
Honestly the AAC has way better teams/cities than the B12 without those schools. ESPN should give us enough TV money to poach 2-3 of those guys.
Sounds like it's a legit thing that might happen. No idea where it would leave us, but it is a little concerning.
If it happens, and thats a huge IF because the lawsuits would just be nuts, then I think the best bet is that the Pac12 and AAC absorb the remaining teams. The Big12 as a name going away would be crazy though, so much marketing effort put into that. I could see them finding 4 teams out there to pull in and get back to true 12. Us, Boise State, Houston and Cincy make the most sense off the top of my head.
Meh. Remember the Big East? It's only as strong as its schools. Yes I know it's still a basketball conference but I also bet a lot of people totally forget that. From a marketer's POV, it would actually benefit all of them to drop the numbers and adopt the SEC naming convention or a closer version of it. Southeastern Conference, Pacific Conference, Big North Conference (if you must keep Big), Atlantic Coast Conference, Big South Conference (if you need to keep Big12)
True, but they also had that chance when they dropped to 10 teams and stuck with the old name. A lot of people have wanted to go back to the SWC name from back in the day.
Remember the theatrical bullshit where all the schools had to prepare presentations for the big xii and then they did nothing but milk TV money? Fuck em
How can OU go to SEC? I thought the Oklahoma legislature actually voted for a law that OU and OSU have to be together
Just crushed some dudes hopes. In Tennessee and someone saw my hat and made a comment about how happy he is that they took our coach. Told him how happy we were that they gave us 10 mil to take our trash out for us
Interesting article that lays out pretty succinctly the different ways this thing could go. The AAC pre-emptively expanding in order to take away some of the best options the Big 12 might have to restore itself is an interesting idea. The question is, would Boise State, San Diego State, BYU, etc jump to the AAC or hold their cards and wait to see if the Big 12 comes calling? I think any of the current AAC schools wouldn't hesitate to jump to if the Big 12 asked them to, including anyone we would have recently signed, unless the AAC made their contracts too punitive for leaving. https://www.underdogdynasty.com/202...gb9fFi-wHfzWkzcTDIQOh4mChWHa7uf4rOdVCWaIMv8MM
We better get an extra $10+ mill a year at least to move to the B12. Although only 1-2 mill more and leaving USF behind would also be ok.
Going to be a lot of gold over at the USF forum. Hey all, I just got back from talking to my friend who works in Athletics (we do early morning runs sometimes). According to him, there has been a ton of behind the scenes activity in USF athletics and moving to the Big 12. He was working till late last night on communications and proposals and apparently AD Kelly has been working the phone, his CFP connections, and every other avenue for the past two days. The big thing is it looks like USF is likely to have a home in the Big 12. However, AD Kelly is working very hard to keep this under wraps and out of the media so we don’t get undermined by some of our competitions. A couple interesting notes: - WVU is the driving force behind USF joining the B12. Based on our rivalry and past games, WVU started reaching out and lobbying the other Big 12 schools last night after their meeting. - USF’s status as being in a BCS conference before and being able to be ranked #2 in the nation is carrying a ton of weight with the other schools. - USF is prepared to offer a deal where they will accept no revenue from the Big 12 for the first two years as provisional members. After two years, if USF can prove their worth through increased attendance and performance, they will get full membership. These are two of our weak spots and they think offering to forego revenue for two years will “sweeten the pot.” The excitement in the air is palpable, with one old timer comparing the feeling to what was going around in 2005! He also gave me a couple other really interesting tidbits, but I can’t post them here on a public forum, these are things that can’t get out to the “competition.”
There is a real post in there that says that maybe they fired their President the other day because the B12 told them to to join. These people are so dumb.
That's amazing. I think my real favorite part is his understanding on how all of this works. Baiscally a car salesman trying to sell a used Tahoe or something. Working the phones! He's gotta couple people in his Rolodex! But hush hush or the media will be ALL OVER THIS
Well that escalated quickly... from rumor to essentially confirmed in less than 48 hours. https://theathletic.com/2725688/202...of-exit-next-week-with-plans-to-bolt-for-sec/ Spoiler Texas and Oklahoma will send letters to the Big 12 on Monday informing the league that they do not intend to renew its grant-of-rights agreement upon expiration in 2025, multiple sources told The Athletic. Such a move is the next necessary step in clearing a path for the two schools to leave the conference and join the SEC, starting a massive ripple effect throughout college athletics. 247Sports first reported the news Friday. Meanwhile, the remaining eight members of the Big 12 are making contingency plans and assessing what their value would be to other conferences, sources said. Those schools pledged during a call Thursday evening that they would try to stay together, but they are planning for an alternate future in the meantime. “I’m shellshocked,” a Big 12 athletic director told The Athletic on Friday morning, relaying what has been a mind-blowing 48 hours chock full of confusion, angst and a chilling feeling of betrayal. Reaching out to the Pac-12 about a potential 20-school merger was discussed during Thursday’s Big 12 leadership call. Such a move seems to be a more favorable alternative for the Big 12 than bringing in new members, which might involve raiding the American Athletic Conference, to lift its membership back into double digits. “Bringing in a Cincinnati and UCF doesn’t bring any eyeballs,” the AD said. A second league AD said, “There is no combination of Group of 5 members we can add that will garner our same TV deal, but it’s all on the table right now,” then added, “I don’t think (Texas) A&M has been very successful in blocking this.” Texas and Oklahoma’s flirtation with the SEC appears to have been months in the making. Though the story leaked Wednesday, just before Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher took the microphone at SEC media days, sources indicated that the process began long before that. Last week, Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby remarked how stable the league was and categorized realignment as “not one of the things that keeps me up at night,” citing a shrinking cable market as more consumers have migrated to streaming services. Bowlsby has yet to comment publicly on Texas and Oklahoma’s potential move. Several sources indicated that the current sentiment among the remaining Big 12 members can best be described as “pissed at Texas and disappointed in Oklahoma.” “I’m not surprised by Texas, but I’m really disappointed by the way OU has handled this,” the second Big 12 AD said. “They’ve participated in all our meetings without saying a single word. “I think this has been going on for six months — at a minimum of probably three months — and ESPN has been right in the middle of it.” The grant-of-rights agreement makes it difficult for Texas and Oklahoma to leave the conference quickly. Under the contract, any school that leaves the Big 12 before its expiration would forfeit its remaining media rights distributions, plus pay what it would have received for the final two years of the contract as a buyout. The Big 12’s 2020 payout to schools was $37.7 million. Sources believe Texas and Oklahoma would be looking at a fee of potentially $80 million or more if it entered the SEC with two years remaining on the grant of rights. Under the terms of Big 12 bylaws, if Texas and Oklahoma do give notice next week as expected, the schools would not be permitted to exit until June 30, 2023, at the earliest. Granted, these requirements might merely be a starting point in the expected exit negotiations. Sources told The Athletic on Thursday that the Sooners and Longhorns are prepared to wait until the grant-of-rights and media rights deals expire in 2025 before moving to a new league. That would remove any possibility of legal action from the current Big 12 members. That doesn’t mean Texas and Oklahoma aren’t looking for a path to get out sooner. “Attorneys are digging into the grant-of-rights agreement — what does that look like? Think about the alternatives,” the second Big 12 athletic director said. “If they’re getting out before then, there’s gonna be so many legal battles and all the back and forth.” Once the Sooners and Longhorns declare they’re not renewing, the SEC can begin officially engaging with the schools. For the two schools to gain admittance to the SEC, they must be approved by at least three-fourths of the league members, meaning 11 of the 14 SEC schools must say “yes” to invite Oklahoma and Texas into the league. The AAC, as a conference, would like to try to poach the Big 12’s leftovers, multiple high-ranking administrators told The Athletic. But individual schools within the AAC might be more interested in trying to jump to the Big 12 if it stays intact. The Big 12 will retain its designation as an Autonomy 5 conference regardless of whether it loses two members. That is significant from an NCAA governance and representational standpoint, and losing members does not immediately jeopardize that status.
"Reaching out to the Pac-12 about a potential 20-school merger was discussed during Thursday’s Big 12 leadership call. Such a move seems to be a more favorable alternative for the Big 12 than bringing in new members, which might involve raiding the American Athletic Conference, to lift its membership back into double digits. “Bringing in a Cincinnati and UCF doesn’t bring any eyeballs,” the AD said. A second league AD said, “There is no combination of Group of 5 members we can add that will garner our same TV deal, but it’s all on the table right now,” then added, “I don’t think (Texas) A&M has been very successful in blocking this.”
Look you can talk yourself into trying to fill the shoes of Texas and OU and consider the only possible way to do that is through the California schools and to a lesser extent Oregon. But looking for eyeballs and only going WEST is not going to do it either. This is like the movie moneyball. You won't replace Texas and OU. You need a combination of smaller but yet huge upside schools to add up to what you lost. It has to go east and west in this case.
Yeah these morons needs to realize their place in the sport. A league full of small midwestern schools with nothing really accomplished in the recent past or likely future doesn't get to grab name programs. You have to grab the best of the G5 and thats so clearly UCF and Cincy. There isn't another option no matter how you wish.