Whatâs left of the Big 12 now?
KU KSU WVU Okie St ISU TT TCU⊠the brought in Houston and Cinci? Right
Baylor, BYU, And UCF as well.
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And there it is⊠@UVApride7 answered my question about UCF. All this is so wild.
I donât keep up with it any of it. Assume one day Iâll check in here and you guys will tell me UVA is in the Big 24 now.
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Same for me. It is futile for us to know. But LRA has some folks who know more about these things than me so I check in
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I tend to agree about UNCheat+UVa but I wouldnât trust anyone at this crazy high school dance.
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As fascinating as all of this realignment speculation is to keep up with, in the grand scheme of things I absolutely despise it. While I still do hope that UVA is able to secure a spot at the big boy table when all of this is said and done, I really wish we could go back to the days of every conference being geographically based. The death of regionality in college sports takes a lot of the fun out of it for me and Iâm sure many others as well.
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Baylor isnât a new add, but yeah, itâs Houston, Cincy , UCF and BYU.
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I know lol. Was implying that theyâll still be in the new Big 12.
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The duke and nd examples were just hypotheticals. There are many scenarios where they may be forced to choose between there own welfare and being forced to act on loyalty to uva. It wonât be a hard decision for them. And there are no reports with actual quotes about uva and unc being tied at the hip. None. Itâs message board speculation. Does not mean itâs not true in some wayâa good faith agreement to stay bound to one anotherâbut rest assured it wonât be contractual in any way.
I think â â â â Wake BC and Cuse would be a good fit in the Big East. UConnâs already there and let UMass or Army join for football only and you have the 6 you need for a conference. UNCheat and â â â â can still play every season like Kentucky-Louisville. If thatâs the end of the ACC, ND and anyone else that doesnât get into the B1G or SEC or Big XII can park in the BE too.
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Listening to Pete Thamel on The Paul Finebaum Show(15:40) and he was speculating on the ACC adding Oregon, Washington, Stanford, Cincinnati, Arizona, and a Texas school.
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If the ACC expands along these lines, it likely is a temporary fix while the GOR remains in place. The ACC still will be a distant 2nd tier conference, and Iâd expect Clemson, FSU and Miami to jump ship to the SEC once those rights expire (assuming the Sec would have them). While I donât like the idea of joining a B1G or SEC super conference, Iâd rather UVA be in one of those than some watered down 2nd tier conference - again assuming that we would get an invite.
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Talk out there about SMU or TCU if that is the play
I think thereâs room for a 3rd super conference, which could probably close the gap meaningfully if it has schools like Clemson, FSU, Miami and other top tiers in it. Wonât get to #2 ever, but would make the 3rd conference very competitive at least.
So if the ACC is aggressive (like the Big12 is being right now), it could be us. Weâre in the best position to make this happen since we have the best assets out of the bottom 3 conferences.
My worry is that the ACC will be its textbook passive/reactive selves (much like itâs been since we raided the Big East a decade ago), and at some point it will be too late once our top assets go somewhere else â not imminently but down the road.
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I think your last paragraph is the biggest concern. Because if itâs 2 conference or 3 three, the top 40ish programs are going to be accounted for. Thinking if itâs 2 I could see it being groups of 16 maybe 18 so the overall total number of schools is the important number.
Bottomline is when the pieces begin moving they are going to move quick and the chances of the ACC standing on their own and attracting enough schools to fill out and be that third conference is doubtful.
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I personally donât like either of those. TCU is one of the smallest schools in the BIG12, and if it werenât for those brief few years where they were relevant, I donât know that theyâd have ever made it into a major conference. Itâs like adding another Wake Forest. SMU, while having a ton of money behind it, also isnât super attractive to me given size and relevance.
The Texas school Iâve always thought is more attractive to other conferences than people realize, although which would probably be hard to pry away, is Texas Tech. Itâs closes to the PAC schools and has a very large enrollment and committed fan base. But again, the BIG12 probably knows that too.
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When I hear TCU all I see is the Red Rocket Andy Dalton running around Scott on 3rd n long like heâs Mike Vick, or Marcus Mariota. Seriously, though I could see TCU as an ACC school. They are periodically good enough at enough sports that they fit in well. I donât know where they rank academically but assume they are solid.
SMU doesnât bring anything to the table outside of their money and an oddly still passionate fanbase thatâs living too much in 82.
If we were to raid the Big12 I agree give us TT sneaky possibilities there. Want no parts of Baylor and that gifter community. Iâd take Cinci though.
I think if the ACC, Big XII and PAC 12 are aggressive and ruthless and consolidate their 16 best programs in as many different states as makes sense, it could be a half step behind the B1G and SEC and perhaps even with them if it includes ND.
ND
Clemson
FSU
Miami
UNCheat
Virginia (or blasphemy VA Tech)
Stanford
Washington
Oregon
Arizona (or Arizona State)
Oklahoma State
Kansas?
Iowa State?
1 or 2 of TCU/Baylor/SMU/TTU?
Utah or BYU?
1 or 2 of NC State/Pitt/â â â â /GT/Cal?
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I mean, I hear ya, but the ACC isnât exactly poaching potentially any other school from TX
Really like this concept. One thing you brought up that I think is important is a national conference will need to have access/touch points in as many regions as possible. Even if itâs a small school still needs a touch point. Looking at your list I think the priority would be getting a Texas school and maybe a second midwestern school even if it means sacrificing a mid-Atlantic school.
Just a random thought, where is UCF in all this talk? Imagine they would be a prized target, and eager to step up.