The Chip Brown Circus
Maybe. But a number of folks feel Chip Brown is "used up" as a source, and is simply being "used" now.
The following is off orangebloods.com, via a Rutgers board posting by a Maryland fan who copy/pasted from an Ohio State mod (!) So the original writer is lost to posterity, but read on:
"Good read here...received this via PM...no link because this is the first time its been published.
The Chip Brown Circus
We like Chip Brown, we really do. His work at Orangebloods.com played a large part to give this expansion the jump start it needed in making June a relevant month in the college football circus. His early information also proved to be mostly accurate. The problem was, and to no fault of his own, Chip decided to take the ESPN and national media carousel journey which was the beginning of the end for his information and let us tell you why.
By going mainstream as the face of the information break, Chip put himself in a tough position. With all the national media focused on his tweets, twits, twerts, and whatever else he posts he became a target of schools and conferences alike.
Chip Brown is now officially a puppet.
That isn't meant in a bad way either, but it's the truth (ironically enough, whenever someone has the need to say it isn't meant in a bad way, why does it always feel like it's sad in a bad way?). Schools and conferences know that any information they feed to Chip will be posted and re-posted abroad by a variety of reputable national media outlets, creating havoc and pandemonium all the while sending those dogs off the wrong path and diverting the attention of their real intentions.
"Texas and Texas A&M have not received contact from the Big Ten."
Alright, that's the straw that broke the wooly mammoth's back. Really Chip, really?! Even cavemen know Texas has been contacted; the Geico commercial actors are even offended by your naivety. You mean those emails that came from Ohio State's president, Gordon Gee, about Texas were just randomly thrown in the air and that pertinent information he had in it was just malarkey that he pulled out of his yoohoo? How can anyone believe what this guy is saying when he is not only fed information like that but honestly believes it?
The real question after that is then why is he being fed that information, what purpose does it serve? Well with all the attention on Texas to the Pac 10, per Chip, it allows and buys time for Texas to sit patiently and see how things unfold a little bit first which has always been their plan. Why does Texas have any need to rush? They are Texas! Do you really think the super power money making bananza machine that is UT is going to feel the pressure to make a decision? And do you think the money making conference in revenue (the Big Ten) is not going to contact them? This whole situation with Orangebloods now has the feeling of a hot buxom young blonde marrying an old rich geezer who's about to croak and is just being used now, unfortunately for OB they are not the hot young blonde. Orangeblood has something the schools want, an indirect national source that they can manipulate for national posturing.
By Texas letting Chip think they are headed to the Pac 10 it buys them more time to work out the details with the Big Ten on whom also joins in while working with their legislation. On a deal as large as this one, the extra time to work out the details puts them in the best position possible. Again, it's not so much Texas that is in the rush but it's who is coming with them and the surrounding details that needs the time. If Texas makes it known they want to head to the Big Ten, all of a sudden other conferences go into panic mode to pick up the next best options which lowers Texas' leverage and bargaining powers to get what they want most effectively, but by the "UT to Pac 10" talk that Chip is preaching it put everyone in a false sense of security.
"Texas, OU, OSU, and Tech are a lock to the Pac 10 but will wait a week to announce."
Seriously, are we going to do this again Chip! Going to wait a week, yeah, I can really see Texas Tech feeling secure about waiting a week to join the Pac 10. Good to see Oklahoma not interested in looking at their other options as well, like the SEC. Heck, also good to see Texas wasn't even the least bit interested in looking around, please head directly to the self-checkout lanes! These are decisions that have affects in the hundreds of millions and they aren't going to look around, talk to other conferences? I know the South isn't that smart but come on! (I kid, I kid!)
The bottom line is to be very careful when reading what sources like Chip Brown and others are saying because there is always a motive for that. Schools don't give out information that they don't want to get out, most often, and they don't give out as much as Chip is getting and being used for. There was another report from a Kansas City television station that Texas and A&M were headed to the Big Ten, and even though those line up with what we are saying we find that report to be complete hogwash. Why? It's unfounded.
Right now we are seeing television stations, internet sites, radio stations, newspapers, etc., finding themselves in a win-win situation with these rumors. Putting out a random "sourced" rumor will draw attention to them. If it turns out to be false, oh well, theirs was false just like 99% of everyone else's was so no loss there.
If it was right, though? Well, you'll find yourself like Chip Brown and Orangebloods.com, being pushed out in the national media market getting great exposure as "breaking news" and then be looked towards for more information, and thus used up by the likes we've already mentioned.
When looking at those that are paraded out there, you have to look at these "breaks" from a critical angle. Why was this information leaked out? Who does this leverage? Who is getting helped by this information? Do you really think any school is going to leak legit info to him when they know he's going to tweet it and have it posted on hundreds of message boards, is that really the way AD's want to create leverage and bargaining power for themselves?! No, it's not. Which is why we say Chip Brown is still playing an important role in all of this, it's just not the one he thinks or wishes he was playing because he is the puppet and Texas is the puppet master."