Texas already in talks with Big Ten (link)

As an Iowa fan do we really want to add a top level sports university like Texas in the conference?

I don't mean this as shying away from competition and the like, but think of the ramifications of trying to win a B10 title in football:

Possible regular season matchups of having to win against a Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State and the likes only to meet up with someone like a Texas in the champ. game. Not saying we couldn't beat those teams, but that is one juggernaut of a schedule.

Adding a Texas, Oklahoma would definitely make it more difficult to consistently win the conf. title.

The flipside would be the B10 would add a bunch more prestige as well and prob. wouldn't be talked down as much.
 
cmonhox said:
As an Iowa fan do we really want to add a top level sports university like Texas in the conference?

I don't mean this as shying away from competition and the like, but think of the ramifications of trying to win a B10 title in football:

Possible regular season matchups of having to win against a Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State and the likes only to meet up with someone like a Texas in the champ. game. Not saying we couldn't beat those teams, but that is one juggernaut of a schedule.

Adding a Texas, Oklahoma would definitely make it more difficult to consistently win the conf. title.

The flipside would be the B10 would add a bunch more prestige as well and prob. wouldn't be talked down as much.
Click to expand...

wins the last time we won the Big 10 outright anyway.....seems like its already hrd so heck yes add them if they would agree to it
 
BA96MA99 said:
One way or the other, the Big XII is falling apart.

Let's say the Big Ten takes Missouri, Pac 10 takes Colorado. Big XII has to take TCU and Houston? That means no increased TV sets for the Big XII, no new recruiting areas opened up. Bad for the Big XII, bad for Texas.

Big XII has a bad television deal = Texas has a bad television deal.

Texas may want to get out of the Big XII while they can, and Big Ten/Pac 10 expansion talk may be the best time for them to jump ship.
Click to expand...

This.

If it looks like the Big 12 will possibly fall apart you want to end up on the good side of the equation. The problem Texas is currently facing is the knowledge that Missouri has actually expressed interest in joining the Big 10 and they control the most TV markets outside of Texas. So if Texas sits and does nothing thinking that the Big 10 won't actually take Missouri and then we DO take them - Texas ends up in an even worse position than they currently are. Yes they are basically in charge of the Big 12 - but does that really matter if the Big 12 falls apart?

Even if you think that something has a low probability of happening - but IF IT HAPPENS it is disastrous to you then you must deal with it as though it might actually happen and make your decisions accordingly.
 
One more thing to add is that Texas is going to benefit greatly financially from academics as well as athletics. Because of the CIC we are talking hundreds of millions of dollars a year in additional research funds for UT and it's medical branches.
 
Icarus said:
I think adding more than one team is a bad idea. Unfortunately there is the Texas legislature to deal with (which may require Texas to bring A&M along if it leaves) and the Oklahoma rivalry complicates things. I think there is zero chance of the 14 team scenario actually happening.

As weird as it is to imagine Texas playing a full Big Ten slate plus Oklahoma and A&M every year (assuming we only add Texas), I guess many Iowa fans would have no problem playing ISU and Nebraska every nonconference season, which is very similar (at least when Nebby is decent).
Click to expand...

Not that it will ever happen but since it is the off season I will bite.

It would also be weird that if the Big Ten did add 3 more teams I would guess that each team would play the other 6 in their division and then rotate 2 from the other division. It would be kind of crazy to have a 6 plus year gap between games with some teams from the other division.

cmonhox,

Adding big time schools increases the Big Ten's rep and in theory would open up more kids to take a look at a school like Iowa, but I do see your point.
 
Last edited:
hoffahawk said:
It would also be weird that if the Big Ten did add 3 more teams I would guess that each team would play the other 6 in their division and then rotate 2 from the other division. It would be kind of crazy to have a 6 plus year gap between games with some teams from the other division.
Click to expand...

The Mid-American Conference has 13 teams. There's nothing magical about only having 12 teams in a conference.
 
These expansion talks promise to be a fun ride for the next several months. During that time, just remember the words of Sammy Hagar:

Suckers walk, money talks!
But it can't touch my three lock box.
Uh! Oh, yeah!
Mysteries of the days of old.
You find the key, you got the gold.
 
BA96MA99 said:
The Mid-American Conference has 13 teams. There's nothing magical about only having 12 teams in a conference.
Click to expand...

The difference---and I think this was Hoffa's point---is that the Big Ten has a century of history playing against basically the same teams. It would be weird to go 6 years without playing Michigan, for example, because we've been playing them almost every year for a very long time. The Mid-American Conference doesn't have that kind of tradition (nor do many conferences).

Using the example posted earlier, I don't particularly like the idea of playing Texas A&M every year and Michigan once every six years. But, again, I think a 14-team Big Ten is unlikely because it would be a drastic change without much of a benefit beyond just adding one team. Texas would more than make up the extra revenue needed to keep each school's take above $20 million. I'm not sure also adding A&M and Oklahoma (for example) would end up with an extra $66 million in TV revenue.
 
I understand the arguements for Texas joining the big 10 if the big 12 is falling apart but come on .......... every road game is going to be a least a 20+ hour (one way) car ride for traveling fans and several of their games would be played in very cold conditions. I think the fans would riot. I have a lot of friends in Texas and I can tell you that heads would be cut off and put on spikes if anyone told them that they couldn't play their in-state rivalry games and Oklahoma every year.

Absolutely no way this happens.

Plus will you people please stop talking about the 10 Million in additional TV revenue that Texas would get. To the budget of a major state university that really isn't all that much money - hell they'd lose twice that in alumni donations if they joined the big10.
 
When I was five I invited Hulk Hogan to my birthday party... do I get to say "Hulk Hogan and I were in talks to have him come hang out at my house"?
 
I would give this a very low probability of happening...but since there isn't much to talk about and this story apparently has at least some legs in that there have been talks.

It seems as though Iowa's recruiting has shifted toward the East Coast...Ohio, Pennsylvania, now DC...and there was a lot of talk about Missouri being a good addition for Iowa from a recruiting standpoint...it would stand to reason that Iowa would get a recruiting advantage if this happened. Which would be a bonus.

On the other hand...I agree with those who are worried about the likelihood of winning a Big Ten championship if we added Texas. They would almost certainly be in the same division as us and that would mean that we'd have a real tough time even getting to the conference championship game most years.
 
I have been on the Texas bandwagon all along. Now, not sure I want to add the other two...texas could still play them annually as part of their 4 game non conference slate.
 
latrans said:
Plus will you people please stop talking about the 10 Million in additional TV revenue that Texas would get. To the budget of a major state university that really isn't all that much money - hell they'd lose twice that in alumni donations if they joined the big10.
Click to expand...

Is this a serious comment? Really?

Here is Texas net revenue from athletics last year (September 08 to September 09): $25,524,017.

Are you honestly going to argue that $10,000,000 "isn't all that much money" to Texas' athletic department? Adding $10 million in TV revenue alone would increase there overall revenue by 40%. In fact, $10 million more dollars in TV money would equal 7.5% of their total revenue, before expenses.

Equity in Athletics Data Analysis Cutting Tool Website

Obviously there would be increased costs associated with joining the Big Ten, but there is a reason Texas is not happy with their current deal, even though they get more than any other Big 12 team. I am having a hard time thinking of what would compel you to think that $10 million isn't a lot to their athletic department.

EDIT: You need to click on "Revenues and Expenses" at the above link and scroll to the bottom for net revenue.
 
Texas was rumored to be interested in joining the B10 when Penn St. was added in '91. While highly unlikely it isn't an absurd notion. There is almost 0% chance ND joins so pressuring them is pointless.
 
fufred said:
Texas was rumored to be interested in joining the B10 when Penn St. was added in '91. While highly unlikely it isn't an absurd notion. There is almost 0% chance ND joins so pressuring them is pointless.
Click to expand...

This is pretty much 100% my thinking.
 
It would be nice to see how a Texas team would handle the weather being on the road in November. It should be a mandate that their last B10 game would have to be on the road or no entry to the conference.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Share this page

Top