Wake Up The Echoes-And Start Up The Plane

The Fighting Irish of Notre Dame this week announced the first of their off-site home games. It will be in the Alamo City of San Antonio, where they will face Washington State in 2009.

The Irish have been planning a traveling road show for a couple of years. They desire to play winnable games in large stadiums in areas where they can draw fans and recruit players. South Texas has a large Catholic population, providing for a lot of potential Notre Dame fans, at least for one game. The state of Texas is not hurting for talented high school players. The Irish gain some recruiting exposure in this state. By bringing in the Cougars from the Palouse, they deny a Texas school the spotlight that this game will offer.

I am surprised they are playing Washington State in the state of Texas. Couldn't they find a Texas team to play? I'm sure a school like Houston or SMU would love to play the Irish in a Texas stadium that is not their own. TCU would jump at the chance to play Notre Dame. Baylor would be an easy win for the Irish. I guess Wazzu is considered to be good for TV ratings. Notre Dame is arrogant enough to believe they can sell out a stadium 1300 miles from their campus on their own.

I'm no fan of Notre Dame. I think they're the most overrated, over-exposed program on earth. They are living on past glories of the black-and-white TV era. My dislike of Notre Dame has nothing to do with Catholicism. It is because they are seen as the greatest thing since the invention of the wheel, when they have been little more than ordinary for the last 15 years. The BCS era has brought this to light, as they are consistently drilled in BCS bowl games like they were by LSU in last season's Sugar Bowl. The Irish have lost their last nine bowl games in a row, most of which occurred in ugly mismatches.

I hope there are 20,000 empty seats at the Alamodome for this thing. I hope Wazzu beats the Irish to a pulp. I hope this road show blows up in their face.

If Notre Dame wants to be relevant in the world of big-time 21st-century college football, they need to join a conference. Traveling road shows against supposedly beatable opponents won't get them there.

Ugly Uniform of the Day

I apologize for the time between posts. It's been a crazy week.

I saw a picture of this uniform in the preview for Kent State in Phil Steele's College Football Preview. This is an alternate uniform, or perhaps something they wore two years ago, as they are wearing blue at home and white on the road on most occasions.

Those yellow-gold jerseys do not go with the blue helmets and blue pants. I can do without the lightning bolts on the pants, but that's not as bad as the gold jersey. Cal does the same thing, and it is not good. The gold jersey is ugly, especially this shade of gold with the blue helmet. The Golden Flashes were better off by going back to the blue home and white road uniforms.

Kent State is better off leaving these things in the closet. They should keep the blue and white jerseys.

Blast From The Past

You're Doin' Fine, Oklahoma

I would be remiss if I did not comment on today's news from NCAA Global World Headquarters. The University of Oklahoma football program was placed on two years' probation, resulting in the loss of two scholarships in each of the next two school years. The worst punishment, though, was the "vacation" of the 8 wins in the 2005 season. The probation was handed out due to the underemployment/overpayment of QB Rhett Bomar and OL J.D. Quinn at Big Red Sports and Imports in Norman.

As an OU fan, I can live without the two scholarships for the next two seasons. The Sooners penalized themselves by not granting the two scholarships last season after kicking Bomar and Quinn off the team. That's just two scholarships that won't be used for another two years.

Once university athletic officials became aware of the infraction, they kicked the offending players off the team and informed the NCAA. The NCAA investigated, and laid down the hammer. Where is the lenience for cooperation with the NCAA? The two scholarship penalty, in addition to self-imposed sanctions, were plenty. The NCAA did not need to vacate the 8 wins from the 2005 season.

If there was a season in which to "vacate" the wins, 2005 was the one. The 2005 Sooners were very ordinary. They lost to TCU, were pounded by UCLA and Texas, and lost to Texas Tech due to some questionable officiating. That team didn't sniff a conference championship, much less a national championship. Still, I don't like the idea of giving up the 8 wins. OU President David Boren is right to appeal the sanctions, and to take up for his coach's record.

It could have been worse. The NCAA no longer bans schools from TV, as conferences and opponents are also penalized. However, they could have lost more scholarships and been banned from post-season. A loss of 5-10 scholarships per year over the course of two or three years would be devastating.

I'm waiting with baited breath for the NCAA's punishment of USC regarding the Reggie Bush house imbroglio. For some reason, I don't expect anything huge to come down real soon on that front.

OU will be fine.

In a future post, I'll go off on the NCAA's selective enforcement procedures.

UUOTD-Turning Back The Clock A Little More

In 1994 and 1995, the Iowa Hawkeyes wore these jerseys with horizontal stripes on the shoulders. I don't know that they were trying to prove. I guess they thought the stripes looked like wings. They also had the Tiger Hawk logo on the front of the jersey, with the word "Hawkeyes". This uniform was repulsive. Though these uniforms are long gone, they are still worthy of mention. Yuck. Tim Dwight is shown above in the road version of the jersey. The home black version was even worse.

When Kirk Ferentz took the head coaching job in 1999, the Hawkeyes reverted back to their simple black, gold, and white uniforms they wore in the 80's and early 90's. It was a smart move.

Goofy stuff on the shoulder pads should not be tolerated.

Getting Close To One Another

This is a classic ABC Sports clip from last season's game in College Station between the Fightin' Texas Aggies and Texas Tech.

The Ags had taken a late lead, and were kicking the ball off to the Red Raiders. This is a clip of some members of the Corps of Cadets.

Texas A&M has a lot of funky traditions relating to the Corps. One of them is for the Corps members to demonstrate their empathy, commitment, and willingness to endure pain, by choosing to "man up", or to stand in a line and grab themselves between the legs.

I'm ok with some Aggie traditions, but this one is a little too much for me.

For what it's worth, Tech went on to win the game.

From AJ In Omaha: 50 Reasons to Hate the Huskers

This has been floating around the Internet on message boards of various Big 12 schools. This is the creation of a Missouri Tiger fan in Omaha, who is upset, mad, and bitter due to Husker overkill in the state of Nebraska. I can only imagine what it is like to be a non-Husker in Omaha. Still, I wouldn't get so bitter about it.

This posting does not reflect the editorial position or language preferences of this blog. This blog celebrates the greatness that was once the OU-Nebraska rivalry.

Here it is, from AJ in Omaha, Behind Enemy Lines:

The College World Series is over. Football is coming. To celebrate, I give to you 50 of my favorite 853,657 reasons to hate the Huskers. Remember kids, these are in no particular order and collected in a non-scientific manner.

Enjoy

==========================================

50 - Jim Rose. "The old Grey lady on 10th street is truly rocking now". Phrases like this and referring to football helmets as "Gleaming white bonnets of battle" makes me want to rip my ears off.

49 - Lil Red. He was stupid and lame before all puffy mascots were stupid and lame. 'Oh look at me, I'm upside down'. Who cares. He looks like the bastard step child of Matt Davison and Colonel Sanders

48 - If not for Penn State, the most visually unpleasing uniforms this side of Pop Warner. And no, calling it "Scarlett and Cream" instead of "Red and White" makes you sound like you flunked pre-school.

47 - Post 1997, Nebraska baseball sports a sold out stadium of 5,000 plus per game. Prior to that, average attendance during Darren Erstad's senior year? 48.

46 - "Greatest Fans in College Football"'s number one celebrity ambassador? Larry the Cable Guy.

45 - "Lawrence needs football in his life"

44 - Things like this:

43 - Lyle Bremser's ancient radio calls of "Man, woman and child did that put them in the aisles!" That's fine if it made any damn sense at all. How could they all fit in the isles? (Especially now with the weight problem in America) Whacked out old bastard.

42 - Lee Barfknecht travels to "neutral" Big 12 football games to show wide-ranging "conference coverage" from the Omaha World Herald. Lee uses that print space to bash the other 11 schools for not being as good as Nebraska. Same writer still gets death threats from Husker fans for voting Michigan #1 in the 1997 AP poll.

41- Fairbury Franks (Official hot dog of NU athletics for decades) is actually made with ground up puppies and kittens.

40- 1971 to 2004: Most important aspect of Husker football is world-class strength and conditioning program, as well as exemplary walk on program. 2004-present: Both are for losers, as Rivals stars outweigh everything short of having the ability stand upright.

39 - So much love for their team, they must share it with other teams when their own sucks. (ie - Creighton 12th in the country in basketball attendance in 2007)

38 - Johnny Rogers pimping Lil Smokies 742 times a day on Omaha television.

37 - Giant foam cornhead-hat...cool in any language.

36 - While 62 Husker athletes are heralded as Academic All-Americans on the side of Memorial Stadium, public completely unaware of mural below south stadium that celebrates the nearly 4 dozen individuals arrested from the Husker football team since 1993.

35 - Random and bizarre "rivalries" with out of conference teams (veiled with jealousy and contempt). Calling Florida State a football "rival" is stupid when you realize that Iowa State has beaten NU more times in the past 15 years.

34 - College volleyball. Not cool. Not exciting. Not ever....no matter how many people you have who claim to be "fans". 3 million Iowans love college wrestling more than breathing...that doesn't make it enjoyable to watch.

33 - 1992 to present, Husker fan mocks Kansas State's schedule by playing the likes of Western Kentucky and Illinois State. Ironically, in 2005, Maine is suddenly a 1AA power that "can surprise you by playing scrappy and hard-nosed".

32 - Naming your dog, "Osborne". (Don't laugh..I know two different people who did that)

31 - 2004 "John Blake is the greatest recruiter in college football." In 2007 "John Blake really didn't make that big of a difference"

30 - Bo Pelini..if even for only a couple of seasons. (a jackass is a jackass is a jackass)

29 - NU fans continuously calling players and RECRUITS by their first names. It's not "Marlon". It's not "Cally". it's not "Blaine". It's Lucky, Callahan and Gabbert, and if they were in any other line of work, they wouldn't' give you the time of day because you're a complete douchebag. Stop pretending your best buds by the language you use. Idiots.

28 - Listing National Title game date on all pocket schedules and posters.

27 - Film breakdown every Tuesday during the season at a small church in south Omaha is considered cool and the place to be. Updates and recaps are distributed like presidential mandates throughout Husker cyberspace.

26 - Steve Pederson (Yeah, like I can pick out ONE thing to list here)

25 - Only in Nebraska can somebody think this is cool.

YouTube: I Love Nebraska (hokey country song)

24 - Channel 6's Dave Weber actually CRIED on live television when the Huskers made their first College World Series.

23 - "Sal is dead..Go Big Red!" oozes class to this day.

22 - Husker fans claim the world is out to get them, yet somehow lose sight of this when a last second pass is kicked from 2 yards out, over the heads of two defenders and into the arms of a pasty-white wide-receiver, who was 12 yards away from where he was supposed to be.

21 - Stealing an elderly Husker fan's hat at a Penn State game: NOT COOL because the poor soul did absolutely nothing to deserve the inhumane treatment for doing nothing but attending a game with his favorite team. Punching a Missouri fan: COOL because the little bastard deserved it.

20 - Heisman trophy winners who sign and quit during their first pre-season game to live the life of a professional poster signer back home.

19 - Throat slash

18 - "F*ckin Hillbillies"

17 - Husker fans root for Tennis Player Andy Roddick because he's an admitted Husker fan. (Although born in Omaha and a resident for 4+ years, the family got the hell out of dodge and moved to Florida)

16 - Being charged with assaulting Miss Nebraska in a bar is fine and dandy if you can play the D-line.

15 - Steroid scandals with smoking gun-type evidence conveniently pushed under the rug by Lincoln authorities in 2005. Ironically, less than 10 articles appear in the Omaha World Herald, despite the fact that a convicted pusher lived with several Husker football players.

14 - Nebraska officials praise 55,000 attending NU spring game in April as "unprecedented". Meanwhile, nothing is mentioned of the Alabama spring game that drew nearly 40,000 more.

13 - Scott Frost whining his way to the 1997 (1/2) National Title.

12 - Kirk Herbstreit's comments in December that the 1995 Huskers were not the greatest college team of all time, nearly cause rioting in several eastern Nebraska communities.

11 - Tom Osborne's longstanding campaign against porn.

10 - Striped turf is not cool. Oregon can get away with it. You can't.

9 - Mascot, overalls, corn. Enough said. The only character on earth proven more frightening than the Burger King Mascot.

8 - "That was the most out of control situation I've ever seen in college athletics" - Steve Pederson describing the scene in Missouri as fans rushed the filed celebrating the first win over NU in 24 years. Ironically, only 6 months prior to saying, "This is what it's all about" when NU fans stormed the court in Lincoln in a win over Kansas.

7 - Stealing the Chicago Bulls' tradition of following the players out of the locker room to the beat of the Alan Parson's project, and bastardizing it as your own to the squeals of your own fans isn't cool.

6 - Traveling 50,000 strong to road games does not make you "great fans". It means driving 5 hours is more enjoyable than going to Oakview Mall...which is pretty much the only thing to do in Nebraska..other than go to the zoo for the 86,356th time.

5 - Two words: Trev Alberts

4 - Starting the wave while a visiting player lies temporarily paralyzed on the turf = Classiest fans in sports. Drawing a cartoon about it mocking the situation by poking fun at the opposing coach's weight? Priceless.

3 - Omaha World Herald columnist Tom Shatel's infamous "The Nebraska athletic department would be foolish to fire Frank Solich", just days before claiming "Sorry..I meant to say Frank has to go" the morning after his firing. Apparently the fear of covering Omaha Beef football while his NU press pass is suspended was a bit too much for Tom to keep his journalistic integrity.

2 - Calling Osborne's decision to go for two in 1984, "gutsy", when it fact it was quite possibly the stupidest decision on earth to throw a roll out pass when you average 15 yards per rush.

1 - "The Media is out to get us" (Not to be outdone by my new favorite, "The Lincoln police department is out to get us")
Let Husker bashing season begin.

UUOTD-Turn Back The Clock (A Little)

Today's installment of Ugly Uniform of the Day goes back to 1999. Therefore, we are turning the clock back just a little.

BYU, for years, had a classic look. They wore royal blue jerseys, with white pants and white helmets with a "Y" inside a blue circle. Someone at Nike grabbed the BYU people and told them that they had a really "cool" design for them to wear.

So, the Y changed the shade of blue from royal blue to navy blue, and rolled out this awful monstrosity of a uniform. It has been referred to as the "bib" uniform, because the home edition is navy, with a big white circle on the front containing the number, resembling a bib. It was so bad that the NCAA later passed a regulation requiring the numbers on the front of the jersey to match the numbers on the back.

This was a bad, bad look. Why didn't they just put "I Love My Daddy", or Mickey Mouse, or a similar bib design on the front?

BYU threw out the bib uniform, but kept the rest of the uniform until two years ago, when new coach Bronco Mendenhall brought back the old uniform, only with navy blue as the color. It was not a moment too soon.

Ugly Uniform of the Day

Just as I was running out of ideas for ugly uniforms, ESPN2 came to my rescue tonight. I was flipping channels, and there was an Arena Football game on The Deuce. The professional football team representing Los Angeles was in action tonight. By the way, it wasn't the Rams or the Raiders. The LA Avengers were representing the City of Angels at Staples Center.

I saw these things, and I had to find a picture. They don't wear these very often, but tonight is a playoff game for them, so I guess they are special uniforms.

This is a putrid combination. This makes the Tennessee Titans' baby blues look good. What makes this stand out isn't the sponsors' logos on the shoulder, or the two different shades of blue on the jersey. The logos do make them look European, but the Arena League needs the money. The red helmets make this look ugly as sin. They do not go with this look at all. The red helmets ruin an already bad look.

The Avengers, from what I can tell by looking at their website, normally wear red at home. Those looked more like normal Arena League uniforms. This combination of red and baby blue is just awful. They weren't dressed to avenge, but were dressed to offend. Who knows: a team called the Los Angeles Offenders might go over well in SoCal.

For what it's worth, the Avengers were beating the Utah team to a pulp, when I last checked.

Maybe they'll have to play a road game in the playoffs and wear white. This red and baby blue look has got to go. Ugh!

Turning Over A New League

Yesterday, the NFL announced that, after $30 million per year in losses, NFL Europa is folding. I had no idea until about three weeks ago that the league formerly known as the World League of American Football and NFL Europe was now known as NFL Europa. But, no more. The league ended with five teams in Germany and a team in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. They developed a small fan base, but not one that would be mistaken for that of European soccer. So, the great experiment with overseas American football moves to the import of regular season NFL games, beginning this fall in London with a game between the Miami Dolphins and the New York Giants.

But, there is a new league on the way. And, it's not the Mark Cuban league. This is the All-American Football League. The league is conducting an open tryout on July 3 at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando. They plan to begin play in the spring of 2008.

The league is led by a group of former college athletic administrators, including former NCAA executive director Cedric Dempsey. They plan to play at least part of their games on college campuses. The league is targeting markets where college football is king. They already have stadium deals in Birmingham, AL, and Gainesville, FL. The league is planning to push a version of college alumni football. These won't be teams made up of purely alumni of one school (for example, Florida). However, the league is attempting to create a college atmosphere, and to appeal to fans of college football by giving college players the chance to play in the backyard of their alma mater. They are not going to attempt to pretend to be like the NFL, but to be a professional version of college football.

One interesting component: the league is requiring its players to have four-year degrees. This is to be expected from a league run by former college administrators.

There are a lot of guys that were good Division I-A players, that are a step too slow or a couple of inches too short for the NFL. These guys would be good prospects for the AAFL. It won't be hard to find players for this league.

If they can come reasonably close to replicating college football, this league has a chance. I'd love to see it get off the ground.

Football Magazine Season

Football season now ends in February. A lot of us need a football fix that only a magazine can bring. Therefore, football season previews now appear on newsstands as early as the third week of May. We now have a full-blown football magazine season, which lasts almost as long as football season itself.

Most magazines regionalize themselves, at least with the cover. A national magazine may have Texas players on the cover in Texas, and have USC players on the cover of the same magazine in California, for example. There are also magazines (Lindy's, Athlon, etc.) that publish regional editions, in addition to their national edition. If you want to spring for it, you can also order all their regional editions from their websites. With the advent of the Internet, there's no need to buy eight magazines at once.

I look for magazines on the shelves beginning in May, but rarely buy one until June. I don't want to buy a magazine merely because it's first on the shelf (Lindy's and Athlon are out). I want quality and quantity, and I don't want something rushed to press just to be first on the shelves.

Every year, I make sure to buy Dave Campbell's Texas Football. It is sold on newsstands only in Texas (could they sell many of them anywhere else?). DCTF gives good previews of all Big XII South teams and other Texas major college teams. It gives a couple of pages of lip service to the Big XII North, and a couple of pages to national college football. There are also sections devoted to small colleges and the two Texas NFL teams. The magazine is best known, though, for its exhaustive preview of high school football, with previews of every school, public and private, 11-man and six-man. There are over 1100 football-playing schools in Texas, and DCTF touches all of them.

Tonight, for the first time, I picked up Phil Steele's College Football Preview. This is a football geek's dream. It contains 328 pages of full-color, small-print information. It is full of more statistics and point spreads than anyone could ever use. The magazine is short on aesthetics, but is chock full of information. And, it doesn't just cater to gamblers, but appeals to fans as well. I plan to put it to good use.

I love football magazine season. I'm ready for the action on the field, though.

Big XII Rumblings, Part 4

Continuing the speculation on Big 12 membership, we now turn to the Big XII South Division.

Once again, I'm not advocating the breakup of the Big 12. These schools are better off with each other than without. But, each school has to explore its own options, in case the Big 12 heads for disaster.

Here are my thoughts on the Texas and Oklahoma schools:

Baylor
2006 Average Football Attendance: 37,080
TV Market: Waco/Temple/Bryan (95) Significant alumni presence in Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, and San Antonio.
Where could they go? Nowhere they would want to go willingly.
What do they have to offer? Honestly? Nothing. They have been competitive in non-revenue sports, including a national championship in women’s basketball in 2005. But, the revenue sports of football and men’s basketball drive the bus.
What’s the holdup? None. This is a very fortunate school. If Baylor alum Ann Richards had not been governor, and Baylor Law alum Bob Bullock had not have been lieutenant governor at the time of the breakup of the old Southwest Conference, Baylor would have most likely been out in the cold during the conference shuffle of the 90’s, and would now be playing football games against Rice before crowds of maybe 10,000. Political pull is all that got Baylor into the conference in the first place. Waco as a market is nothing to write home about, and the school is not nearly as large as its state school brethren. Baylor is glad and lucky to be in the Big 12.

Oklahoma
2006 Average Football Attendance: 84,561
TV Market: Oklahoma City (45) (also brings Tulsa)
Where could they go? SEC
What do they have to offer? One of the top five football programs in the history of college football, now generating more money than ever. Football money drives the success of the rest of the athletic department. OU is a football-crazy school, just like most of the SEC.
What’s the holdup? OU is a charter member of the Southwest Conference, the Big Six/Seven/Eight, and the Big 12. They’ll think twice before they jump. Also, the Oklahoma legislature will keep them from moving unless such a move also benefits Oklahoma State. Finally, as good as OU’s football program is, Oklahoma is still not that big of a state, with only 3 ½ million people, and the #45 and #61 TV markets. Still, they would fit very well with the SEC, if forced to make a move there.

Oklahoma State
2006 Average Football Attendance: 40,954
TV Market: Oklahoma City (45) (also brings Tulsa)
Where could they go? Nowhere, unless the Oklahoma legislature intervenes
What do they have to offer? Nothing, except for T. Boone Pickens’ $165 million donation to improve the stadium and other facilities.
What’s the holdup? Remote location, small state, small markets. They offer nothing Oklahoma doesn’t already offer, without the advantages of a nationally recognized football program. Praying the Big 12 stays together.

Texas
2006 Average Football Attendance: 88,505
TV Market: Austin (52) (also brings the entire state of Texas, including Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, and San Antonio)
Where could they go? Anywhere they want, except independent status. Were unofficially offered membership in the Pac-10 in the 90’s. The SEC and Big 10 would love to have them, also.
What do they have to offer? Everything. Third-largest enrollment in the nation, huge alumni base, more money than Fort Knox. Largest school in second-largest state in the U.S. Exceptional all-around athletic program. Strong academic reputation.
What’s the holdup? They control the Big 12 politically, just as they did the SWC before it. They’re the biggest and baddest out there, and they throw their weight around accordingly. They wouldn’t be able to carry as much weight in another conference, and everyone knows that.

Texas A&M
2006 Average Football Attendance: 80,532
TV Market: Waco/Temple/Bryan (95) (also brings the entire state of Texas, including Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, and San Antonio)
Where could they go? The SEC would love them, and almost had them when the SWC broke up.
What do they have to offer? Almost as much as UT. Large enrollment, large alumni base, almost as much money as UT. The Ags have also built a strong all-around athletic program, and have scoreboard on Texas this past school year in most sports. Strong academic reputation.
What’s the holdup? Political pressure from the Texas Legislature sent them into the Big 12, and it will keep them there, unless UT wants to make a move.

Texas Tech
2006 Average Football Attendance: 50,874
TV Market: Lubbock (147) (also brings west Texas markets of Amarillo, Abilene, Midland/Odessa, Wichita Falls, and a significant presence in Dallas-Fort Worth)
Where could they go? Nowhere they would want to go willingly.
What do they have to offer? If West Texas were its own state, Tech would be its university. But, West Texas is sparsely populated, and is not its own state. Significantly improved facilities, and, for now, the winningest coach in college basketball history.
What’s the holdup? Geography, and limited perceived academic reputation. Third banana in state of Texas, behind UT and A&M. Large institution, but unable to deliver the entire state of Texas to a conference by itself. Praying the Big 12 stays together.

Big XII Rumblings, Part 3

The Big XII is a young conference, moving into its twelfth year. It does not have the tradition of conferences such as the Big Ten or SEC. Eight of the schools were together in the Big Eight, while the four Texas schools were together in the Southwest Conference. It was a marriage of convenience and survival, and has been rocky at times.

Issues such as revenue sharing raise their ugly head, and the schools have to consider their options, if they are not happy with the direction of the conference. This blog post is purely speculation. I’m just a guy in Texas with a computer and an internet connection. I have no inside information, just analysis.

I will preface this with two statements: 1) As an OU fan, I miss the days of the old Big 8. Native Texans miss the Southwest Conference. But, those days aren’t coming back. The two sides need each other. Which leads to my second statement: 2) Any talk of a conference breakup is preposterous. These schools are better off together than apart.

However, it is fun to speculate. Each school has something to offer. Some have more to offer than others. Where could they go? Would they go?

In this, the 21st century, conference affiliation is determined by the ability to generate revenue, and institutional fit.

The two biggest indicators of revenue-generating ability are football attendance (ticket sales), and TV market size (to add value to TV contracts). I will keep those in mind as I evaluate the possibilities for each school.

Institutional fit describes similarity with other institutions. The Big Ten is both an athletic conference and an academic consortium, made up of large flagship state universities and Northwestern, the lone private school. The conference values perceived academic reputation as much as they do butts in seats for football games. The Pac-10 has similar institutional values, with USC and Stanford serving as the lone private schools. The SEC, on the other hand, values academics, but does not have the culture of academic elitism. It is made up of Southern state flagship schools and Vanderbilt, the most prestigious private school in the South.

Attendance figures are taken from the NCAA website. My first analysis will be of Big XII North schools. The South will be discussed in a later post.

Pros and cons for each member:

Colorado
2006 Average Football Attendance: 46,048
TV Market: Denver (18)
Where could they go? Pac-10
What do they have to offer? Similar culture to western schools. Could partner with Utah to make the Pac-10 a 12-team conference, opening up the possibility of a football championship game. Have already unofficially been offered membership in the 90’s.
What’s the holdup? Competes with four major professional sports franchises in Denver market. Fan base is not as large as size of school or state would suggest. Facilities are behind the rest of their current conference-example: no indoor practice facility for football.

Iowa State
2006 Average Football Attendance: 46,171
TV Market: Des Moines (73) (also offers Cedar Rapids, Sioux City, and Omaha markets)
Where could they go? Big Ten (based on geography)
What do they have to offer? Membership in prestigious Association of American Universities (AAU), as all other Big Ten schools are. Proximity to Iowa and Minnesota.
What’s the holdup? Smallest athletic budget in Big XII, would also have smallest budget in Big Ten. Does not add TV markets, as Iowa already brings Iowa TV markets to the Big Ten, though all of those markets are small.

Kansas
2006 Average Football Attendance: 44,137
TV Market: Kansas City (31) (also offers Wichita and Topeka markets)
Where could they go? Big Ten (only as a package deal with Missouri and/or Nebraska)
What do they have to offer? Traditionally strong men’s basketball program, in top 5 all time. Key part of Kansas City TV market. School is a member of AAU-important to Big Ten.
What’s the holdup? The Big Ten would look at four or five other schools before looking at KU. Kansas legislature would frown on any deal that would not also benefit Kansas State. Traditionally mediocre football program.

Kansas State
2006 Average Football Attendance: 46,693
TV Market: Topeka (138) (also offers Kansas City and Wichita markets)
Where could they go? Nowhere, really.
What to they have to offer? Recently strong football program.
What’s the holdup? Everything. Remote location, smallest state with two BCS programs, small TV markets. In tough position, having too large a program for a smaller conference, but having the second-smallest budget in the Big XII.

Missouri
2006 Average Football Attendance: 55,918
TV Market: Columbia-Jefferson City (139) (also offers St. Louis, Kansas City, Springfield, Joplin, and Cape Girardeau)
Where could they go? Big Ten
What do they have to offer? Location bordering Illinois and Iowa. St. Louis (21st) and Kansas City (31st) TV markets. Member of AAU, like Big Ten schools.
What’s the holdup? The Big Ten is waiting on Notre Dame. If they decide to expand without Notre Dame, Mizzou is a leading candidate. But, Mizzou is really an underachiever, as the only Division I-A school in a state with over 5 million people.

Nebraska
2006 Average Football Attendance: 85,044
TV Market: Lincoln (104) (also offers Omaha, Sioux City, and the rest of Nebraska)
Where could they go? Big Ten
What do they have to offer? Historical Top 10 football program, with fanatical following and national recognition. Money generated by football supports strong all-around athletic program. Borders Big Ten state of Iowa. Member of AAU.
What’s the holdup? Big Ten has a line of more convenient options. However, Nebraska brings a lot to the table, and is considering options in case they become unhappy with Big XII revenue sharing/generation.

The Taco Bowl

In the good old days of the Big 8 Conference, Oklahoma and Nebraska normally met yearly at the end of the season for the conference championship, and a trip to the Orange Bowl in Miami. 1980 was no exception. The two teams met in Lincoln, Nebraska, with the winner going to the Orange Bowl. The Sun Bowl in El Paso cut a deal with the two teams to take the loser.

Nebraska athletic director and ex-football coach Bob Devaney taped a weekly television show on Friday nights at a Lincoln TV station. He was taping the show at the same time that OU coach Barry Switzer was doing a live interview at the station for the 10:00 news on Channel 4 in Oklahoma City. Devaney had a pineapple on stage, as a consolation prize for Switzer and his imminent trip to El Paso. Switzer decided to play a trick. He sent someone to a nearby Mexican restaurant to pick up a sack of tacos. While Devaney was taping his show, Switzer walked onto the set, handed him the sack of tacos, and wished him well on his upcoming trip to El Paso.

The Sooners won the next day, earning a Big 8 championship and a trip to Miami. The Huskers got to spend the holidays in the west Texas town of El Paso.

This was great stuff when I watched it on the 10:00 news with my parents 27 years ago, and it's good stuff now. Enjoy...

(special thanks to Jim's Oklahoma Sports Page, and YouTube)

Ugly Uniform of the Day

UUOTD is back!

I saw this during this week's College World Series. Or, the Men's College World Series, as the NCAA now refers to it. UC-Irvine made their first appearance in the CWS, ending in a loss to defending champion Oregon State. Their nickname is the Anteaters.

These uniforms aren't that bad, in and of themselves.

But, putting the short form of the name, "Eaters", on the jersey allows for all kinds of connotations. If one didn't know they were the Anteaters, the person would ask all kinds of questions. What do they eat? Are they overeaters? Are they proud to eat?

UC-Irvine could solve this issue by putting Anteaters on the jersey, instead of "Eaters".

At least they're not the Boogereaters.

Big XII Rumblings, Part 2

As I wrote earlier, the Big 12 finds itself in a bit of conflict over revenue sharing. The high-revenue schools, such as Texas, Oklahoma, Nebraska, and Texas A&M see no problem with the status quo, where half of football and non-conference basketball television money are distributed to the schools based on appearances. Up until now, it’s been an issue, but not a deal-breaker. A school such as Texas is bringing in about $1.5 million more per year under this setup, than they would if all revenues were shared equally. With the advent of the new, more lucrative, TV contract, this becomes more of an issue with the Kansas States of the world.

As I mentioned earlier, the new commissioner will have to broker a deal that will please everyone. In a perfect world, Texas, OU, and Nebraska shouldn’t have to give up revenue they have earned from having high-profile football programs. At the same time, it would cost one of these schools more money to switch conferences than they would give up through equal revenue sharing. Equal revenue sharing helps build the conference by treating all members equally, instead of as Texas, Oklahoma and Friends. It hasn’t hurt Ohio State and Michigan to help Northwestern. Ohio State now has an athletic budget of over $100,000,000. I have read that Northwestern is getting more from the new Big Ten TV deal than Notre Dame will from their exclusive deal with NBC. I don't know if that's true, but it’s pretty incredible for that to even be a possibility. By and large, the schools and alumni/population bases of the Big 12 are smaller than those of the Big Ten, therefore not commanding the same amount of money. Nonetheless, the schools of the Big 12 can work together toward solutions that benefit everyone.

There needs to be a major BCS conference in the middle of the country. Texas and OU need conference mates and true partners, not merely patsies to fill schedules in multiple sports. I'm not saying that the other ten schools are patsies in every sport. However, there is a big difference in revenue generated and spent. All-around athletic success tends to correlate with money for facilities, coaches, travel, etc. Here are some figures for athletic expenditures for 2006, from midmajority.com:

Texas: $83,600,248
Oklahoma: $64,322,580
Nebraska: $63,695,480
Texas A&M: $61,419,536
Texas Tech: $53,337,768
Kansas: $47,554,572
Colorado: $45,731,544
Missouri: $45,184,836
Oklahoma State: $44,061,812
Baylor: $36,228,960
Kansas State: $34,834,468
Iowa State: $32,541,236

I am as big of a free-market capitalist as there is out there. I hate socialism. But, when it comes to sports leagues, the NFL has proven that revenue sharing benefits everyone. In the NFL, what helps Green Bay eventually helps New York. New York doesn’t benefit from a weak franchise in Green Bay.

A league is no stronger than its weakest link.

To come: Options for conference members, in case of a breakup.

Big XII Rumblings, Part I

Last week, as I was on blogging sabbatical, the Big XII was rocked (well, that’s a strong word) by the resignation of commissioner Kevin Weiberg. Weiberg is leaving the Big 12 after 8 ½ years for a newly created position with the Big Ten Network.

As a fan of the University of Oklahoma, I am glad to see this happen. OU was ill-served by the conference office on three occasions in the last two years: the football officiating debacle at Texas Tech in 2005, the highway robbery in football at Oregon last season, and the elbowing incident involving Longar Longar in a basketball game at Texas Tech. In each case, the interests of OU were not defended, forcing the OU administration to defend itself. Furthermore, the commissioner allowed Tech coach Bob Knight to bully him into suspending Longar for two games as a result of an unintentional elbow, ignoring the pleas of the OU administration.

The conference, however, faces bigger problems. There is unrest in the league regarding revenue sharing. Currently, the league splits all non-television revenue equally. Conference members also split half of all television revenue equally. The other half of television revenue is placed in an “appearance pool”. This money is distributed based on football TV appearances and non-conference national TV appearances in basketball. This benefits schools like Texas, Oklahoma, and Nebraska (football), as well as Kansas (basketball). The more powerful programs earn up to $1-1/2 million more per year than the less-exposed schools under this plan.

Lesser-exposed members would like to see the Big XII follow the lead of the Big Ten and ACC, and share all revenue equally. This idea goes over like a lead balloon at places such as the University of Nebraska, who is considering the option of leaving the conference if they lose money in any revenue-restructuring deal. Currently, the conference requires 9 of the 12 schools to vote in favor of rewriting the conference constitution. As it stands now, 8 of the schools would be in favor of revenue sharing. Texas, Oklahoma, Nebraska, and Texas A&M are in favor of the status quo. Rumor is that A&M may be on the fence, and could change their position.

The Big XII is in an unenviable position. There are really only three programs that can draw a national audience, or large numbers of casual fans, for a television appearance against any random opponent. This explains why OU will play North Texas on national cable television in September, and why Texas can play Louisiana-Lafayette on national cable television. Therefore, Texas, OU, and Nebraska can bring in more money for TV appearances.

The lesser-exposed members argue that revenue sharing would make for a greater spirit of cooperation in the conference, resulting in more exposure and money for everyone involved. They point to the Big Ten and their new television deal as an example. The early NFL would be another example, as franchises such as New York and Cleveland gave up lucrative local TV deals in the 60’s so the league could share revenues from their national TV deal with CBS. The NFL mushroomed into the most valuable television property in the U.S.

OU, Texas, and Nebraska can also make the argument that they should get to keep the money they have earned, by having high-powered football programs that fans will watch on TV.

The next commissioner will have to broker a solution to this dilemma. The conference cannot afford to disintegrate. If the conference were to break up, the lesser-exposed schools would suffer the most.

At this point, I think rumors of a Big 12 breakup are premature and preposterous. But, anything can happen. In a future post, I will post possible scenarios for conference members.

Rivals Yahoo!

I wrote earlier of the imminent merger between Fox corporate siblings Scout.com and Myspace.com. Today brings news of the purchase of Rivals.com by Yahoo!.

I'm not the biggest fan of Rivals. I don't subscribe to their recruiting service, and I find most of their message boards hard to navigate. For their sake, hopefully Yahoo will improve the service.

In the details of the article is the following tidbit:

News Corp., a media empire controlled by Rupert Murdoch, reportedly has even offered to swap MySpace.com _ the most trafficked social networking site _ in exchange for a 25 percent stake in Yahoo. If it were consummated, the transaction would be valued at more than $10 billion, based on Yahoo's current market value.

So, if Fox owns MySpace and Scout, merge them together, then sell MySpace to Yahoo, it would combine both Scout and Rivals with MySpace. That can't be good for the sports fan.

I think I'll go check my MySpace page.

Silver Boot, Part 2

It should be an interesting series this weekend at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. The mediocre Houston Astros visit the Temple for a three-game series with the sorry Texas Rangers.

My Rangers have the worst record in the American League. Until recently, they had the worst record in baseball, before the Cincinnati Reds assumed rock bottom.

But, throw the records out, because the Silver Boot is on the line. The Rangers won last month's series in Houston, 2 games to 1, and have an 11-run lead on the Astros, thanks to a 14-1 win in the teams' last meeting. The Astros need a sweep in Arlington, or at least two wins including a one-sided thrashing, to put a trophy on owner Drayton McLane's shelf.

Tom Hicks may stink as an owner, but he has a good chance for one trophy this year. How bad would it be for the Astros, if they lost this trophy to a team on track to lose 100 games?

At least Sammy Sosa has 600 career home runs. Even if he was on the juice, he probably would have still hit 500 without performance-enhancing supplements. Good for Sammy.

Drydock

It's summer. It's offseason. I'm busy at work. I'm busy at home. My creative juices are gone. I'm tired.

I'm taking a one-week sabbatical from blogging. That is, unless something catches my eye, and I feel like blogging about it.

After then, the Spurs will have a fourth championship, there'll be more ugly uniforms, more message boards, and maybe even some football talk. After all, NFL training camps start next month! Don't forget to sign up for Yahoo Fantasy Football! Leagues are starting now.

Until then, I'm in drydock. Best to all in blogland....