When has it ever been about anything else?You've been FOLLOWING realignment, right?
Seriously...none of use know exactly where the negotiations stand, or where they broke down. But I'll tell you where you're NOT going to get the straight scoop: Orangebloods.
From the sources who follow this closely (and don't have DeLoss Dodds' hand up their ***) Mizzou wants:
1. A 13+ year rights deal (TX has fallen back to 6 yrs.)
2. Equal revenue sharing for Tiers 1-3 (TX has agreed to 1-2)
3. No HS coverage on regional networks (TX may or may not have agreed to it...we need someone other than Chip to confirm)
Are these positions outlandish? Too much to ask for? Then how come every other major conference has something like this already? (or in the case of the SEC, soon will)
If we got all of these, there's a (slim) possibility we could stay. I'd prefer we don't - because I don't trust Texas to be an honest partner in all of this, and to stay within the spirit of the rules. It's not really fear, it's distrust. I don't know how you "fix" that.
It's called a "contract". They are these legally binding documents that force you to do what you say you're going to do, or face penalty in court. Maybe they don't have them in Missouri yet.
And I think the 13 year grant of rights is unheard of. The Big 12 is breaking new ground even with the 6 year grant of rights. I don't think any league save maybe the Big 10 had those, but I'm not 100% on that.