Letter from GG and JP

[Tornado man]

This!!
Yes we would make less revenue, but how does that revenue we have now help us when most of the Big 12 teams dwarf us from a financial aspect?

Think about some of our most successful sports - women's bb, volleyball, and wrestling. We operate all at huge losses, but continue to do so because of the PR and pride they bring to the university.
Do you really think, with less revenue than we have now, we will be able to fund those sports at current levels? The answer is no - we won't to able to afford to...

 

[LutherClone]

Alright. I have a few observations:

1) We have NO TRUE IDEA of if the Big Television is going to add Mizzou and Nebraska. NONE! Why add in both directions, thus spreading out the conference farther (greater travel times and costs) when they could add three relatively regional schools (Pitt, Rutgers, Syracuse). Plus that gives them a better TV market. Since that is the case, should sCUm, and the South (- the Baptists) deapart for the PAC-Whatever, we would still have KU, KSU, ISU, NU, BU and Mizzou. Make a charge for some near Big East Schools plus some others (BYU? Memphis?) and call it a day. Not the best situation, but not the worst.

2) This is contingent on Number 1 BUT should the North basically stick together, couldn't OU and OSU say F YOU to Texas & its army of *****s (read: Texas Technically and Overdrawn... err aTm, maybe even Baylor), leaving us with 8 or nine teams needing to replace only 3 or four? OU would have its own fifedom, Nebby would be more of a power, etc. I think this is more far fetched but it would be WONDERFUL to see the collectvie Big 8 give the finger to the SWC schools (I do pitty Baylor though, they get the shaft though because they're related). Texas could piece out with the army of *****s and BYU and Utah could join them.
Remember that the de facto conference speaker was OU's AD and uncle Pickens has argued for staying put.

It has about a 5% chance of happening but, please Jesus?

 

[clonedude]

That letter says everything we all need to know.... we have absolutely NO say in this matter.

Just as I said yesterday to all those saying that JP will find a way to save us... JP HAS NO SAY IN THIS MATTER WHATSOEVER!! And this letter only confirms that fact.

We are ISU. Do you really think Texas or Oklahoma cares about ISU? I don't. We will do whatever the big boys decide is our fate. If we are left out, then JP and GG will have to work some magic. Until then, there is nothing we can do.

 

[Rogue52]

So lets go to the MWC or the MAC

Really, do you think that the new conference wouldn't quickly become a BCS qualifier school? Oklahoma, Nebraska, Missouri, Colorado, Kansas, ISU. Come on, will the BCS really say no to all those schools?

I agree, but why should Missouri, Oklahoma, Nebraska, and Colorado, and OSU take the risk when they are being offered $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ by the Pac 10 and Big 10.

 

[hobbes]

The problem with the MWC is not a competition issue, it is a money issue. Even being at the bottom of the Big 12 barrell, we still make far more money now than any of the schools in the MWC (except TCU). The collapse of the Big 12 will cripple us financially.

The schools leaving the big 12 would still have to pay the 2 year penalty of 50% of their big 12 tv money. So if there are only four schools left, we could gain an additional 20-25 million in the two years that follows.

 

[agrabes]

I don't know, man, I see a bunch of people bundling up a bunch of hearsay and rumors and jumping to conclusions (I knew I should have made that Jump to Conclusions Mat), and I simply interpreted the four paragraphs emailed directly to us from our leadership.

As someone else said to you much earlier in the thread: what do you think they should or could be doing?

Where can we land that we will find ourselves in as good of a situation as we are in now? How can this end -not- badly for us other than the Big 12 sticking together or if by some stroke of luck the Big 10 or Pac 10 invite us?

What you are saying makes no sense. We are the runt of the litter no matter how you slice it. What -can- JP or Geoffrey do? They have two options: wait and hope, or preemptively take a step down to a lower level conference. Of those, they acknowledged that the first is the best but they also pointed out that if things fall apart they have their eyes open to try to get us the best deal possible.

 

[nileo]

Oh yeah --

If we end up in a mid-major conference:

Goodbye Rhoads.
Goodbye Mayor.
Goodbye Pollard.

Those guys will be fine. We'll be left chizzzzzed.

Pollard would be gone for sure. Hoiberg: I'm not so sure. I guess he could get another gig in the NBA, but as far as BB Head Coach, I doubt it. Rhoads, would be up in the air.

 

[acgclone]

Well, if you read that letter, let me point out a few things:

• "However, we also recognize that the long-term viability of the Big 12 Conference is not in our control – it is in the hands of just a few of our fellow member institutions."

That doesn't sound like they're doing much beyond wait and see.

And this statement:

• We are doing everything in our power to represent the best interests of Iowa State in these discussions

tells me that they're doing everything in their power to back the following statements made today.

• We believe the Big 12 Conference is the perfect fit for Iowa State University.
• We are committed to our membership in the Big 12, and we are optimistic that the conference will remain intact.

If you ask me, they're talking about their plans on the internet already. Or, their lack of plans.

I understand your frustration, but there is not much we can do until the dominoes start to fall.

We are WAY down on the pecking order. That is a fact. We will have to wait until the Pac 10/B10/SEC send out invites.

Then the next step is to see who accepts and how these conferences will shape up.

Until you know who the leftovers are, there isn't much to do, IMO, other than talk with likely candidates such as KU, Baylor, K-state, etc.

 

[nileo]

Why do you consider MO, NE, and CO to be sellouts? They are sick of the Big Texas Conference? They see better opportunities in the Big Televen and Pac 10 and are moving forward.

I totally agree. Heck, Texas has ran the Big 12 from the start and its getting worse. Why wouldn't those schools try and find a more balanced conference? No offense, but if JP and ISU were approached with this, they would definitely listen and they would have 6-12 months ago too. I don't blame CU, Neb, or Mizzou one bit.

 

[jbhtexas]

Alright. I have a few observations:
2) This is contingent on Number 1 BUT should the North basically stick together, couldn't OU and OSU say F YOU to Texas & its army of *****s (read: Texas Technically and Overdrawn... err aTm, maybe even Baylor), leaving us with 8 or nine teams needing to replace only 3 or four? OU would have its own fifedom, Nebby would be more of a power, etc. I think this is more far fetched but it would be WONDERFUL to see the collectvie Big 8 give the finger to the SWC schools
It has about a 5% chance of happening but, please Jesus?

Bob Stoop's success at OU is directly tied to his ability to pull kids out of Texas. That recruiting channel was not happening at OU prior to the Big 12 like it is now, and is due in significant part to OU being in a conference with Texas schools. If OU and the Texas schools part ways, the pipeline gets throttled down for OU (and for all the other North schools that recruit Texas), and gets opened up to whatever conference the Texas schools join. OSU is heavily recruiting Texas as well.

It's really hard for people outside of Texas to understand, but Texas kids who don't play for Texas schools seem to prefer to play in conferences where the Texas schools reside. The kids still get publicity. All the local papers and TV news media cover the Big 12 extensively on FB day.

Barring a near miracle, OU and OSU are not going to say "F YOU" to the Texas schools. And if they do, Stoops will be out of OU at the first opportunity to get to a conference where he can open wide his Texas pipeline.

 

[shawn_200m]

Think about some of our most successful sports - women's bb, volleyball, and wrestling. We operate all at huge losses, but continue to do so because of the PR and pride they bring to the university.
Do you really think, with less revenue than we have now, we will be able to fund those sports at current levels? The answer is no - we won't to able to afford to...

Excellent post and very accurate. All of those programs are hanging by a thread with the current income we get in the Big 12. If we take a huge hit by going to the MWC or some other lesser conference it will be very difficult if not impossible to continue to support those programs...that is why this is such a bad situation for us.

 

[alarson]

Bob Stoop's success at OU is directly tied to his ability to pull kids out of Texas. That recruiting channel was not happening at OU prior to the Big 12 like it is now, and is due in significant part to OU being in a conference with Texas schools. If OU and the Texas schools part ways, the pipeline gets throttled down for OU (and for all the other North schools that recruit Texas), and gets opened up to whatever conference the Texas schools join. OSU is heavily recruiting Texas as well.

It's really hard for people outside of Texas to understand, but Texas kids who don't play for Texas schools seem to prefer to play in conferences where the Texas schools reside. The kids still get publicity. All the local papers and TV news media cover the Big 12 extensively on FB day.

Barring a near miracle, OU and OSU are not going to say "F YOU" to the Texas schools. And if they do, Stoops will be out of OU at the first opportunity to get to a conference where he can open wide his Texas pipeline.

So if the texas schools go to the pac 10, does that open up their recruiting area to a lot more schools that *arent* frigid for half the year?

 

[LutherClone]

Bob Stoop's success at OU is directly tied to his ability to pull kids out of Texas. That recruiting channel was not happening at OU prior to the Big 12 like it is now, and is due in significant part to OU being in a conference with Texas schools. If OU and the Texas schools part ways, the pipeline gets throttled down for OU (and for all the other North schools that recruit Texas), and gets opened up to whatever conference the Texas schools join. OSU is heavily recruiting Texas as well.

It's really hard for people outside of Texas to understand, but Texas kids who don't play for Texas schools seem to prefer to play in conferences where the Texas schools reside. The kids still get publicity. All the local papers and TV news media cover the Big 12 extensively on FB day.

Barring a near miracle, OU and OSU are not going to say "F YOU" to the Texas schools. And if they do, Stoops will be out of OU at the first opportunity to get to a conference where he can open wide his Texas pipeline.

So where was OU recruiting from prior to the Big 12? I think that they are established enough that they could sell the kids on "we're a 4 hour drive"/ almost in TX

 

[jbhtexas]

So if the texas schools go to the pac 10, does that open up their recruiting area to a lot more schools that *arent* frigid for half the year?

Yes, it does, and you can bet that Mack Brown has brought this to the attention of DeLoss Dodd (Dodd likely didn't need it brought to his attention).

However, the Pac-10 states do have a considerable populations of thier own, unlike Iowa, Kansas, and Nebraska (and to some extent, Oklahoma and Missouri).

 

[Kyclone]

The schools leaving the big 12 would still have to pay the 2 year penalty of 50% of their big 12 tv money. So if there are only four schools left, we could gain an additional 20-25 million in the two years that follows.

No, wouldn't the 6 schools that would be leaving just vote in majority against the penalty before leaving.

 

[Tornado man]

Bob Stoop's success at OU is directly tied to his ability to pull kids out of Texas. That recruiting channel was not happening at OU prior to the Big 12 like it is now, and is due in significant part to OU being in a conference with Texas schools.

Switzer, Gibbs, and Blake all recruited tons of Texas kids. There was big heat on the coaches who followed Darrell Royal concerning why OU was luring the Texas studs away...

 

[tiberius]

Just wondering if KXNO is still expansion rhetoric 24/7, especially after this letter. I have radiotime instead of iheartradio fortunatlty so I can listen to 1700.

 

[jaretac]

I agree, but why should Missouri, Oklahoma, Nebraska, and Colorado, and OSU take the risk when they are being offered $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ by the Pac 10 and Big 10.

How much are they being offered? I've never heard a number. Keep in mind added travel cost are going to put a dent in anything that is offered. Pac 10 isn't that much richer than the Big 12- nothing like the SEC or the Big 10. Also keep in mind Good will. This is something that many people don't consider when they look at the $ aspect of a deal. I think if the option is on the table, Missouri is the only one I would be concerned about leaving. I think everyone else really wants to stay if given a reasonable alternative. Right now there is none, Texas is going to run this conference into non-existence just like they did their last.

 

[Incyte]

No, wouldn't the 6 schools that would be leaving just vote in majority against the penalty before leaving.

You need 9 votes to change the by-laws.

 

[acgclone]

How much are they being offered? I've never heard a number. Keep in mind added travel cost are going to put a dent in anything that is offered. Pac 10 isn't that much richer than the Big 12- nothing like the SEC or the Big 10. Also keep in mind Good will. This is something that many people don't consider when they look at the $ aspect of a deal. I think if the option is on the table, Missouri is the only one I would be concerned about leaving. I think everyone else really wants to stay if given a reasonable alternative. Right now there is none, Texas is going to run this conference into non-existence just like they did their last.

They would easily double what they are getting now, if not more. It would probably be in line with the B10 network, IMO.

You would have everything west of the Mississippi, including TX, CA, and the entire West Coast.