...and without Texas, the Big 12/8 is no better than the Big East. People need to realize that Texas is an asset to everyone's revenue in the Big 12. Without them, we probably dont have a new scoreboard, a football facility being constructed, etc. Everyone in this conference has lived off the brand Texas has brought for the past 12 years, and now all the sudden they are sick of Texas. I can see the likes of aTm and OU being upset with the LHN, because they acctually compete for the recruits that Texas is trageting, but the remaining schools rarley, if at all, compete with them for recruits, and those other schools are banking from Texas. ISU knows their role and has not barked up a storm about this. Schools like Mizzou feel some sort of entitlement here, and I dont get why.[/QUOTE]
With all of the similarities between our schools (Midwestern land grant institutions, AAU status, similar athletic profiles, etc.), I think this statement reflects the most profound difference between ISU and Mizzou.
Of course all conference members have benefitted from Texas...that's the whole POINT. Would U of I athletics be self-sufficient without the money from Michigan or Ohio? Of course not. Yet somehow, the B1G (and other conferences) manage to make it work. Everybody benefits. Sure, UM and tOSU could probably squeeze the smaller members for concessions like we've given Texas. They're just as dependent. But they DON'T. You have to ask yourself why?
Chuck's position is that ISU knows it's "place" in the the Big 12...be glad to have the access that UT provides to big games, recruiting, TV exposure, etc. Of all the Missouri fans I know, I can't imagine ANY of them talking this way. Maybe it's delusion, or an inferiority complex, or whatever. But we believe our "place" in this conference (or any other) is as an equal member - just as the more successful conferences operate.
Make no mistake, we're not blinded by success here. Take away the last 5 years or so, and our football record is probably similar to ISU's since about 1980. But we're not going to sit back at the "little kids' table" regardless of the resource advantages other schools have. We eat from a big round table (can you tell it's lunchtime?) or we don't eat at all.
Call it entitlement, call it asking for more than we're worth, or more than we deserve. But it's a common sentiment among Missouri fans. One that we're willing to ditch traditions and take our (potential) lumps in a tougher conference to support. I'll leave it to this group to figure out if ISU feels the same way.
