As Day 2 of “Crisis in the Southwest: Aggies Held Hostage” continues with no end on the horizon, Baylor has once again cranked up its propaganda machine in an attempt to either prevent Texas A&M from going to the SEC (highly unlikely) or make Oklahoma think twice about heading out west with a couple of Big 12 schools in tow (again, highly unlikely, unless that’s what OU and others wants).
With “Don’t Mess With Texas Football” still fresh on the mind, and as the threat of legal action looms, Baylor has fired off yet another shot in an initiative it describes as “taking steps to preserve Big 12 football and integrity in college athletics”. In this latest campaign, BU writes on the school’s website that, with a conference apocalypse looming, what’s being “lost in the midst of this mad scramble for the next lucrative TV contract is any sense of what’s best for the universities involved.” BU also takes great pains to note that something is missing from all of this expansion talk.
Absent from the discussion is any consideration of the welfare of the student-athletes, the best interests of the fans (who watch historic rivalries go by the wayside), the effect on the home states involved (which have much to lose in the shuffle), and the impact such hysteria can have on the very essence of the collegiate football experience.
Really, “the best interests of the fans… who watch historic rivalries go by the wayside” aren’t a consideration?
Between 1925 and 1995, Baylor played Rice, SMU and TCU every single season with two exceptions — during a time of war in 1943-44, and again in 1987-88 when the Mustangs did not field a team due to NCAA sanctions. Since 1995, Baylor has played Rice and SMU just twice and TCU three times. Why? BU was part of the SWC membership that bolted for the Big 12 after that conference officially launched in 1996. For some reason, those historic rivalries were willingly allowed to fall by the wayside by Baylor 16 years ago.
And again, really, “the effects on the home states involved… which have much to lose in the shuffle” are not a consideration? The SWC consisted of eight members in 1995: Baylor, Houston, Rice, SMU, Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech and TCU. Four of those schools left for the newly-created Big 12 the following year. The other four schools — Houston, Rice, SMU and TCU — were left to fend from themselves. That quartet of institutions also happen to be located in the great state of Texas. What’s that again, Baylor, about the effects on a state and how much they have to lose in a conference shuffle?
As we’ve stated before, it’s understandable why Baylor would do anything and everything to stave off the extinction of the Big 12; without that conference they’d be in BcS no man’s land and football purgatory – or the Big East. Just dial down the rhetoric, OK? It’s getting really, really hard to see through all the hypocrisy both past and present.
I know this is hard to understand for
SEC fanscollege football fans, but football is not the only thing universities care about.That is what I think Baylor is preaching here. Last time I checked they have solid academics, and some pretty good other athletic programs.
Also, last time I checked, Starr (President) and McCaw (AD) weren’t around in 1995.
Baylor, again, shows itself to be among the biggest hypocrites on the planet. Like most religous organizations, they’re mainly interested in the money. Baylor’s academic standing won’t suffer one bit if OU and the like head west. What they WILL suffer, however, is the loss of millions that have come their way due to OU, A&M, UT etc. Ever been to a game at Floyd Casey stadium when OU, UT or A&M come to town? Baylor charges more for tickets to those games because they know there will be a tremendous crowd due to the visiting team. Baylor left the old SWC schools on the side of the road all those years ago, and NOW it’s a problem since they’re about to suffer the same fate.
Gee Sean, those are just excellent points. So why doesn’t baylor just go stand on their own two feet instead of being a tick on our rears?
End game – Texas A&M leaves as an independent (baylor loses as well as all big 12 receives no exit fee penalty from A&M) or as a member of the SEC. Well done baylor. You’re terrific!
Baylor just wants to continue leeching off of the top programs in the conference. Judging by their product on the field in the past forever (with the exception of this year, maybe) Baylor has been one of the worst programs in America, let alone the Big 12.
They need to be in the Mountain West, where they should have been all along.
Looks like my thumbs-up-thumbs-down is equivalent to Baylor’s Big XII road record.
With Kenneth Starr as Baylor’s President, they can (and no doubt will) argue anything….
old joke–look in the dictionary under “hypocrite” and his picture is next to the definition…
Can’t the Baptists and secularists at Baylor see the hypocrisy that flows from their administration?
Don’t they realize the heavenly and earthly principal, ‘what goes around, comes around’? or “what you sow, you reap?”
Baylor is acting in their self-interest. Everyone understands that. But that does not excuse their actions (or threatened actions) against A & M when they did nothing to stop or hinder the exits of Colorado or Nebraska.
Baylor is now asking questions. Baylor did not ask those questions in 1995 when the SWC dissolved. Baylor at that time stood with the schools which split and affected the dissolution.
Baylor is now asking questions. Baylor did not ask those questions when they along with Texas Tech, Texas A & M, and the University of Texas forsook Houston, SMU, TCU, and Rice.
Baylor is now asking questions. In the formation of the Big 12, Baylor joined with out of state schools at the expense of fellow Texas schools. Each time, Baylor did what they thought was best for Baylor without consideration of other Texas schools. Now they want sympathy and want to use consideration of other Texas schools when they did not. Texas acted in self-interest with the Texas Network and other matters. Texas A & M is now acting in their own self-interest and are being skewered by Baylor for doing so?
There is a reciprocity principle. Baylor has done it before and now wants to prevent A & M from doing it now. Baylor did not oppose Colorado and Nebraska leaving but does oppose A & M. whew. This is more than we can write, but may fill a book one day.
Good article JT
Complain all you want about Baylor being hypocritical but they are the only one that is trying to take a stand to prevent this stupidity from actually happening. Obviously Texas A&M is gone and will leave shortly.
I know many of you want to see the Big 12 just go away. My prediction is that will not happen. Not only will it now happen but all remaining 9 schools will still be there. They may end up adding later.
The reason is this: What would Oklahoma and Texas actually gain by leaving? Stability in a conference? They both control that now. If they want a stable conference they can have one in the Big 12. They both have the power to make that happen.
Plus, both schools have absolutely the easiest road to a national championship by staying put in the Big 12. There is a pretty good chance that the winner between those two schools could be in the championship game every year by staying. The only school now that could even remotely challenge them now is Missouri and they still have a ways to go.
One thing that everyone seems to be forgetting about all of this is that this is not a football only decision. How about the womens volleyball team from Oklahoma having a road trip up to Washington. The travel for all of these schools (both from the west coast and midwest) will make the schools think twice. If all of the conferences move like it looks, then you will see many schools dropping even more athletic programs because they will not be able to afford the travel.
Lastly, I think that Oklahoma is doing a lot of sabre rattling. They know that it is best for them to stay put and their athletic director believes that too and has a strong sense of the history dating back to Big 8 days.
The conference needs a strong commisioner that can get Texas to do the right thing and convince them that sharing more with the other schools would provide stability and in the long run more money for themselves.
Again, you heard it first here. The Big 12 will survive.
See my next post regarding Baylor joining the Big East.
Remember, the only reason Baylor is in the Big 12 in the first place is because Governor Anne Richardson told Texas, Texas Tech, and Texas A&M that if they left the SWC, they’re taking Baylor with them. If they didn’t take Baylor, those three schools could have seen a decrease in state funding. Oh and the why is more interesting as Baylor was Anne Richardson’s alma mater.
Maybe it’s time for Gov. Perry to fend his alma mater like the Gov. Richardson did her’s back in the early 90′s. Oh wait, he’s to busy on the Presidential campaign trail to do that right now. And because Baylor is a private school, no threat of decrease funding can be threatened by him either.
Crickets bar in Waco is pretty nice, great food. Thats all I have to say about Baylor.
What’s highly unlikely, OU heading to the Pac 12 or OU thinking twice about heading to the Pac 12?
Baylor isn’t being hypocritical. Doing everything they can to make sure they aren’t getting left behind is a rather consistent position.
Lol @ Baylor. Nobody puts Baby in the corner! Hypocrites…Baylor just needs to let it go. It’s like big brother is going on a hot date, and little brother is mad he can’t tag along. Baylor has no true concern for the integrity of college sports. Baylor just wants its money as usual.
^and not by earning it themselves either…baylor thinks it deserves to be in a BCS conference just because it thinks so.
@seanmmartin …
It’s pretty hard for you to sell that line about football not being all-important to Baylor while Baylor is wasting all this energy … on football.
@rejamaro …
I don’t care what happens to the Big 12. But these schools opted into these conferences and they can opt out. Baylor’s behavior is embarrassing and underhanded. What “stupidity” are they trying to prevent? A school voluntarily opting out of a conference that doesn’t meet its financial needs. And why are they doing this? For their own selfish reasons. Yes, that’s so noble
gorilladunk …You’re such an idiot!
Save us your opinions about religous organizations and what you think they are. Just talk football.
Baylor, wah-wah-wah-wah-wah.
Many folk are dispersed by Darwinism.
Accept it.
@Deb
The stupidity remark is not necessarily directed at Texas A&M but the entire circus going on in general.
I don’t think that “not meeting their financial needs” had very little if anything to do with TAM leaving.
You are right, they can opt out but there is a price to pay. And unfortunately more than just the school leaving has to pay a price and ultimately many schools outside of the conference may pay the price as well.
@rejamaro …
How will schools outside the Big 12 be affected by the A&M move? Unless you’re talking about the move toward superconferences, but that would happen no matter what the Aggies did.
A&M may have many reasons for leaving–I’m not familiar with the historic issues of the Big 12. But I’m a believer in revenue-sharing, whether it’s in the SEC or the NFL, and think the way the pie is divided in the Big 12 was bound to create serious problems at some point. After all, A&M is the third school to leave the conference, not the first.
@Deb
Schools outside the Big 12 are greatly affected. Scenario: TAM moves to SEC. Big 12 implodes (which I don’t think will happen by the way). SEC makes another move such as West Virginia, Florida St. (take your pick). Other conferences have to move to fill void left.
Or BYU takes TAM’s place, now even though they are an independent, they are only an independent in football. Their other programs play their league games in West Coast Conference. Obviously they would be moving then to the Big 12 as well.
There is a trickle down affect no matter what happens. The bottom line is that this is not good for college football or college athletics in general. The whole mind set of I need to get mine is going to end up hurting everyone unless they get some stability all around the landscape.
And by the way, I do care what happens to the Big 12 because I am a huge Kansas fan. I really would hate to see us having to go to the east or west coast to play games on a continous basis. I would hate to lose our arch rivals of Missouri and Kansas State. Even though we can’t stand each other, the rivalries and games are fantastic. Texas and TAM and possibly Oklahoma would completely change all of those natural rivalries that have been in place for decades all for the mighty dollar.
@rejamaro …
Understand how you feel. Although I’m a lifelong Alabama fan, I’m a Missouri grad and would have preferred the Big 12 had remained as it was before Nebraska and Colorado left. And I would have preferred the SEC had remained at 12 teams without A&M. But I believe the blame lies with Texas, not A&M, which is the third school to leave the conference, not the first. Texas is the school that insisted on taking 75 percent of the pie and thought the remaining teams would have no problem with that.
No matter how we feel, change is part of life. The Big 12 has only existed for 25 years. Compare that to the SEC, which was formed in 1932, and the Big 10 in 1896. The Big 12 doesn’t have the history or stability of those conferences and may go through a few incarnations over the next two decades as college football struggles through these growing pains.