Realignment fatigue? Too bad.
Missouri’s Board of Curators is set to meet tomorrow (Tues.) to discuss matters related to conference affiliation -- we should know the official agenda some time today -- but what they decide may not have an immediate impact on the conference landscape, particularly with the Big East.
“My guess is they will do what Texas A&M did, what Oklahoma and Texas did when their boards met and give (Chancellor) Brady Deaton the authority to deal with the issue,” a Big 12 official told the Kansas City Star. “I’d be very surprised if what came out of the meeting was news that Missouri made application and was accepted an offer from the SEC.”
Indeed, we’ve seen that realignment doesn’t happen overnight; Pitt and Syracuse came about as close as one could to making a quick bolt.
Although Deaton stepped down from his post in the Big 12’s five-member expansion committee, he’s still the chairman of the Big 12 Board of Directors. It may not ultimately affect how Missouri votes, but Deaton’s position puts the school in an awkward place.
Interim Big 12 commissioner Chuck Neinas has previously stated that he’s confident Missouri will stay in the Big 12. Word late last night was that Mizzou is making it known they want several changes to occur within the Big 12 (don’t we all?). What those changes are remains unknown, although you can probably bet equal revenue sharing is somewhere in there.
Perhaps a gold-plated bathroom too.
Okay, maybe just the revenue.
Either way, and as we’ve maintained, there’s a lot to work through if the Big 12 is to stick together as a 10 or 12-team league. We may not know Missouri’s intentions right away, but what the Board of Curators decide could give us a first indication.