While the SEC has decided not to offer Texas A&M a spot in the SEC, A&M's public decision to leave the Big 12 for the SEC if invited certainly casts a shadow of doubt on whether the Big 12 can remain relevant with just nine teams if the Aggies or any other school leaves.
Sure the Big 12 has been rumored to be looking at other schools, including Louisville, TCU, Houston, and SMU as replacements if indeed the Aggies eventually leave. But these replacements compare poorly with A&M, who is often a football powerhouse, a basketball contender, and relevant in many other sports.
So what should Mizzou do if Texas A&M eventually decides to leave the Big 12?
Mizzou athletic director Mike Alden shot down any rumors that the school was interested in moving to the SEC. Chancellor Brady Deaton echoed that sentiment, saying that the university was very much aligned with what would be left of the remaining Big 12.
Sure the Big 12 has been rumored to be looking at other schools, including Louisville, TCU, Houston, and SMU as replacements if indeed the Aggies eventually leave. But these replacements compare poorly with A&M, who is often a football powerhouse, a basketball contender, and relevant in many other sports.
So what should Mizzou do if Texas A&M eventually decides to leave the Big 12?
Mizzou athletic director Mike Alden shot down any rumors that the school was interested in moving to the SEC. Chancellor Brady Deaton echoed that sentiment, saying that the university was very much aligned with what would be left of the remaining Big 12.
"I know there are all kind of rumors out there, but I can assure you that the University of Missouri is totally committed to the Big 12 in case there is any question."
While displaying public loyalty to the Big 12 may be the smart thing for Mizzou to do, especially after being humiliated one year earlier by their public flritations with the Big 10, the whole story presents quite a lot of questions about Mizzou's future home in athletics.
- Should the Tigers remain loyal to the Big 12 and ride through the storm despite Texas having an obvious revenue advantage through its television deal?
- Should the Tigers take the SEC rumors seriously and consider joining Texas A&M if they do eventually leave for the SEC?
- Or should the Tigers once again approach the Big 10 about a possible partnership that makes more sense geographically?
Vote now on which course of action you think Mizzou should take regarding its future home in athletics!
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mizzou would get killed in the sec.
ReplyDeletemizzou + sec = bloodbath
ReplyDeleteMizzou would be the red headed step child on the SEC West equivalent to Vandy on the SEC East. Please don't embarrass yourself.
ReplyDeleteProud SEC Fan myself. But folks get real. I am not saying Mizzou would take the conference by storm but there would be no artificial ceiling holding them back. They were able to compete in the Big12 despite having less than half the funds of the teams at the top of the chain. With equal pay I am curious as to what they could achieve.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous 4 makes a good point. Considering Mizzou gets the leftover funding from OU and Texas do a great job. Frankly, joining the SEC would be good for Mizzou they would receive approximately double the amount of money (30 mil from the SEC). The SEC would be glad to have Mizzou, 1) they are not on probation like WVU, 2) accepting TAMU and Mizzou looks good for academic admin types who will make the final decision.
ReplyDeleteIf you haven't seen this twitter yet check it out
http://twitter.com/#!/mizzou2sec
www.mizzou2sec.com