Reports: Nebraska to join the Big Ten

[Ed Barrow]

After a weekend of denials and hushed discussions, the Big Ten will expand to 12 teams as early as Friday. Reports are emerging that the Nebraska Cornhuskers will become the 12th team in the league.

A source close to the situation has told Fox Sports Ohio that The Big Ten has offered an invitation to Nebraska to become the 12th member of the elite conference.

Over the weekend, the Big 12 Conference demanded a loyalty pledge from all of its' members, and only 9 teams complied. Two of the three holdouts, Nebraska and Missouri, were given until this Friday to decide if they wanted to stay in the league, and the ultimatum has apparently pushed the Huskers into the Big 10.

“I think before too long — I don't know exactly what that time frame is — we'll be able to put this to bed,'' said Nebraska Athletic Director Tom Osborne, “because I'm getting tired of it.''


http://www.foxsportsohio.com/06/09/10/Reports-Nebr%20aska-to-Join-Big-Ten/landing.html?blockID=250141&a

[MrScorpio]

1. WTF?!?

What an idiotic idea. Loyalty oath???

And nine schools caved in.

The Big 12 is going to suffer from this stupidity for a long long time

[rurallib]

8. which big 12? the Big 12 that will have 11 OR

the Big 10 that has 11 and will have 12 that will probably call itself the Big 12 because well, that name no longer applies to the Big 12 which will have 11?

Actually, i don't expect the Big 10(11)(12) to stop there. I think they really want Notre Dame.

[pokerfan]

10. Now why would Notre Dame join a conference?

A conference would mean revenue sharing. They're already on national broadcast TV every weekend.

[rurallib]

11. didn't say Notre Dame wanted to. But the Big 10(11) (12)

wants them so badly. ND is already in a conference for everything but football.
I grew up thinking that ND was part of the Big 10 because they played a lot of Big 10 teams.
When PSU joined the conference so many years ago (20+?) talk was then that B10 had its sights on ND.
It's like ND is this missing jewel in the midst of the crown, and the crown can't be complete until that jewel is in place.

[Enthusiast]

13. Seems to me that Notre Dame already

plays about half the Big Ten in football every year anyway. They might as well join up. Them, Missouri, Pitt and Rutgers.

[NewJeffCT]

16. The speculation is that the Big 12 is a goner

The 4 Texas schools are headed to the PAC 10. The Big 10 might grab a few more teams - Pittsburgh, Rutgers, Maryland, Oklahoma, Missouri and a few others are the speculation. (Rutgers for the NYC TV market)

The SEC, ACC and Big East will fight over the remainder (Kansas anybody?) Early speculation is that SEC might grab Florida State and a few others, leaving the Big East & ACC to combine.

Jay Bilas thinks that the eventual super-conferences will spin off from the NCAA and form their own association, leaving the NCAA behind like the NIT was left behind years ago.

[fishwax]

18. the Big 12 won't be around to suffer from this stupidity for long

The "loyalty pledge" was just an attempt to see which of its members were committed to keeping the conference together--nothing particularly sinister. The Big 12 will suffer (by basically dissolving), but not for the "loyalty pledge"--rather for TV contracts that weren't large enough to keep the members happy.

[KamaAina]

2. Wonder who the third holdout was?

Texas, perhaps? Is that why only two were given the Friday deadline? :tinfoilhat:

[fishwax]

19. I would guess Colorado

I think Texas has wanted the Big 12 to stay together so that they could get their own TV network. That won't happen with the likely move to the PAC 10.

[KamaAina]

3. Works for me

the East-West line would fall right down the Illinois-Indiana border. All traditional rivalries are preserved. It even follows (mostly) the Eastern-Central time zone boundary!

Plus, remember, there are sports besides football and even men's basketball. In one of these, women's volleyball, the two Eastern powerhouses ("Eastern" in volleyball terms meaning "east of the Rocky Mountains") are Penn State and -- wait for it -- Nebraska! There's your likely Big Ten championship match.

[Brickbat]

20. It'll be good for wrestling, baseball and even basketball to some extent.

And, uh, academics and research money, too. ;)

[LisaM]

27. No, all the traditional rivalries will not be preserved

Michigan has rivalries with Ohio State, Michigan State, and Minnesota. In fact, they already scuttled the Little Brown Jug game the last two years, which sucks. How are they going to preserve that rivalry, that's been in place since 1916?

[WinkyDink]

4. YES!!! The PSU--Nebraska rivalry LIVES!

[smoochpooch]

5. Dammit, Mizzou is going to get left behind with Kansas by the time this is over.

If ND goes to the Big Ten too, they definitely won't need Mizzou anymore. Still, I'm hoping they won't give some fucked up loyalty pledge.

Remember Randall "Pink" Floyd from Dazed and Confused: "I may play ball next fall.....but I will never sign that!!"

[triguy46]

6. Keep in mind this 100% about football...

And Mizzou just doesn't have the pull. Nor KU, KSU or ISU. Some talk of a split off basket ball superleague, with a middle finger to the NCAA. Candidates? KU, KSU, UNC, Duke just to name a few and to indicate that there is life yet for those schools.

[pokerfan]

17. At least NCAA basketball has a tournament

Making conference affiliation far less important when it comes to basketball.

The solution to all this is to adopt a real NCAA football playoff. You know, like high schools do. Like Div II does, Div III, Div I-AA, the CFL, the EFL, the IFL, the NFL, i.e. everyone else.

[Brickbat]

7. This would make my marriage a little more interesting.

I'm a Husker married to a Penn State/Ohio State fan. We live in Minnesota.

[pokerfan]

9. So is the Big Ten going to call itself the Big Twelve or Big Ten Plus Two?

With six Big 12 teams purported to be leaving for the Pac, there won't be much left of the old Big 12.

[rurallib]

12. Chuck Grassley will put an end to this fooferau

"U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa said Wednesday that he and other federal lawmakers from states likely to be adversely impacted by wholesale athletic conference realignment will look at ways to delay or prevent it.

Speculation continues to swirl about the status of the Big 12 Conference as talk of impending expansion in the Big Ten and Pac-10 looms.

Grassley, a Republican, said options could range from asking the U.S. Department of Justice to conduct a review of whether the changes violate federal anti-trust laws — something U.S. Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), the ranking member of the Senate anti-trust committee, brought up Wednesday."
<more> http://dmjuice.desmoinesregister.com/article/20100609/SPORTS020602/6100340/1003

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WTF, Chuck? your the laissez faire party

[NoGOPZone]

14. A loyalty oath?

Maybe the SWC should have thought of that. :rofl:

[NoGOPZone]

15. dupe

[EvolveOrConvolve]

21. Some one check the oven cuz I think the Big 12 is done

Cooked. Finito. Toast. Dead.

If Texas decides to jump shit to the PAC xx, they'll take Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech and maybe Texas A&M with them. With Nebraska and Colorado already headed for the hills, it's pretty likely that Texas will do that.

[fishwax]

23. reports out of Oklahoma and Texas are that that's a done deal for all but A&M

http://newsok.com/source-ou-headed-to-pac-10/article/3467852?custom_click=rss

http://www.kansascity.com/2010/06/11/2009888/report-texas-tech-ou-osu-to-the.html

[EvolveOrConvolve]

24. I'm pretty sure that A&M is just posturing

There are some egos involved at A&M, but when it comes down to it they'll go where Texas goes.

[fishwax]

25. I think you're right about that -- the only thing that gives me pause is that

former Alabama coach Gene Stallings is on their Board of Regents, and has apparently been quite active in trying to get A&M to the SEC. But in the end, I think they'll go with Texas ...

[rainbow4321]

28. That's what I'm thinking, also

Granted I'm a little bias cuz my daughter is a UT alum, but the rivalry between UT and A&M (and the Thanksgiving games) no doubt bring in a $hitload of $ for them. A&M won't wanna part with that.
They will all follow UT/the $$.

[AngryOldDem]

22. It's official.

Nebraska joins in July 2011.

[LisaM]

26. It is a sad day for the Big Ten

This is such utter crap.