Bottom line: it doesn't get better than this. In a behind the music oral history of the Big 12 breakup, Every Day Should Be Saturday, drops a few great lines:
(1) "Missouri: I'm...I don't want to talk too much about any of this. Still sort of in between things. I respect everyone in the band. Let's just say that. Wait, I'm sorry. Texas can eat a taint-flavored lollipop. A dude's taint, not some hot lady, okay? They can just eat that all day long, far as I'm concerned. Used to use my bathroom to shit in, and not his own. Every. Single. Night. What kind of an asshole thinks he's too good to streak his own toilet? I mean, really. Ask yourself that."
(2) "Nebraska: The SEC? I dunno. I've heard it's less like a band, and more a cult or something.
Oklahoma: I don't want to talk about that. You never know.
Missouri: I've heard it's nice."
(3) "Kansas: Wait, wait: I was in a band?"
It will all make sense when you read the article. Also, be sure you hit up this link within the article.
Not many new developments, just a few links:
(1) Good news: you can now bet on college football conference realignment.
(2) SI reminds us that all this expansion talk has happened before. From their vault: a look back at college football in 1990.
(3) Resident Asshole T Boon Pickets somehow made his way on-air during a OK State's national telecast. SHOCKER: he's changed his mind again and says the Little 9 will stay together. A humorous account of this can be found here.
(4) From the comments section, CB writes: "...I would appreciate your insight into this quote from the president of the not-nearly-as-good-as-they-think-they-are school in Texas on being upset that other Big 12 schools may be so audacious as to ask that everyone live up to contracts previously agreed to:
http://espn.go.com/college-sports/story/_/id/6939017/texas-aggies-accepted-sec-legal-threat-delays-move
"We are being held hostage right now," Loftin said of being forced to stay in the Big 12. "Essentially, we're being told that you must stay here against your will and we think that really flies in the face of what makes us Americans for example and makes us free people."
If the Aggies met Baylor in a courtroom I'd be rooting for a bomb to go off. I think the lawsuit is, among other things, lame. If a marriage breaks up, you don't sure to try and keep it together. Let's play this out...let's say Baylor wins the lawsuit and A&M stays in the Little 9. What, exactly, does that do for the league? It chains an institution to us that doesn't want to be here and one that other members aren't too fond of right now, either. Additionally, Ken Starr is Baylor's President. Let's just say he has a history of taking things too far.
As far as it being un-American, that makes A&M sound as ridiculous and desperate as Baylor. I think everyone should drink a big glass of Grow-The-Hell up. The lawsuit would have merit if, say, Baylor or Iowa State or another member institution had started construction on a new stadium (or the like) and were going to pay for it out of revenues of the new TV contract. A few thoughts on that: (1) I don't know of any cases of this, (2) it will be extremely hard to prove, and (3) this is less about the law and more about emotions and blame placing.
A question I have for everyone covering this: Why the hell is OU getting a free pass regarding the Little 9's demise? No one was happy when A&M left, but no one was actively talking about the conference falling apart until OU shot off it's mouth about looking elsewhere. Then the scramble was on. I agree with one of the articles I linked to yesterday that said this really isn't anyone's specific fault and everyone is just out for self-preservation. But if blame has to be laid other than on Mr. Longhorn and on greedy Texas, I think there is blood equally dispersed on A&M and OU's hands. Additionally, I now hate Colorado.
(5) Moving away from football and onto basketball recruiting...I've been saying we don't have a head coach and now, so are the recruits. A top recruit in the nation doesn't know our head coach's name? Yup, Haith sure is doing a great job. Every time Alden gives him praise, it just erodes his own credibility.
Summary
(1) Everyone's still blaming and suing instead of moving forward.
(2) T Boone Pickens is still an asshole.
(3) I know hate Colorado.
(4) Haith is running our basketball team about like Mike Brown ran FEMA.
Reflection
There is more to life than sports and that hits some at times when sports and life and death collide. I can't imagine losing an entire professional sports team in a plane crash, but that is what they are dealing with in Russia right now.
It's an odd time in DC, 10 years after 9/11. I've found two rather enlightening websites if you are interested. One is from Time, the other is from the NYT. Listen to Tom Brokaw on the Time site.
Speaking of DC, for the Tiger Crowd in the area tonight, see you all at the watch party tonight at Penn Quarter Tavern.
Thanks for reading,
Doug
Re: the marriage analogy, don't you think the bigger problem is that A&M is feigning helplessness? If I am poor and my sugarmomma of a wife leaves me, she is free to go, but we both have to live up to our legal obligations. You don't just part ways, you also divvy assets.
ReplyDeleteI don't fault A&M for wanting to leave. But I do fault them for expecting everyone to waive their rights, wrapping themselves in a flag, and claiming they are being held hostage.
And while I don't disagree that Baylor is being somewhat ridiculous, at least it gives everyone a few more days to try to calm down and make rational decisions about what has turned into an emotional issue.
OU gets a pass because they are evacuating a burning building. Colorado and Nebraska lit the matches (Mizzou tried, but failed, to do so). A&M brought gasoline to the party. While anyone after A&M could stick around and try to douse it with water, it is tough to fault a school for running out of the building.
ReplyDelete