Postscripts: Goodbye Texas and Oklahoma

What’s happening within the Big 12 and past? I develop and clarify each Sunday in Postscripts at Heartland College Sports, your private home for impartial Big 12 protection.

This week, with Texas and Oklahoma lastly headed out the door, the Big 12’s identification is safe. Meanwhile, the Pac-12 is in a bizarre place (what else is new) and my Pat Mahomes story headed into Super Bowl Sunday.

Texas, Oklahoma Headed Out the Door

So it’s lastly executed. No extra Texas and Oklahoma within the Big 12 after subsequent season. Our lengthy nationwide nightmare is over.

As somebody who has spent practically his total life in Texas and truly grew up a Longhorns fan, the entire thought of Texas migrating to the SEC remains to be sort of bizarre to me. Texas and Oklahoma have all the time been colleges that, to me, have led. And transferring to the SEC, even with the plain monetary benefits, seems like a follower transfer.

But, they’ve made their beds and now they need to lie in them. That mattress shall be crammed with SEC money quickly sufficient.

As for the Big 12, I feel it’s carved out a identification for itself exterior of the OU-Texas assemble. I feel the league goes to be that scrappy, upstart, aggressive group of colleges that’s going to be a thorn within the facet for the remainder of the nation. One benefit of this two-year saga is that every of the remaining colleges has not solely been in a position to not solely carve out an identification as a gaggle but in addition carve out identities as particular person colleges.

By the best way, the 4 colleges coming in match that description, too.

For too lengthy the ‘Hateful Eight’ allowed Texas and Oklahoma, and earlier than that Nebraska, to set the tone for the convention. Not anymore.

Will this league make as a lot cash because the SEC or Big Ten? No. Will it get extra consideration than both convention? Probably not. But the league will earn the whole lot it will get, and I don’t assume it minds it.

Now, the league is on the lookout for extra, and commissioner Brett Yormark is reportedly searching for “aggressive” growth. That’s not earth-shattering news. He’s been speaking about growth and entering into the Pacific time zone virtually since he arrived. But with the OU-Texas situation settled, he can transfer on to that step.

I don’t count on contracts to begin dropping tomorrow, however I do count on the membership to get greater on this convention within the subsequent two to 4 years. I don’t assume it is going to be all soccer colleges. That means the league should be strategic and keep away from the pitfalls that finally broke up the Big East.

Here’s why I consider there’s much less of an opportunity of that taking place. The Big East expanded to unravel an issue, which was a handful of colleges that performed soccer. The Big 12 would develop to maximise income and construct what Yormark believes could possibly be a nationwide model. If the Big 12 approaches it from that perspective, it lessens the prospect of the league changing into too bloated.

But that’s the long-term downside. In the quick time period?

The league is on strong floor, one thing it couldn’t have stated two years in the past when all of this began.

This Week in ‘As The Pac-12 Turns’

So is the Pac-12 simply hopelessly screwed? That’s what my thoughts has been dancing across the previous couple of days.

I feel the reply will not be hopelessly, however the convention is certainly in a little bit of a nook. We reported on a bit The Athletic wrote in regards to the Pac-12 tv and growth scenario, and it didn’t sound nice. Commissioner George Kliavkoff reportedly promised member colleges a tv contract that will get them greater than  $40 million which, up to now, has confirmed elusive.

He is, nevertheless, getting faith in relation to growth, in order that’s good news proper? It was staring us proper within the face on Wednesday night time as he sat in a collection at an SMU basketball recreation, one in all a minimum of two colleges the league is reportedly contemplating. The different is San Diego State, and should you comply with our website you understand the Aztecs’ athletic director is a tad bit pissed off by all of this.

I don’t know if that is laborious work or desperation, however I do consider this. You can’t get a greater tv contract with out extra worth, and you may’t get extra worth should you don’t develop. The Big 12 confirmed that with its new TV deal. It’s not an enormous improve, but it surely’s a rise.

The longer this goes on, the tougher I feel it turns into for Kliavkoff to hold onto his job. Yormark desires aggressive growth and I believe we’ll hear a whole lot of rumors the following few months. For now, Yormark could be clever to train affected person aggression and see if a few of the Pac-12 members get impatient with the method. That may yield the outcomes he’s on the lookout for.

Or, Kliavkoff may have a deal in two weeks and everyone seems to be completely happy. That’s how far and wide this example seems to be.

My Pat Mahomes Story

Earlier this week I wrote in regards to the uncommon firm that Patrick Mahomes may be part of if he and the Kansas City Chiefs win the Super Bowl on Sunday. And I noticed Patrick play a number of instances in school. But I’ve by no means met the man.

But his dad, Pat? I’ve run into him earlier than.

Back in early 1990 I used to be a senior at Spring Hill High School in Longview, Texas. I performed basketball (properly, to be honest, I watched so much and performed slightly. Turns out there’s such a factor as a tenth man in basketball).

We had been enjoying Lindale one night time in Lindale. Their health club had bleachers that got here proper all the way down to the ground, so followers had been proper on high of you.

I performed a couple of minutes that night time. At one level I chased a unfastened ball into the bleachers on the house facet. A full-on dive proper into a number of individuals.

It didn’t daybreak on me till after I obtained up and walked again on the ground that one of many individuals I bumped into was dressed head to toe in Minnesota Twins gear.

That was Pat Mahomes. He was headed to Spring Training the following week.

You can discover Matthew Postins on Twitter @PostinsPostcard