The Big IX

There's been a lot of talk, recently, about Texas A&M moving out of the Big 12 in favor of another conference. After being snubbed by the Southeastern Conference, the two biggest candidates are the Big Ten and the Pac-12, both of which would enjoy an increase in their ability to recruit in Texas. The problem for the Big 12 is that the departure of Texas A&M would take them from 10 teams down to 9, which, at best digs an even bigger hole for a conference whose brand is highly numerical, and at worst, breaks the conference apart.

Naturally, many people in the analysis business are discussing what teams could come in and fill the voids left by the recent departures in that conference. The name that's getting thrown around far more than any other is BYU. Now, before I go any further, I'd like to say that I do not represent Brigham Young University in any respect, other than being an alumnus similar to any other BYU alum in the nation and abroad. That being said, I think I can offer some insight into the circumstances that could lead BYU to the Big 12 Conference.

Starting this year, BYU will go independent in football and join the West Coast Conference (WCC) in most other sports, excluding a few in which the WCC does not participate. Institutions of higher education are rarely very organic, and BYU is no exception to this rule. This decision to change conference affiliation was well thought out and undoubtedly prayed over for months before it was made. At this point in time, BYU is committed to going independent and staying independent in football for years to come. BYU is also an uncannily good fit for the WCC, a conference of west-coast religious schools, in other sports.

While BYU is very committed to its current plan, it would be possible for the Big 12 to sweeten the pot enough for BYU to come on board. A year ago, the conference was not desperate enough to make those sacrifices, with its biggest anchors, Texas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, and Texas A&M remaining firmly in place. Now, with Texas A&M heck-bent on getting out of the conference and BYU being one of the few good teams left without an Automatic Qualifying (AQ) conference affiliation, the Big 12 might just have the incentive to give BYU what they want.

In my opinion, here's most of what it would take:

• Giving BYU full autonomy over its TV contract with ESPN. The biggest reason BYU went independent was to get out of the infernal abyss of The Mtn. television programming and actually get some nationwide exposure for the football program. They signed an 8-year contract with ESPN and will have many of their games broadcast on the unquestionably popular network during that time. The Big 12 would have to, in no way, interfere with this contract in order to get BYU in the conference.
• Limiting the term of BYU's Big 12 contract to the remaining 7 years of the ESPN contract. Basically, BYU would be free to walk away after 7 years with full rights to its broadcasting contract with no (that means zero) exit fees.
• Allowing BYU to keep certain already-scheduled opponents for their non-conference schedule. I mostly speak of Notre Dame, Boise State, Utah and Georgia Tech, but BYU would need to be free to schedule conference games around its non-conference schedule for games that have been scheduled as of the time BYU joined the conference.
• Allowing BYU to play Utah on whichever week they chose as long as they were a member of the conference. If Utah could get permission from their pimp, maybe we could have the game on rivalry weekend. What a concept!
• A big, fat check to any school with whom BYU has to abandon a future meeting. When schools back out of an agreed-upon meeting, they often cut the other school a check, just to make sure lawyers don't get involved. The Big 12 would need to cover any of these costs for BYU.
• An agreement with the WCC. Most everyone involved likes the fit of BYU with the West Coast Conference in sports other than football and would hate to see them move back out after only a year or two. The Big 12 would probably need to supply some cash and some exclusive scheduling rights (many to BYU) with the WCC for some years to come, but the terms would be negotiable.

The terms that I've listed here are quite a price to pay for a team that's not a perennial national "championship" contender, though such schools are becoming fewer and farther between. However, this is why BYU did not join the Big 12 a year ago, even though I'm sure there was at least some discussion between University and Conference representatives. The Big 12 was just not willing to pay the asking price while it still held together and had many of its best teams. BYU is also comfortable with and committed to football independence and to the WCC; and it will take a rather hefty sum to get them to pack up and move.

Will the Big 12 want a team like BYU enough to make the necessary compromises? Only time will tell.