Texas Pac-12: Longhorn Network More of a Curse Than a Blessing

Just imagine what it would be like if the University of Texas had its very own television network. My goodness, what a monstrosity that thing would be.

The depressing part, of course, is that Texas does have its very own TV network. The Longhorn Network is a pompous salute to all things UT, and you can watch it as much as you like... as long as you have Verizon FiOS.

While the Longhorn Network is all well and good for those who must have constant Longhorns coverage (i.e. everybody within the state of Texas and nobody outside), it's actually proving to be something of a pain in the neck for the university. Specifically, it's more or less solely responsible for the fact that the Big 12 is dying a slow death.

With the Big 12 coming apart, there's been a lot of talks in recent weeks about Texas and a couple of other notable Big 12 schools making the jump to the Pac-12. If Texas does, though, the word around the campfire is that the Longhorn Network is going to need to undergo some changes.

Here's how Orangebloods.com columnist Chip Brown detailed things:

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Texas would have to give up LHN if it went to the Pac-12, which has equal revenue sharing and pools its third-tier TV rights in a series of regional networks.

The $300 million, 20-year contract Texas signed with ESPN has become important to UT's board of regents, sources said, because in an age of higher education cutbacks, UT athletics is contributing $5 million per year to academics in the first five years of the deal.

If Texas went to the Pac-12, LHN would have to be re-worked so that Texas would share revenue with a partner in a regional network (possibly Texas Tech) as well as the Pac-12, forcing the Longhorns to give up much of their unique branding and riches.

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In so many words, Texas' big moneymaker would be reconfigured so that it would become a moneymaker for its new conference and at least one other school within it. To say that would be defeating the point of the blasted thing would be apt.

If Texas wants to maintain the Longhorn Network as its very own piggy bank, it has two options.

The first, according to Brown, is to join the ACC. The conference's TV rights belong to ESPN, and ESPN of course operates the Longhorn Network. There would be no clash of interest there. Problem is the ACC doesn't seem to be very interested in bringing Texas in at the moment.

The other option is to pull a BYU and go independent. That might actually be the best move for business, but Brown correctly pointed out that it would mean a scheduling nightmare for Texas' athletic programs. Texas would also have to give up the right to an automatic BCS bid, which is not exactly ideal.

Long story short, the absolute best case scenario for Texas right now basically involves keeping the status quo. Keeping the Big 12 together would allow Texas to keep the Longhorn Network, and it would also allow the school to enjoy the benefits of playing football in a BCS conference.

But day by day, that ship is sinking. The way things are going now, it sounds like Texas is going to have to make a change, and it may not be one the university is going to like.

All of this because of a simple television network. The Longhorn Network was supposed to usher in a new era. Instead, it's turned out to be a monster creation that is doing more harm than good.

Needless to say, that's ironic. It's also kinda hilarious.