Winners and Losers from 2016 Big 12 Media Days
Two days of Big 12 coaches and players previewing the 2016 season are in the books, and now it's time to look back on what stood out the most in Dallas. It was a mix of good and bad, hitting the extreme in both directions.
The league has had several spotlights on it this offseason, including from a logistical standpoint in terms of adding a championship game in 2017 and taking another look at expansion, but also in an unfavorable light because of Baylor's sexual assault scandal. Those were some of the biggest topics discussed at Big 12 media days, along with the usual issues related to departed stars and incoming prospects.
We've picked out some winners and losers from the past two days that help summarize what came up most during the Big 12's contribution to "talking season."
Winner: Another "Data Point"
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The Big 12 is the only Power Five conference without a championship game, something that will cease to be the case in 2017 when the league brings back a contest it held from 1996-2010. In doing so, the Big 12 hopes to improve its chances of having a team in the College Football Playoff each season after making it one out of two times so far.
"In the future, we will have a 13th data point, so it's all good," Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby said, per ASAP Sports.
What still remains is determining who will play in that championship game, which means determining if the league will split into divisions in 2017 or remain one, 10-team league and go with the top two finishers. Either way, with a round-robin scheduling format, the title game is guaranteed to be a rematch of a regular-season contest.
Bowlsby said one thing he'd like to see avoided are "late-season rematches," such as would have been the case last year if a title game existed. Oklahoma and Oklahoma State played their Bedlam rivalry game to end the season and would have met a week later for the title as the top two teams in the standings.
"[We] just want to make sure that it's going to be done the right way because everybody wants to see it happen," Texas coach Charlie Strong said, per ASAP Sports.
Loser: Baylor
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It didn't seem like things could get worse for Baylor, from a public relations standpoint, and then interim coach Jim Grobe had his turn at the podium at Big 12 media days. A well-respected coach who was considered by many to be the perfect person to right the ship in the wake of Art Briles' firing and the sexual assault scandal, Grobe didn't help his cause with his words on Tuesday.
"We don't have a culture of bad behavior at Baylor University," Grobe said, per Fox Sports 2's broadcast. "It's a shame when a few guys can really hurt a large group of people in a devastating way. The majority of our kids are fantastic kids. The problems that we're dealing with at Baylor … are problems that are probably at every university in the country."
In describing how thin his roster would be in 2016, down to about 70 scholarship players, Grobe referred to "misbehavior kids" as part of the attrition. He also said only four of the freshman signees who ended up going to other programs were "difference-maker types" while others were "project kids that needed to develop."
"Baylor hoping Jim Grobe navigates the Big 12 schedule more adeptly than this room full of reporters," Sports On Earth's David Ubben tweeted.
Grobe's words came a day after Bowlsby said members of the conference's board “have felt that the image of the Big 12 and the other members of the Big 12 have been sullied” by Baylor's scandal. Additionally, comments made this week by new athletic director Mack Rhoades and new president David Garland didn't go over well with many.
"All of the guys hired to clean things up at Baylor have said ridiculously stupid things this week," Mike Finger of the Houston Chronicle tweeted.
Winner: Expansion
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With only 10 schools, the Big 12 is the smallest power conference and as a result the most vulnerable if and when further expansion happens in college football. Having already lost teams to the Pac-12 (Colorado), Big Ten (Nebraska) and SEC (Missouri and Texas A&M), the league appears finally willing to fight back and replenish its own ranks.
On Tuesday, the conference—via Oklahoma president David Boren on a teleconference—announced it had "continued interest expressed in expansion" by two to four teams. Boren said the Big 12 had previously been contacted by schools interested in joining the league and Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby will re-contact them to "actively evaluate their interest."
In other words, schools such as BYU, Cincinnati, Colorado State, Houston, Memphis and UCF should start putting together their best pitches if they want to join the Big 12.
"We've been contacted by a number of schools, and my guess is after today's news, we'll be contacted again," Bowlsby said.
No timetable has been set for any steps in the process, but Bowlsby said "we intend to be active very soon."
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Loser: Bob Bowlsby
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Commissioner Bob Bowlsby got things started on Monday with the opening press conference, a time when he was able to set the tone for media days in whatever way he wanted. And while he praised the upcoming return of the league championship game as well as the increased revenue that each school is getting from media contracts, he also chose to address the conference's stance on Baylor.
And just like it backfired for interim Bears coach Jim Grobe, Bowlsby's comments on the subject didn't go over well. Specifically, they were voluntary ones related to explaining the difficulty in wanting to eliminate sexual assault from college campuses.
"It almost goes without saying that when you combine alcohol and drugs and raging hormones and the experiences of 18- to 22-year-olds, it's probably unrealistic to think that these kinds of things are never going to happen," Bowlsby said. "But we certainly want to make sure that from the center we do everything we can to ensure that they are minimized, if not eradicated."
Bowlsby first told reporters the league hadn't received any additional information from Baylor beyond what had been released publicly but then later mentioned the Big 12 did know more. "We already have more than the public on an oral basis," he said. "They're confidential discussions, and I think they'll stay that way."
And though he said the Big 12 has no legal standing to do anything to Baylor, concerns over "associational issues" have prompted the conference to get involved. When pressed on the matter and whether he was referring to the NCAA, he said, "I'm not talking about 'association' with a capital A; I'm talking about small A."
Winner: Quarterback Play
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Nine of the 10 teams in the Big 12 return their starting quarterbacks in 2016, which should make for some great performances from that position this fall. Only TCU said goodbye to its full-time starter in Trevone Boykin, but the Horned Frogs aren't the only school in the league that has an open quarterback competition.
West Virginia is keeping its options open despite having Skyler Howard back for his senior year, while Kansas State has Jesse Ertz (who was injured on the first play of 2015) and Joe Hubener, who filled in for him last year.
But most eyes are on Texas, which is deciding among senior Tyrone Swoopes, sophomore Jerrod Heard and true freshman Shane Buechele in Strong's third season.
Heard and Swoopes both started games in 2015, but each struggled. Buechele had a strong spring after enrolling early and has a shot at taking the first snaps when the Longhorns host Notre Dame on Sept. 4.
"Some guys just that have that ability about 'em, and you can just tell that," Strong said.
The league's overall quarterback play should be among its strengths, WVU coach Dana Holgorsen said.
"This reminds me of some of those 2006, 2007, 2008 years, when we had a lot of older guys that were returning guys," Holgorsen said, per ASAP Sports. "... You gotta score points because there are so many good quarterbacks and so much skill and so many great offensive minds in this league that 35 points a game isn't going to get it done all the time."
Winner: Mike Gundy's hair
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Maybe the biggest star of the Big 12's media days was the party that Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy had going on the back of his head. Combined with the business up front, the 12th-year coach had the beginnings of a mullet that was the talk of the event (as well as all over social media).
It's not exactly a new hairstyle for Gundy, who rocked something similar when he played for the Cowboys in the 1980s. And it might be fitting since his team will also feature a running back named Barry Sanders, as it did when he was Oklahoma State's quarterback.
Gundy, though, doesn't believe his 'do qualifies for mullet status. "A real mullet has to be at least shoulder length and you've got to have some curls in it," he told Kyle Fredrickson of the Oklahoman.
The Big 12 could potentially have two mullets in 2016 if Holgorsen were to tweak the front a bit. Holgorsen, who called Gundy's coif "unique," told Fox Sports 2's Erin Hartigan he grew his hair out a little more since last season ended as part of his effort to "get back to our roots in the passing game. I thought the first thing is to let the hair get wild."
All recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports, unless otherwise noted. All statistics provided by CFBStats, unless otherwise noted.
Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.
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