NEBRASKA EXITS, GIVES TEXAS THE MIDDLE FINGER

As The Big 12 Turns

Okay, first of all I want to say that it’s good to be back on the bleacherreport.com.  I know it’s been a long time since I’ve posted anything but I’m back.  I think you guys will find what follows at least somewhat interesting.  However, before I address the plot turns and twists of this absurd melodrama I want to talk about a few topics:

1.  Boy was I wrong about the outcome of the national title game between Oklahoma and Florida.  I sincerely thought that OU’s offense would be just too much for Florida to handle.  Not from a talent perspective mind you, but from an execution perspective.  I should have known better because an extremely hot offensive football team usually cools down considerably from the time the regular season ends and the bowl game.  And that’s especially true when talking about the severe lag between the Big 12 and SEC title game to the national title game.  So here’s a belated congratulations to Florida on the win in the title game.  And in light of recent events (more on that later) I couldn’t be happier.

2.  Ndamukong Suh’s performance his senior season, especially in the Big 12 title game, at the combine and on ESPN’s Sports Science segment, was near mythical proportions.  Suh recorded 52 solo tackles, 33 assisted tackles (85 total,) had 24 tackles for loss, 12 sacks, 10 pass break-ups and one interception-in one season.  His performance against Texas in the Big 12 title game was a clinic on domination.  Not one player on Texas’s offensive line could block him and he routinely defeated double teams.  I watch a lot of college football, from all conferences, and I’ve never seen a more dominant player at any position in recent memory.  Suh is easily is best interior lineman to come out of college in the past 20 years.  I just wanted to take this opportunity to say to Mr. Suh, thank you for allowing me the privilege to watch you grow and develop to become the superstar you are.  Ndamukong, the best part of all of this is that you have so much potential and the best is still yet to come.

3.  Last year’s Big 12 title game was a complete sham.  I’m not going to rehash what happened, but suffice it to say everyone knows that Texas, and the corrupt Big 12 referees, literally stole the game from Nebraska.  The only solace I have is that in the national title game against Alabama the Longhorns absolutely had their collective rear ends handed to them.  Former Kansas Football Coach Mark Mangino has previously, and openly, questioned the integrity of officiating within the Big 12 conference.  What happened in the title game, in my opinion, only proved his assertion.  So isn’t it a weird coincidence how, in the national title game, when there weren’t any Big 12 officials working the game, that Texas not only lost, but didn’t receive any favorable calls?  Things that make you go hmmmm indeed.

4.  St. Louis Rams drafting Sam Bradford was, quite frankly, moronic.  Don’t get me wrong, I like Sam Bradford, I think he has the potential to be a fine QB at the next level-eventually.  But using a first round pick on a guy that would have been available in the 2^nd  or 3^rd round was an absurd reach.  Looking at the Rams situation prior to the draft they needed help on both sides of the ball to be sure, but they needed more urgent help on defense.  And to any potential Rams fans reading this, remember one thing: a QB is only as good as the OL protecting him.  If the Rams OL is shaky, which you know it will be, what’s the over/under on how long it takes Bradford to suffer a season-ending injury?  Which is why I think it was a profound mistake for the Rams to take a QB as their first pick.

And now on to the ridiculous soap opera that is the Big 12 this off season.  I want to make one thing perfectly clear: In my opinion Texas never had any real intention of ever switching conferences.  That’s right kids, it was all a ruse/trick/ploy etc from the beginning.  Now stay with me here because things are about to get logical.

A.  Texas owns the Big 12-this is no secret to anyone.  They own the conference lock, stock and barrel.  The Big 12 is their playground, they make all the rules and they change the rules as they see fit to keep themselves in every advantage.  So why would Texas flirt with, or entertain, the idea of moving to a new league where they’d lose all, or a vast majority of, their power?  They wouldn’t.  Texas, as an institution, is as corrupt and morally deficient as they come, but they’re not stupid-they just think that everyone not wearing burnt orange is.  And for the record, read this article from the Wall Street Journal:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704541004574600051780005902.html.

And then ask yourself, how is it possible that Texas hasn’t been punished via sanctions from the NCAA?  In this report a Texas booster openly admits to recruiting violations.

B.  Recent reports have surfaced in which Big 12 north holdovers Kansas, Kansas State and Iowa State have agreed to turn over whatever money, if any, the league receives from Nebraska’s (and Colorado’s) departure to Texas, Oklahoma and Texas A&M.  The only thing I can say is: If this turns out to be true…I’m not surprised at all.  The other schools in this league are nothing more than Texas’s slaves.  In essence the north schools are bribing Texas not to leave them out in the cold and are saying, “…here are several additional millions, (supposedly in the 17-25 million range) for being “generous to us and not bolting to another league.” 

C.  The real surprise in all of this though is Oklahoma’s complete lack of intestinal fortitude.  Never in all of my years would I imagine that Oklahoma would bend over so easily for Texas.  And Texas A&M…I knew they didn’t have the stones to move to the SEC.  It’s utterly sad and pathetic to see two once proud schools like OU and A&M grovel at Texas’s excrement covered boots.  Because let’s admit reality: When we’re dealing with Texas, getting dragged through a pit of feces is what’s expected.

D.  The establishment of a “Longhorn Network” I believe was Texas’s end game in the conference changing scheme.  Now did Texas need approval, via a vote of conference members, approving of their network or could they establish it independently?  I don’t know, but one thing is perfectly clear, Texas wanted, and still covets/desires television network to call their own. 

E.  So the question becomes, if Texas really did want to join another conference, and yes I’m speaking directly to you Pac-10, why would they want to include most of the Big 12 south?  The answer is exceedingly simple; if Texas alone joins the Pac-10 they lose all power, control and authority over the conference.  However, if they can negotiate a deal and bring Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, Texas A&M and Baylor into a Pac-16 mega-conference then Texas instantly has almost a 40% voting bloc.  All one needs to do is look at how schools in the Big 12 have voted on issues since its inception to see what I’m referring to here.  As I’ve previously discussed, all the other schools in the Big 12 are nothing more than pathetic lapdogs for Texas.  The saddest part of this soap opera plot is that the other schools are the equivalent of useful idiots.

F.  Getting back to the remaining Big 12 north schools, the deal you made with the burnt orange devil will come back to bite you.  When major conference realignment occurs, and it is coming in the next couple of years-meaning when the current television contract expires, Texas will use its puppets in the south division, merge with either the Pac-10 or SEC and once again you’ll be left out in the cold.  This time though, there won’t be anywhere for you to go and you’ll be relegated to non BCS status.  And Texas, already quietly laughing at your pathetic acquiescence-your Neville Chamberlain-esque policy of appeasement, will break out into a full roar of laughter at your expense and they’ll pull back the curtain to reveal all the other Big 12 south schools laughing as well with their puppet strings clearly being pulled by their Texas master.

G.  Which brings me to my final question: When college football conferences again start looking to expand, what league--given everything that has transpired would actually want Texas and the corrupt, crooked, sneaky, under-handed, wheeling and dealing, behind closed doors load of BS that they would bring to the table?  I sincerely hope that the Presidents, Chancellors, Regents and fans, from the Big 10, Pac-10 and SEC have all learned what a snake in the grass institution Texas really is and when those burnt orange snakes start hissing about expansion they call animal control and stay away. 

Bottom line: If Texas could be embodied in a single person it would be, hands down Ted Bundy.  Sure Bundy was a good looking guy, knew all the right things to say and had a facade of sophistication.  But beneath that façade was a cold, psychopathic, sadistic, serial killer whose ego and lusts for self-aggrandizement knew no bounds.  Texas killed the conference they were previously in, they killed our rivalry with Oklahoma and now, for all intents and purposes, they’ve killed the Big 12.

To the remaining members of the former Big 12 conference: One day, hopefully, you’ll realize just how badly Texas played you all for fools.  Until then, have fun being locked into a permanent “bent-over” position.

And to my new Big 10 brothers and sisters: Well I'll just say, my how times and attitudes, especially mine, have changed.  But I'll more fully address that, and other issues, in later articles.