So Which Conference Was Worse: The Old SWC or the Current Big 12?

[FaninAma]

There is an argument for both. After the SWC lost Arkansas they really only had one marquee program and that was a Texas program mired in mediocrity. The current Big 12 has 2 marquee programs...Texas which is now less than a mediocre program and an OU program that appears to be the lone standard bearer for quality within the conference. (no, I don't count one standout year by the Stillwater aggies as altering that fact).

The reason the current Big 12 may be worse is because the conference has been a big loser in the realignment battles and has relegated itself to second class status for the foreseeable future.

[badger]

Everyone outside the state of Oklahoma sucks in the Big 12. Even the old Big 12 was filled with losers yesterday (way to lose a big lead at home, nebrasky! you too, aggie!)

[sooner n houston]

Baylor may surprise a few people this year. Just because a conference is down for a couple of years does not make it ****ty!

[Jacie]

OP, in case you haven't been paying attention to current events (i.e. 3+ seasons of football) sa*et is NOT a marquee program. Don't take my word for it, ask any whorn.

[OU_Sooners75]

Swc was dead long before Arkansas left that conference.

[FaninAma]

The problem faced by the Big 12 now is that the conference has been out-manueverd in the conference realignment war so unlike the old SWC there is no vibrant conference like the old Big 8 that they can latch onto to reverse their fortunes and climb out of this pit of mediocrity.

[SicEmBaylor]

I miss the SWC. =( It just wasn't viable.

[cleller]

Yeah, its probably nostalgia, but the days of the Big 8, and SWC seemed more logical.

[8timechamps]

By what measure are we saying a conference sucks?

That'll make a difference in how I answer.

[Sabanball]

I'd say the current Big 12, just because its not going to last nearly as long as the SWC did...

[King Crimson]

it's all about media markets these days.

the old SWC was a regional conference....there was a reason the Cotton Bowl was at hangover time on New Year's Day. while i personally don't mind Texas sucking, they are part of the conference success....

[Curly Bill]

Yeah, its probably nostalgia, but the days of the Big 8, and SWC seemed more logical.

Yep

[King Crimson]

the old Big 8 was winning MNC's with OU, NU, and CU in it's last decade....and very good in basketball, too. sending over half the league to the NCAA tournament.

the SWC wasn't winning anything.

problem is the Big 8 doesn't/still doesn't have the population density to be a big media player.

regardless of quality of on the field product.

[Blue]

We just need New Mexico, New Mexico St. and Wyoming to become relevant and we are golden.

[Mac94]

The SWC and Big-8 began their death marches when OU and Georgia won their lawsuit against the NCAA over TV rights. That began the media market drive that first drove the big independents like Penn St, Miami, and Florida St to seek conference coverage to the picking apart of the weaker conferences.

[Tear Down This Wall]

We should have hit eject on this conference while we had the chance. F*cking around with the Pac-12 with our noses clean up DeLoss Dodds/Texas' as*ses was the biggest f*ck up we've ever had.

We could have picked up the phone and been in the SEC instead of the freaking Mizzou Tigers! Are you kidding me? Mizzou?

We lose Nebraska and Colorado from the old Big 8, and what's the reward? West Virginia from a dying Big East and mediorce-conference hopping TCU. It's disgusting.

We now see that Texas is a shambles and trying to force out DeLoss. Why couldn't we just do what was best for OU in 2011?

After Texas broke off the flirting with the Pac-12, then the Pac-12 told everyone else in the Big 12, "Sorry...not without Texas," why did we stick around?

There were stories about not wanting to leave sh*tpile Oklahoma State behind because they were our brothers. So stupid. Baylor was already crying in their crap diapers about A&M leaving, threatening lawsuits and all other sorts of stupid garbage simply because no one really wants to be in a conference with Baylor.

(Throw Texas Tech in there as well. No one is slobbering to get the Sand Aggies into their fold, either.)

Dammit, Boren and Castiglione! How could they not see what mediocrity was creeping into the conference?

I grew up in Texas and hated the Southwest Conference growing up. I mean, can you tell what the real purpose of games like Baylor versus TCU was? Texas Tech versus Houston? Rice versus SMU? Vomit, vomit, vomit.

Arkansas was smart to get out. I doesn't matter that they haven't won an SEC title. They are getting paid more and have better football to watch week in and week out, year after year.

We're stuck with the worst of the old Big 8 plus the absolute middle of the pack dog p*iss from the SWC. And, there sits Missouri, with all of their decade after decade of football mediocrity sitting in our spot in the SEC because Boren and Castiglione couldn't take the sniffers out of DeLoss Dodds' pucker for five minutes and just use their damn brains!

DeLoss Dodds is an idiot as well. That stupid, greedy Kansas Aggie could have been in the SEC instead of this crapheap had he not insisted on the pointless Longhorn network. What has being King of the Dipsh*ts gotten Texas so far?

Oklahoma and Texas could have been the Big 12 schools that went to the SEC instead of the ridiculous, ball-sucking Aggies and half-as*sed Mizzou. Powers and Dodds were too greedy; Boren and Castiglione were too stupid to realize that they didn't have as much cache as Texas.

So, here we sit. Those of us old enough to have enjoyed a strong Big 8 and a punchless SWC have to sit through this garbagey brand of football. We're supposed to somehow be excited about the remaining home games with TCU, Texas Tech, and f'ing Iowa State.

Stupid.

[Tear Down This Wall]

Mizzou will host Florida, South Carolina, and Tennessee...and idiot Texas A&M. Three of those games will be Top 20 opponents. And, the other - Tennessee - at least has some football history and an inkling of a real fanbase.

If you somehow think hosting TCU, Texas Tech, and Iowa State is better than hosting Florida, South Carolina, and Tennesee, go have your head examined now.

Freaking Mizzou! Why, why, why, why, why?

We're stuck in this position:
-If TCU, Texas Tech, or Iowa State accidentally beat us, it's news. If we beat them, no one really gives a crap because we are supposed to beat them.

Contrast that to what would have been three more Top 20 - and, possibly Top 10 - matchups at our house with Florida, South Carolina, and Texas A&M.

Mizzou. F'ing Mizzou and the Pac-12 mirage. What a nightmare.

DeLoss and Texas. I wouldn't give a hair off a goat's ball sack for Texas or the whole lot of hangers on in the Big 12 at this point.

[badger]

Don't worry about what might have been. We need to make the situation that we are currently in the best we possibly can.

[Tear Down This Wall]

Don't worry about what might have been. We need to make the situation that we are currently in the best we possibly can.

Yes. Obviously. But, dammit, badger...don't you think Boren and Castiglione need to look at what is happening to the Great Pretenders down in Austin and the stinkpile of news that will follow Stoolwater for a few months and at least begin to look for a way out of this bucket of bolts?

I mean, we have a brand that will make money anywhere. Why do we have to keep it tied to such garbage?

In the deep, deep back part of my mind, I fear that we don't want tougher competition. And, if that's the case, well...that's just sad and pathetic...and, heartily disappointing.

[badger]

I'll shed a tear with you on this one Tear, but here's why we need to make this Big 12 the best damn conference we can:

We've sold our souls (aka TV broadcast rights) to it.

In other words, you can hate the Big 12 all you want, but we are not going to be able to leave it, because each and every one of us said "Here are our Tier 1 and Tier 2 media rights, conference!" to the Big 12.

I don't think there are any outs to this, Tear. We're stuck here. We might as well make the best of it.

[Tear Down This Wall]

If that's the truth, then whomever negotiated the deal should be fired.

If I learned anything in law schools it's that there is a way out of a contract...you ALWAYS included a way out.

Surely, with all of the legal counsel OU could afford with hundreds upon thousands of former OU Law attorneys available, someone put some language in there that would give us an out. If not, then the law school at Oklahoma should be shut down.

[FaninAma]

By what measure are we saying a conference sucks?

That'll make a difference in how I answer.
Current performamce, how the rest of the college football world views the conference and the future prospects of the conference improving its level of play and and national perception.

[FaninAma]

Yes. Obviously. But, dammit, badger...don't you think Boren and Castiglione need to look at what is happening to the Great Pretenders down in Austin and the stinkpile of news that will follow Stoolwater for a few months and at least begin to look for a way out of this bucket of bolts?

I mean, we have a brand that will make money anywhere. Why do we have to keep it tied to such garbage?

In the deep, deep back part of my mind, I fear that we don't want tougher competition. And, if that's the case, well...that's just sad and pathetic...and, heartily disappointing.

One would hope. But then what do I know....I thought the league would out-maneuver the ACC and be one of 4 surviving BCS conferences when the smoke cleared. Now I see no viable options for making the conference significantly better other than disbanding and allowing every program to fend for themselves. At least the political types in OKC will be happy when OU is as mediocre as okie state.

[Bourbon St Sooner]

Yes, it's like Shagri-La on the other side of the fence. Maybe the AAC will give us an invite so we can get out of this cesspool. After all, look how well our former conference mates are doing where the grass is greener.

Nebbish - Well we still can't win a conference title game even when half the league is on probation. We just got curb stomped at home by ucla, but dammit we got truckloads of research dollars. What? Sequester? #@$*%@!

Muz-zou-rah - Well at least we can chant sec sec like all of the other bottom dwellers while we're getting our asses kicked each week. Oh, and we got to keep our blood feud with UK/KU/whatever.

Colorado - Ah who cares? Weed's legal! Smoke 'em if ya got 'em.

aTm - Now here's a real success story. Of course never mind we'd be a .500 team if we didn't have that guy we recruited while we were in the b12.