Brian: The wheels appear to be in motion now. The death of the Big 12 appears to be imminent, and Nebraska and Colorado seem to be the ones that have written the Big 12’s epitaph. With Nebraska set to join the Big Ten, Colorado officially joining the Pac Something, and 5 other Big 12 schools on the brink of joining the Pac-10, there will no doubt be no love lost between Nebraska, Colorado and members of the conference formerly known as the Big 12.
With this move, Nebraska and Colorado seem to have immediately made a lot of enemies. The list runs deep:
- The Big 12 "leftovers" - Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Baylor and Missouri (at least temporarily)
- Texas - who stood to gain their own TV network and keep their sphere of influence in the Big 12
- Fans of Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Colorado, Texas A&M and Texas Tech - who begrudgingly get swallowed up by a 16 team super conference they may never have a shot of winning
- Notre Dame - especially if they feel forced to join the Big Ten
- Everyone in the Big East - if Rutgers and Syracuse are invited to join the Big Ten, and the Big East also disintegrates
This appears to be a level of treachery that goes well beyond the hate directed at Boston College when we moved from the Big East to join the ACC six years ago. So in five years, will anyone still hold a grudge against BC? Or have a number of college football teams found a new public enemy #1? Your thoughts?
Jeff: Now that these other moves are happening, the Boston College move will finally be forgotten. BC has been the last major move for the last five years and now with both Nebraska and Colorado moving and more moves to come, the "BC should not be in the ACC" and the hatred by Big East teams towards BC talk should all end. Also, the criticism that BC is too far from other ACC schools and traveling being a problem will end.
Many of our readers are probably from the East coast and many have probably never been to Norman, Oklahoma. But go ahead and look at a map, it is nowhere near any Pac 10 schools. Boulder, Colorado is much closer to the Pac 10 schools than Norman is but still basically every away game for the Buffaloes will be like BC playing Georgia Tech and several games will be like BC traveling to Miami. The geography of the West Coast is different and there is only one BCS conference so longer travel is inevitable but after BC has taken so much heat for the distance we travel to play in the ACC, I'll be pissed if that talk doesn't now come to an end.
Big Finish
Brian: In addition to the Notre Dame series, BC has reportedly scheduled a home and home series with Stanford in 2016 and 2017. That cool with you?
Jeff: Sounds great. Stanford is a great second-best non-conference game.
Jeff: Speaking of our non-conference future opponents, it looks like USC will have an excuse when BC beats them now in 2013, right?
Brian: BC always seems to have bad timing when it comes to playing non-conference opponents not at their peak - Penn State, Stanford, Notre Dame and now USC.
Brian: HD named Montel Harris as one of the 12 most irreplaceable players in the ACC, yet only the 20th best player in the conference. Does this mean we won’t see another BC player in her top 25 countdown?
Jeff: It means Harris has no good backup this season.
Jeff: 85 days until kickoff, give me something significant with the number 85.
Brian: 85 as in 1985, the year Mike Ruth won the Outland Trophy?
Brian: Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson says the ways to fix the ACC’s football image are to tout its depth and get into the BCSNCG. Uh, duh?
Jeff: So he's cheering for Virginia Tech to go undefeated this season?
Jeff: Is Tom Izzo pulling a Pete Carroll where Michigan State will soon be on NCAA suspension?
Brian: No, I don't think so. But NCAA administrators and coaches are doing strange things these days for the almighty dollar (and Lebron James?)
Brian: Last one, Athlon ranked the country’s college football coaching jobs from 1-120 and BC came in at number 59, ahead of only Wake Forest and Duke. Sound right?
Jeff: No, I would think they would land higher than 59, but probably right in the conference pecking order.