Big Xii Source Sez Arkansas Has Put Out Feelers For A Move

[MeanGreen61]

http://texas.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1095242

Just when it looked like realignment in college athletics might be winding down, multiple sources in the Big 12 told Orangebloods.com Arkansas has put out feelers about a possible move to the Big 12 to reconnect with former Southwest Conference rivals like Texas and Texas A&M.

[SUMG]

http://texas.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1095242

Just when it looked like realignment in college athletics might be winding down, multiple sources in the Big 12 told Orangebloods.com Arkansas has put out feelers about a possible move to the Big 12 to reconnect with former Southwest Conference rivals like Texas and Texas A&M.

Retired Arkansas AD Frank Broyles who still has a lot of influence in Hogland, was quoted in the DMNews the other day saying that Arkansas doesn't have any team that he would consider a rival in the SEC.

[UNTFan23]

I guess Arkansas would be in the North if the Big UT+9 can get Notre Dame to join as I don't see OU/OSU being in different divisions.

[UNTFan23]

Retired Arkansas AD Frank Broyles who still has a lot of influence in Hogland, was quoted in the DMNews the other day saying that Arkansas doesn't have any team that he would consider a rival in the SEC.

Having lived in Hogville, the best team Arkansas has a rivalry with is LSU. The bayou Bengals are the only team the piggies play consistently in their Little Rock stadium.

[GoMeanGreen1999]

Arkansas AD says school happy in SEC, isn't looking at Big 12

June 16, 2010

CBSSports.com wire reports

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. -- Arkansas athletic director Jeff Long says the school has "no interest" in joining another conference amid speculation the Razorbacks could be a candidate to move to the Big 12.

Long said Wednesday that Arkansas is happy in the Southeastern Conference. The Big 12 recently lost Nebraska to the Big Ten and Colorado to the Pac-10, leaving it with 10 members.

Arkansas left the Southwest Conference and joined the SEC in 1991. Some of its old rivals from the Southwest Conference -- such as Texas and Texas A&M -- now play in the Big 12.

[UNT Mean Green]

Arkansas would be foolish to leave the SEC.

[Mean Green 93-98]

Arkansas would be foolish to leave the SEC.

Why?

[Mean Green 93-98]

Arkansas and South Bend, Ind., are certainly outside the current geographical footprint of the new, 10-member Big 12.

False. Fayetteville, Arkansas is certainly not outside the Big XII footprint. Geographically it makes much more sense in the Big XII than in the SEC.

Big XII Map

SEC Map

[UNTLifer]

Arkansas would be foolish to leave the SEC.

I would also ask why? The SEC is much more stable and is consistently better across the board than the Big XII. On the other hand, leaving the Big XII/Southwest Conference has hurt the Razorbacks from a recruiting standpoint. They used to recruit Texas very well, but considering the SEC doesn't have a Texas team, their recruiting has suffered since their move.

I will also add, that if the Big XII-II thinks they are more attractive to Notre Dame than the Big 10, then they are wrong.

[eppy4life]

why would anyone be putting much stock in what orangebloods.com is reporting?

[KingDL1]

why would anyone be putting much stock in what orangebloods.com is reporting?

They have been dead on so far.

[Quoner]

They have been dead on so far.

True, but let's see what Chip Brown can do when he doesn't have 10 years of being Deloss and Mack's lap dogs in his pocket to help him get fed stories that are being planted to help the school get what it wants.

[UNT Mean Green]

Why?

1) The SEC is a better league across the board, across the entire spectrum of men's and women's sports.

2) $$$

3) TV

4) They'll kill everything and everyone in the Big XII North, and then run into Oklahoma or Texas which will send them from a potential BCS game (again $$$) to the Holiday Bowl or the Alamo Bowl (a lot less $$$).

[Mean Green 93-98]

1) The SEC is a better league across the board, across the entire spectrum of men's and women's sports.

2) $$$

3) TV

4) They'll kill everything and everyone in the Big XII North, and then run into Oklahoma or Texas which will send them from a potential BCS game (again $$$) to the Holiday Bowl or the Alamo Bowl (a lot less $$$).

1) The relative quality of the top conferences fluctuates. SEC football has had some very good years recently, but their dominance is not guaranteed to continue in the future, as it has certainly not been the case in the past. At the beginning of the last decade, the Big XII was the best football conference in the country. In basketball, just last year the Big XII had the highest RPI of any conference (the SEC was #4). Same with women's basketball.

2) The deal that kept the Big XII alive will be getting significantly more dollars to member institutions, putting it on par with the SEC. For Arkansas, travel expenses would decrease, better rivalries would build interest...I think Arkansas could expect to do just as well financially in the Big XII, if not better.

3) Many Arkansas households (including my own) get better Big XII coverage than they do SEC coverage. All of North Central Arkansas is covered by Springfield, Missouri television, and receives very little SEC coverage.

4) How much success has Arkansas had in the SEC championship game?