READ TODAY'S STORIES AND E-EDITION SUBSCRIBE |  CONTACT US |  SIGN IN
Sports Extra!



SPORTS EXTRA BLOGS

FOR THE RECORD
LOCAL PROS

ALL SPORTS

PHOTOS & VIDEOS

OUTDOORS

FIND A STORY

EMAIL ALERTS

SOCIAL MEDIA

RSS FEEDS

CONTACT US
BUY PHOTOS & PAGES

ADVERTISE ON SPORTS EXTRA


Print story only Print story with comments Email Twitter Facebook Pinterest
Bedlam, OU-Texas Could Go Away
Published: 8/26/2011 10:20 AM
Last Modified: 8/26/2011 10:20 AM

It is apparent Texas A&M is on the way out of the Big 12 and perhaps off the Texas football schedule.
What happens if there is no Texas-Texas A&M game on Thanksgiving weekend?
Nothing.
There’s no Oklahoma-Nebraska game on Thanksgiving weekend, also thanks to conference realignment. The Sooners and Huskers have survived just fine.
It is the biggest question about the future of the Big 12. What happens to rivalries if these schools go their own way?
Well, you don’t have them anymore. We’ll miss them but life, and the leagues, go on.
One has to believe some rivalries will survive like OU-Texas and Bedlam. However, if Texas goes independent, Oklahoma goes to the SEC and Oklahoma State goes to the Pac-12 what happens to those games?
Well, those games could still be played. However, if you are OU, and you are playing in the SEC, do you really want to use two of your three non-conference games to play Texas and Oklahoma State?
So far, there is no indication that OU, OSU and Texas are getting ready to split from each other. However, the way league realignment is going there is no reason to rule it out.
If Texas-Texas A&M can go away, and there is a good possibility it will, then nothing in guaranteed.



Reader Comments 5 Total
GeorgeNolandII (last year)
I guarantee OU will never go to the SEC. If the Big 12 dissolves, OU will head to the PAC-12. The low academic standards precludes OU from every considering the SEC. It's a joke for A&M to claim they have high academic standards and yet want to go to the SEC.
                    
kryan74 (last year)
George, what kind of drugs are you on? The Sooner fans who continue to pump the pac 12 are becoming quite irritating. Your comment about academics, OU and the Pac 12 are absurd. Oklahoma fits more with the SEC regarding academics, geography and culture.

What part of this is so hard for people like yourself? There is only one explanation: The reason you long for OU in the Pac 12 is an easy schedule and easy road to the NC. You fear the competition in the SEC and think OU would suffer.

The fact of the matter is this: More exposure, more money and a brand new recruiting pool lies in the SEC. New rivalries, that are actually exciting would emerge if OU joined the Southeastern conference. Driving two days to play UofA doesn't sound all the grand. AND OKLAHOMA IS NO WHERE NEAR THE WEST COAST!

A move to the Pac 12 just kills college football altogether and is one more step closer to the McDonaldsization of the game we love. Unheard of travel, weak SOS and a eventual loss in viewership.
GeorgeNolandII (last year)
"ever considering"
GymRat (last year)
Wait, what?

I'm not trying to be insulting to the University of Oklahoma (which ranks ahead of my alma mater), but in the latest US News and World Report "Best Colleges" rankings, Oklahoma (#111) would rank 8th in the expanded Southeastern Conference behind Vanderbilt (#17), Florida (#53), Georgia (#56), Texas A&M (#63), Alabama (#79), Auburn (#85), and Tennessee (#104); just ahead of South Carolina (#113), LSU (#124), Kentucky (#129) and Arkansas (#132).

Oklahoma probably won't join the SEC, but it will not be because of its great superiority in terms of academic standards. To the contrary, Oklahoma probably aligns better with the SEC in academic terms than it does with the Big 10 or the Pac 12. More likely, Oklahoma doesn't end up with the SEC because it will refuse to part ways with Oklahoma State - and while the SEC would probably strongly consider Oklahoma by itself, it almost certainly won't take both schools.
Graybeard (last year)
OSU is to OU like Renfield is to Dracula. He wants to follow his master wherever he goes. So much talk about bringing in Notre Dame into the Big 12....NO THANKS! Or BYU....NO THANKS! I like the idea of Houston, TCU or maybe even SMU. Phooey on dissolving the BIG 12 Conference....let's bring teams into our fold.
It would be a shame to lose the Bedlam series in ALL sports.....it is just too much fun!
5 comments displayed


To post comments on tulsaworld.com, you must be an active Tulsa World print or digital subscriber and signed into your account.


Klein's Korner

Tulsa World senior sports columnist John Klein is in his fourth decade of covering sports. He started his newspaper career at The Daily Ardmoreite in 1977 and moved to the Tulsa World in 1978. He served 10 years as sports editor for the Tulsa World before being named to his current position in 2005. He also spent five years as the Southwest Conference beat writer for the Houston Post. He has won many writing awards and is a former Oklahoma Sports Writer of the Year.

Follow John Klein on Twitter

Subscribe to this blog



Archive

 
John Klein's Blog Archive:

2/2013  1/2013  12/2012  11/2012  10/2012  9/2012  
8/2012  7/2012  6/2012  5/2012  4/2012  3/2012  
2/2012  1/2012  12/2011  11/2011  10/2011  9/2011  
8/2011  7/2011  6/2011  5/2011  4/2011  3/2011  
2/2011  1/2011  12/2010  11/2010  10/2010  9/2010  
8/2010  7/2010  6/2010  5/2010  4/2010  3/2010  
2/2010  1/2010  12/2009  11/2009  10/2009  9/2009  
8/2009  7/2009  6/2009  5/2009  4/2009  3/2009  
2/2009  1/2009  12/2008  11/2008  10/2008  9/2008  
8/2008  7/2008  6/2008  5/2008  4/2008  3/2008  
2/2008  1/2008  12/2007  11/2007  10/2007  9/2007  
8/2007  7/2007  6/2007  5/2007  4/2007  3/2007  
2/2007  1/2007  12/2006  11/2006  10/2006  9/2006  
8/2006  





Home | Contact Us | Search | Subscribe | Customer Service | About | Advertise
Copyright © 2013, World Publishing Co. All rights reserved.