Big 12 in Mexico

[Dawgg]

Haven't seen this mentioned on the Pack yet, but this is some really outside the box thinking. Not sure how much it does for the conference, but I mean... Clemson has played Wake Forest and Duke in Japan and Notre Dame plays Navy in Ireland, so stranger things have happened.

'Big 12 Mexico' launches with basketball games, bowl plans

"Big 12 Mexico" hopes to expand the conference's footprint with basketball, soccer and baseball games in the country, as well as plans for a football bowl game.

www.espn.com

 

[MaroonSadness99]

I don’t think it’s worth it. One of the best things about college sports is the home field/ stadium environments

 

[OG Goat Holder]

I don’t think it’s worth it. One of the best things about college sports is the home field/ stadium environments

Agreed. I remember Larry Scott's big push into Asia, didn't really get anywhere with it.

The international thing is more of a pro sports innovation. College is still pretty much a US-type deal. Why would people in other countries really want to watch amateur athletes?

 

[11thEagleFan]

El Grande Doce. Has a nice ring.

 

[Dawgg]

Agreed. I remember Larry Scott's big push into Asia, didn't really get anywhere with it.

The international thing is more of a pro sports innovation. College is still pretty much a US-type deal. Why would people in other countries really want to watch amateur athletes?

I forgot about the Pac-12 going to China or whatever that plan was.

I was listening to a podcast and a couple of British guys were discussing media rights deals for sports and how ludicrous some of the US broadcast rights packages were. Then they started commenting specifically on how they didn't understand Americans' obsession with college sports and some of the media rights deals that ESPN and Fox and NBC were paying specifically for college sports content. They compared that to dropping hundreds of millions of dollars to broadcast low level National League soccer.

 

[OG Goat Holder]

Then they started commenting specifically on how they didn't understand Americans' obsession with college sports and some of the media rights deals that ESPN and Fox and NBC were paying specifically for college sports content. They compared that to dropping hundreds of millions of dollars to broadcast low level National League soccer.

It's tribalism in my opinion. And that's what so many don't get. It's us vs. them, NOT the sheer entertainment of sports. The latter really only works for the highest level of professional sports, that's why the NFL works, but the XFL doesn't. That's why the MLB works, but MiLB doesn't (except for the idea that fans can see their players developing).

College is so unique in that regard, in that graduates feel connected. And the more they push money/NIL/etc. down the throat of the fans, the less connected they will feel, and eventually, the system will collapse or just slowly lose ground and regress. Again, it's NOT about watching the best players play, it's about my team having the best players because I want my team to beat your team. So many just fail to see this obvious point.

If you allowed the best players to leave all college sports, they would absolutely survive. The NCAA tournament would have been just fine without Derrick Rose, etc.

 

[Maroon Eagle]

Haven't seen this mentioned on the Pack yet, but this is some really outside the box thinking. Not sure how much it does for the conference, but I mean... Clemson has played Wake Forest and Duke in Japan and Notre Dame plays Navy in Ireland, so stranger things have happened.

'Big 12 Mexico' launches with basketball games, bowl plans

"Big 12 Mexico" hopes to expand the conference's footprint with basketball, soccer and baseball games in the country, as well as plans for a football bowl game.

www.espn.com

Postseason bowl game in Mexico is just an extension of the Bahamas bowl as well as previous bowls in Cuba and Canada— not a big deal at all.

And late December games in Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and other countries are also common.

It’s not so much out of the box thinking as it is that the Big 12 Doctrine has been stated.

Maybe the SEC can have dibs on Bahamas for basketball…

 

[Dawgg]

Postseason bowl game in Mexico is just an extension of the Bahamas bowl as well as previous bowls in Cuba and Canada— not a big deal at all.

And late December games in Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and other countries are also common.

It’s not so much out of the box thinking as it is that the Big 12 Doctrine has been stated.

Maybe the SEC can have dibs on Bahamas for basketball…

That's true about the basketball games. Those are pretty common.

I kind of forgot about the "International Bowl" before today when I was looking at South Florida's history, but it's been 13 years since that was last played and it only existed for 4. The Bacardi Bowl in Cuba was 1937, but I think we should bring it back and make that a semi-annual Ole Miss-Auburn neutral site game .

 

[Trojanbulldog19]

I feel like a lot of these conferences are going to get in a travel pickle. Big 12 has too many teams all over. Big 10 too. I like sec has tried to stay in a geographical footprint. Not a big deal for football but it makes a huge difference having teams travel all over the country all season for games. Makes a difference on players and your athletic budget

 

[GloryDawg]

The Big 12 is doing everything they can to stay relevant after losing two of the main teams that made them a P5.

 

[patdog]

I feel like a lot of these conferences are going to get in a travel pickle. Big 12 has too many teams all over. Big 10 too. I like sec has tried to stay in a geographical footprint. Not a big deal for football but it makes a huge difference having teams travel all over the country all season for games. Makes a difference on players and your athletic budget

I think the SEC is better positioned going forward than any other conference in the country. If/when there is future expansion, it will almost certainly come from within our existing footprint or contiguous states (North Carolina and/or Virginia). I think the Big 10 is going to find it's not as easy as they think to have teams spread from New Jersey to Los Angeles.

 

[Dawgg]

I feel like a lot of these conferences are going to get in a travel pickle. Big 12 has too many teams all over. Big 10 too. I like sec has tried to stay in a geographical footprint. Not a big deal for football but it makes a huge difference having teams travel all over the country all season for games. Makes a difference on players and your athletic budget

I posted this in another thread, but it seems appropriate here. It's the difference in UCLA's travel in their first Big Ten season vs their last Pac-12 season:

 

[Trojanbulldog19]

I posted this in another thread, but it seems appropriate here. It's the difference in UCLA's travel in their first Big Ten season vs their last Pac-12 season:

Think about the travel for the non money sports. It's going to eat their travel budget alive

 

[HRMSU]

It's tribalism in my opinion. And that's what so many don't get. It's us vs. them, NOT the sheer entertainment of sports. The latter really only works for the highest level of professional sports, that's why the NFL works, but the XFL doesn't. That's why the MLB works, but MiLB doesn't (except for the idea that fans can see their players developing).

College is so unique in that regard, in that graduates feel connected. And the more they push money/NIL/etc. down the throat of the fans, the less connected they will feel, and eventually, the system will collapse or just slowly lose ground and regress. Again, it's NOT about watching the best players play, it's about my team having the best players because I want my team to beat your team. So many just fail to see this obvious point.

If you allowed the best players to leave all college sports, they would absolutely survive. The NCAA tournament would have been just fine without Derrick Rose, etc.

Great take! It's also what separates the SEC....it just means more. Of course, we can go overboard with our tribalistic passion sometimes but no other fans in any conference are as passionate towards each other TOP to BOTTOM as the SEC.

 

[Called3rdstrikedawg]

It's tribalism in my opinion. And that's what so many don't get. It's us vs. them, NOT the sheer entertainment of sports. The latter really only works for the highest level of professional sports, that's why the NFL works, but the XFL doesn't. That's why the MLB works, but MiLB doesn't (except for the idea that fans can see their players developing).

College is so unique in that regard, in that graduates feel connected. And the more they push money/NIL/etc. down the throat of the fans, the less connected they will feel, and eventually, the system will collapse or just slowly lose ground and regress. Again, it's NOT about watching the best players play, it's about my team having the best players because I want my team to beat your team. So many just fail to see this obvious point.

If you allowed the best players to leave all college sports, they would absolutely survive. The NCAA tournament would have been just fine without Derrick Rose, etc.

@itscomingsoonerthanlater

There will be a Super Division of The Richest Programs Football and Basketball.

The rest will be more like the Ivy League, or Division III or NAIA, playing for the love of the game.

 

[Dawgg]

@itscomingsoonerthanlater

There will be a Super Division of The Richest Programs Football and Basketball.

The rest will be more like the Ivy League, or Division III or NAIA, playing for the love of the game.

You may be right about Football, but not Basketball. Kansas is one of the most storied basketball programs in the country and the last time the Big 12 was on the verge of breaking up, they were going to be one of the ones left out in the cold. Kentucky, the Big East, Duke, Gonzaga, etc... none of those teams are getting in to a Super Conference based solely on their basketball programs.