Absolutely brain dead.
When talks of bringing in PAC 12 schools died down there wasn’t any other choice.
USC values their partnership with Stanford. Will never leave Stanford. Not just Stanford but the original PAC 5. The Cal 4 plus Washington.
What did Bowsley think was gonna happen when both FOX and ESPN decided not to negotiate.
Did he really believe Texas and OU were going to stay
May 25th
https://www.heartlandcollegesports....early-tv-negotiations-with-big-12-conference/
Back to 2019.
2 years ago
He is FOS. He knew what was gonna happen. He is trying to save face and more than that
Baylor and TCU knows as R2 schools they for sure won’t be in a P5 conference
This idea that it was just ESPN is bullshit
FOX was involved as well. Difference is FOX didn’t get what they wanted and now are hiding behind mouthpieces pushing propaganda in attempt to slow down ESPNs power move
There's no evidence that the BIG 12 wouldn't have been able to lure some PAC teams or others into the BIG 12.
OU/UT probably blocked any such moves much as UT blocked expansion in 2012-13 and around 2016.
In the article reporting the lack of early renegotiation:
https://www.lubbockonline.com/story...iations-texas-tech-president-says/7434386002/
ESPN and FOX, who have 13-year agreements with the Big 12 that run through 2025, aren't ready to talk about a new deal when the ones in place still have four years to go.
That was a message Big 12 presidents, chancellors and athletics directors heard on a Zoom video conference Monday with a media consulting group it enlisted months ago, Tech President Lawrence Schovanec said.
Schovanec, Texas President Jay Hartzell and West Virginia President E. Gordon Gee formed a three-man committee in the fall of 2020 to study "whether we should consider acting preemptively with regard to our TV contract," Schovanec said, "or just waiting and going into free agency when that contract is up in 2025."
With assistance from the Big 12, they enlisted the consulting firm Bevilacqua Helfant Ventures (BHV).
"The general result is that, at this time, with so much uncertainty in the media marketplace as well as the landscape for collegiate athletics," Schovanec said, "our partners, ESPN and FOX, are not interested in acting preemptively with regard to our contract.
They recognize the importance of our partnership, but there's just too much uncertainty, and they do have four years to go.
"So we'll wait until we get to the right place and time."
Also, that happened on May 25th--not 6 months ago which Bowlsby stated was when the UT/OU SEC debacle began taking shape in secret while OU/UT were still sitting in on BIG 12 planning meetings. For all we know the BIG 12 was planning on expansion at that time and were played by OU/UT and ESPN. We know from Bowlsby's comments that OU/UT were pretending in person that everything was fine--they even participated in BIG 12 media days right before the news broke--so how would Bowlsby have known?
As to FOX--obviously FOX didn't pull any teams out of the BIG 12 and offer them lucrative contracts to do so--while ESPN has.
All the BIG 12 schools are power conference schools and UT/OU signed a 99 year agreement to remain in the conference as well as signing GOR agreements for their media rights and buyout clauses. Now for some reason they are trying to duck out of those agreements and in order to help them do it a network is trying to really dissolve the BIG 12 and devalue the remaining membership--which also benefits the network financially.
Really no option but to pursue their rights to get those who signed on to honor their commitments. As Bowlsby has stated he has evidence to prove what he is stating about the situation.
