American Athletic Conference

[Aargh]

They're getting in on a LOT of 4 and 5 star kids from the Houston area. That's why Mike Gundy is bitching. If he doesn't recruit Houston or Dallas well, he's toast.

That's UH's problem for getting an invite to the B12. There are a lot of coaches in the B12 who want to recruit Texas. UH in the B12 would likely make it easier for UH to recruit the top talent in Texas. That means the rest of the B12 that's recruiting in Texas would have less of a chance at those same top recruits.

It takes 8 of the 10 B12 schools voting for a school (for that school to get an invote). I doubt OU wants to make it EASIER for UH to recruit Texas players.

[MoValley John]

That's UH's problem for getting an invite to the B12. There are a lot of coaches in the B12 who want to recruit Texas. UH in the B12 would likely make it easier for UH to recruit the top talent in Texas. That means the rest of the B12 that's recruiting in Texas would have less of a chance at those same top recruits.

It takes 8 of the 10 B12 schools voting for a school (for that school to get an invote). I doubt OU wants to make it EASIER for UH to recruit Texas players.

Exactly. The Texas pipeline of talent is overextended already. That is one of the big reasons Texas and Oklahoma can't just dominate the league. Hell, Texas is even the key recruiting area for Iowa State! You have more than 15 teams that have Texas as thir key recruiting territory, adding Houston to the Big 12 just exacerbates the problem.

Adding Houston works out well for Houston, but the league gets more inbred. What the Big 12 needs to do is look outward for expansion, not inward. The conference needs to open up new markets for viewers, not inward. The conference needs to open up new recruiting areas, not further dillute the already established talent pool.

This is easy to see for almost anyone outside of Texas. But, alas, I think at the end of the day, pressure will mount that there are no other worthy candidates (not true) and if schools like K-State don't vote for Houston, the conference will die. The Kansas State's and Iowa State's will buckle, Houston will get in, and that sucking you will hear, is the league slipping further down the drain. Houston is a good football team, but Oklahoma isn't the team it used to be. The talent pool is already drying up.

[Eric]

That's funny! I was at the Nebraska game yesterday, people were following the UNI score closer than any other. I don't know why Iowa State can't put together a competitive football team, but they just can't. On a positive note, KU chalked up a win, so the Big 12 has that going for them, which is nice. If Texas doesn't beat the Domer's, it could be a very long Big 12 season.

And emergency forms all over Lawrence were flooded with patients complaining of erections lasting more than four hours.

[LoneStar48]

This is pretty interesting about where the college players come from; about 50% come from 5 states. And Texas is number 2. Seems like I read that about half of the top 50 recruits in Texas go to the SEC now. I think the least of the Big 12's problems in recruiting is Houston.

http://www.sbnation.com/college-football-recruiting/2016/6/28/12040586/rankings-state-stars-florida-texas-california

[MoValley John]

This is pretty interesting about where the college players come from; about 50% come from 5 states. And Texas is number 2. Seems like I read that about half of the top 50 recruits in Texas go to the SEC now. I think the least of the Big 12's problems in recruiting is Houston.

http://www.sbnation.com/college-foot...xas-california

Funny about numbers, you can make them work anyway you want. Bottom line, based on your link, Texas produces 50 blue chips, give or take, each year. 50. Based on your number, 50% of Texas blue chips go to the SEC, leaving 25 blue chips to go everywhere else. That means if nine of the ten current Big 12 teams split the remaining blue chips, each school would end up with only 2.7. That's in an even distribution, and we know that doesn't happen. Texas will get four or five, as will Oklahoma. So, each of those nine schools get a few less. Unless............ A few of them go outside of the Big 12....... Oops! Now Texas and Oklahoma are scurrying!!!

Texas is a recruiting hotbed, nobody thinks otherwise. But when an entire conference relies on one state for most of its recruiting, it doesn't take long for the talent pool to dry up. This has been an ongoing problem with California in the Pac, and to a lesser degree, Florida, Florida State and Miami are finding it more difficult to stay on top with more local FBS schools competing, plus, the rest of the country raiding talent.

Warning! Lame fishing analogy ahead!

There is a lot of talent in Texas, but even huge lakes get fished out. As the number of lunkers landed by the Big 12 gets fewer and fewer, it would be far smarter for the Big 12 to seek an additional fishing holes, even if smaller, to try and land the big one, then to give another angler, that is already fishing your pond, better bait. Adding that fisherman's bag to your total might catch a few more fish overall, but each fisher gets fewer and fewer lunkers and most of the fish on the stringer start to look a bit stunted.

[LoneStar48]

I agree 100% with you, John. The Big 12 needs to/ought to remedy their appeal to the non-Texas athlete. For some reason, the league doesn't attract a proportionate share of blue chip recruits from Fl or CA, or Ohio for that matter. A&M moving to the SEC definitely helped that league in recruiting the Texas kids; Alabama is getting them at a lot higher rate than they used to.

[pie n eye]

Funny about numbers, you can make them work anyway you want.

I'll have to keep that in mind.

[1972Shocker]

nm

[atlwsu]

That's UH's problem for getting an invite to the B12. There are a lot of coaches in the B12 who want to recruit Texas. UH in the B12 would likely make it easier for UH to recruit the top talent in Texas. That means the rest of the B12 that's recruiting in Texas would have less of a chance at those same top recruits.

It takes 8 of the 10 B12 schools voting for a school (for that school to get an invote). I doubt OU wants to make it EASIER for UH to recruit Texas players.

I live in Atlanta, it is amazing how many Georia HS players go to other SEC or ACC schools. It a pears not to be a problem

[Dan]

Rice and Tulane may have med schools or other academic pluses but Rice enrollment is 6,000 and Tulane is 13,000 so they may have some similarities but differences are prevalent too. This imo will not happen.

TCU is only 10,000 but I still agree, these schools are not a good fit, especially Rice, who put very little resources into their athletics.

[MoValley John]

I live in Atlanta, it is amazing how many Georia HS players go to other SEC or ACC schools. It a pears not to be a problem

There are how many FBS schools in Georgia? Two? Or is it three? There are, I believe, 13 FBS schools in Texas. Then there are a slug of FCS schools too. California, another football hotbed, has seven FBS programs. The PAC, like the Big 12, has four schools in their hotbed, but unlike the Big 12, still has population bases in Washington, Arizona and now Colorado in which to draw talent. The Big 12 has local kids that standout in mostly rural areas...... And Texas.

Why anyone in the Big 12 would think its a good idea to better the U of H's recruiting ability by putting them in a P-5 is beyond me. Wouldn't it be better to again penetrate the Colorado market? Ohio? Somewhere where you add tv's, not duplicate your market, somewhere where you get the attention of new recruits, not provide the same recruits a list of more schools to consider?

[MoValley John]

Also, Georgia ranked fourth on bluechips, ahead of Ohio. That's a lot of bluechips for a state with few FBS programs. Of course other schools raiding Georgia isn't going to seem problematic.

[atlwsu]

Also, Georgia ranked fourth on bluechips, ahead of Ohio. That's a lot of bluechips for a state with few FBS programs. Of course other schools raiding Georgia isn't going to seem problematic.

Interesting: there over 27m people in Texas, and 10m in Georiga. Texas has 13 FBS (your # I did not check) that is a little over 2m per FBS school. Georgia has 4 FBS school, roughly 2m population per FBS school. Georgia Southern was bowl eligible its 1st year in FBS but could not go because 1st year schools are excluded.

[MoValley John]

Interesting: there over 27m people in Texas, and 10m in Georiga. Texas has 13 FBS (your # I did not check) that is a little over 2m per FBS school. Georgia has 4 FBS school, roughly 2m population per FBS school. Georgia Southern was bowl eligible its 1st year in FBS but could not go because 1st year schools are excluded.

My guesses were close, but off. Texas has 12 FBS schools, not 13. Georgia has four. Texas has five P-5 schools, Georgia has two. Drilling down, Texas has an additional eight FCS schools, for a total of 20 D-1 football programs. 20! Georgia has three FCS programs for a total of seven D-1 programs.

Furthermore, if you look at California and Florida, with populations of 38 and 20 million, both have fewer P-5, FBS and FCS schools than Texas. And when you throw out populations, and just look at how many D-1 schools along with how many top recruits come from each state, it really shows how stressed the Texas recruiting territory has become. Texas, A&M and Oklahoma will always score their recruits, but each time you elevate the status of another Texas school, you make it more and more difficult for the Kansas State's and Iowa State's.

[shocka khan]

TCU is only 10,000 but I still agree, these schools are not a good fit, especially Rice, who put very little resources into their athletics.

I am not so sure that TCU's academic status is all that hot, either. I looked into their MBA at one time (when I lived there) and found it very expensive (not to mention that the track was very narrow - Washburn University almost had more choices in their MBA probram).

What they DO have is oil money. Lots and lots of oil money. Money from Sid Richardson and the Bass family (very similar to the Kochs).

But no way do I think SMU will get an invite. Too much scandal in their athletic department. I don't think Rice will make the cut, either. I could see someone making a case for UNT (North Texas), but I don't think their athletic department is ready for prime-time, either. They are fair-to-middling in football and that's about it. They do have good academics, though.

But back to these small private schools, if the SEC had to redraw its membership, they would probably drop Vandy if they could add another football power. Private schools who emphasize academics over athletics aren't really popular in P-5 conferences. The only reason they exist is to provide a snack for the athletic elite in their conferences. Kind of a break in the schedule, as it were.

TCU and Baylor seem to be exceptions to this rule.