Cougars see tables turning
AAC to pursue leftovers from the Big 12, the conference that spurned expansion in 2016
Back in summer 2016, schools from the so-called Group of Five lined up to make elaborate pitches to join the Big 12.
For three months, the University of Houston was among the reported favorites, along with Cincinnati, to join the Big 12. It would have been a monumental moment for Houston, which has long desired a seat at college football’s table of power brokers — and the exposure and lucrative payout that come with it.
It all turned out to be a threemonth charade. The Big 12 eventually decided against expansion. Tilman Fertitta, UH’s deep-pocket board of regents chairman, blasted the process, calling it “a total sham” … “PR play” … “biggest ramrod, railroad, ever.”
Five years later, conference realignment is back on the table. This time it’s not just talk. As early as this week, Texas and Oklahoma are expected to declare their intention to leave the Big 12 for the SEC.
That once desirable Big 12 destination that had schools tripping over each other for admission like a sold-out concert. Not so desirable anymore.
And once on the verge of being raided, the AAC could open its doors to some, if not all, of the eight remaining teams from the Big 12, a group that includes Baylor, Texas Tech and TCU.
The AAC will not take a waitand-see approach and instead will be aggressive in pursuit of the Big 12’s leftovers, an industry source confirmed Saturday. The Athletic was the first to report the AAC’s intentions.
The source said it’s unlikely the Big 12 survives the loss of its top two revenue-producing schools, which would set off a scramble for the remaining schools to find a new home once the league’s grantof-rights agreement ends in 2025. However, if the Big 12 looks to expand, one source said there are no schools that would bring significant value.
If the Big 12 makes a call, Houston would most likely be at the top of the list. But would it be financially worthwhile? And it’s a certain that a reconfigured Big 12 would not possess the same clout. Right now, the AAC has something the Big 12 lacks: stability.
That’s why the feeling in the AAC offices is completely different from five years ago. The 10 footballplaying schools are “united” moving forward, the source said.
It has been no secret of commissioner Mike Aresco’s desire to be included among the power conferences with the league’s “Power Six” initiative that would put the AAC on par with the SEC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and ACC. For its part, the AAC in recent years has been rumored to be interested in expansion targets BYU, Boise State, San Diego State and Colorado State.
In a eight-page letter sent in May to Power Five conferences, the AAC’s board of directors requested a meeting to discuss inclusion in the group.
The letter, obtained by the Chronicle, lists the AAC’s strengths and accomplishments, which recently include a Final Four appearance (UH), Peach Bowl appearance (Cincinnati), NIT champion (Memphis), NCAA women’s basketball participants (UCF and USF) and conference-record 19 players selected in the 2021 NFL Draft. The league also mentions the AAC has a presence in the fourth (Philadelphia), fifth (Dallas and Houston) and eighth (Washington D.C.) largest TV markets.
“Relegated to G5 status when the CFP was established nine years ago, the American has never belonged in that group,” the letter stated. “Although this letter and its message are not focused on that group, the fact that the American has separated itself completely from the other conferences makes it abundantly clear that the American belongs in the autonomy group. The evidence of the vast gap between the American and the other G5 conferences is compelling.”
The addition of Texas and Oklahoma would create a 16-team “superconference” in the SEC. What would that mean for the other leagues? Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff told ESPN that the conference is not looking to add schools but would be “foolish not to listen.”
The Pac-12 nixed plans to add Texas Tech and Oklahoma State, along with Texas and Oklahoma, in 2011. Could the ACC add West Virginia? What about Kansas and Iowa State to the Big Ten?
As for the AAC? The league has already established itself as the premier conference among the Group of Five. The AAC has earned the New Year’s Six spot five of the last six years. And now the G5 has a clear path with the College Football Playoff expanding from four to 12 teams.
Imagine the AAC adding, say, Baylor, Texas Tech and TCU to a group that includes Houston, UCF, Cincinnati, SMU and Memphis.
Not too shabby.
UH fans may have been disappointed and angry, even a few broken hearts, with how the latest round of conference expansion talk played out. Keep this in mind: had the Cougars been invited a few years ago it would have been only a matter of time before the Big 12 was on the verge of collapse. The Cougars would now be among the schools with an uncertain future and in need of a life jacket.
“Somebody wants the University of Houston,” Fertitta said at the time. “It’s not just the Big 12 out there. There are other conferences. You’re going to look up, whether it be next year, the year after or whenever. The University of Houston is going to be in a Power Five Conference.”
Fertitta may still get his wish. It just probably won’t look anything like we all once envisioned.