While everyone outside of CU fans (and some Pac-10 fans) are down on the Pac-10...

[NashBuff]

...does this mean the Pac-12 could become an awesome conference down the road? I think that has to be the case here. Let's take another look at the other 12 team conferences out there.

SEC: I don't remember what the rage was way back in the early 1990's and I don't know what kind of expectations were there for the SEC to begin with.

Big 12: Back in 1994 and 1995, there was a lot of anticipation for the Big 12 because it was supposed to be the biggest and baddest conference in the land. Fast forward to 2010---CU and NU left for the Pac-10 and Big Ten respectively. Looking back, were the expectations simply too high for the Big 12 at the start?

ACC: I was in Washington DC at the time of the ACC raids into the Big East and the expectation was that the ACC was going to be a strong BCS conference and at this point due to Florida State & Miami floundering more often of late, it seems like the ACC expansion might be a bit of a dud although Virgina Tech has lived up to its end of the deal.

Pac 12: The perception right now is that Colorado and Utah doesn't add a lot of value. Given the skyhigh expectations of the Big 12 & 12 team ACC and how those conferences have somewhat underdelivered does leave out the possibility that the Pac-12 will overdeliver and everyone will be happy.

Anyone getting this feeling? I am not sad about CU leaving the Big 12...they had to go to a place where they were wanted and a place where most CU fans wanted them to go. It has worked out very good for the Buffs.

 

[sackman]

This is a deal that works for both sides. CU will be getting more money out of the deal, but the 40,000 +/- CU alumni in the West Coast will do more than just sell tickets. They'll be watching. Not only does this deal bring in more televisions, but it puts more people in front of those televisions, particularly on the West Coast.

 

[CUinDC]

I agree, I'm still excited about the move. The Big12 looked great when it started, and CU, NU, and the rest of the north were pretty close to even with the south. But as the years went along, and the uneven balance of power/revenue got worse, the south got better and better, and the north (with a few exceptions here and there) got worse and worse. Some of this can be explained by other factors (e.g. great coaching hires like Stoops to OU), but not all of it. I think the move to the Pac12/Big X will be great for both CU and NU, and I can see both steadily improving as they make their way in their new conferences (although, admittedly, it's going to take us a little while). The money may take a little while to get to us, but I'm pretty confident (I have no hard data to back this up) that it will be better than if we had stayed.

 

[UrbanaBuff]

This stuff goes in waves. Case in point, when the Big XII formed, you could argue that NU and CU were the hottest brands involved. UT was mired in mediocrity, and OU was working through its own craptastic problems in the '90s. Well, that kind of flipped over the next 15 years.

The Big Ten is usually top-heavy. What Michigan was in the '90s, OSU has become in the '00s.

In the ACC, Va Tech has done an admirable job of stepping up when Miami has dropped off.

 

[SuperiorBuff]

Oklahoma

Its only a matter of time that Texas substantially separates themselves from even OU and it truly is the SW Conference implosion again.