****The official NEW new conference realignment thread.****

[Saul Good]

the second thread has been pronounced dead.

[Saul Good]

Originally Posted by DaKCMan AP

Arlington, Big Easy vie to host bowl

Updated: August 14, 2012, 9:21 PM ET
By Brett McMurphy | ESPN

Because Arlington, Texas, and New Orleans are the overwhelming favorites to host the new Champions Bowl, as many as seven of the 10 cities that received a request for a proposal may not bid on the bowl, sources told ESPN.

Last week, ESPN reported the 10 cities that received a request for a proposal for the opportunity to bid on the Champions Bowl: Arlington, New Orleans, Atlanta, Phoenix, Houston, Orlando, Nashville, San Antonio, Tampa, Fla., and Jacksonville.

Of those 10, only Arlington, New Orleans and Atlanta have decided to bid on the bowl, sources said. Phoenix, Tampa and Nashville will not submit a bid, while Houston, Orlando, San Antonio and Jacksonville have formally not made a decision yet.

Sources said most of the four "undecided" cities likely won't submit a bid because of the reality "that it's a two-horse race" between Arlington and New Orleans. Atlanta, which will submit a bid, is viewed as a long shot because it already hosts the SEC championship game.

Sources added that a few of the four undecided cities ultimately might participate in the bidding process, but only to appease their local communities.

A request for a proposal must be completed by Aug. 22. The Champions Bowl will debut in prime time on Jan. 1, 2015.

The Champions Bowl was created by the SEC and Big 12 as a postseason home for each league's champion. If the SEC or Big 12 champion advances to the national semifinals, each conference would then provide another team for the Champions Bowl. The Champions Bowl also will be part of the national playoff semifinal rotation during the 12-year term, starting after the 2014 regular season.

http://espn.go.com/college-football/...wl-sources-say

Phoenix seemed like the obvious place to hold this game. Strange that they backed out.

[mnchiefsguy]

Originally Posted by DaKCMan AP

Arlington, Big Easy vie to host bowl

Updated: August 14, 2012, 9:21 PM ET
By Brett McMurphy | ESPN

Because Arlington, Texas, and New Orleans are the overwhelming favorites to host the new Champions Bowl, as many as seven of the 10 cities that received a request for a proposal may not bid on the bowl, sources told ESPN.

Last week, ESPN reported the 10 cities that received a request for a proposal for the opportunity to bid on the Champions Bowl: Arlington, New Orleans, Atlanta, Phoenix, Houston, Orlando, Nashville, San Antonio, Tampa, Fla., and Jacksonville.

Of those 10, only Arlington, New Orleans and Atlanta have decided to bid on the bowl, sources said. Phoenix, Tampa and Nashville will not submit a bid, while Houston, Orlando, San Antonio and Jacksonville have formally not made a decision yet.

Sources said most of the four "undecided" cities likely won't submit a bid because of the reality "that it's a two-horse race" between Arlington and New Orleans. Atlanta, which will submit a bid, is viewed as a long shot because it already hosts the SEC championship game.

Sources added that a few of the four undecided cities ultimately might participate in the bidding process, but only to appease their local communities.

A request for a proposal must be completed by Aug. 22. The Champions Bowl will debut in prime time on Jan. 1, 2015.

The Champions Bowl was created by the SEC and Big 12 as a postseason home for each league's champion. If the SEC or Big 12 champion advances to the national semifinals, each conference would then provide another team for the Champions Bowl. The Champions Bowl also will be part of the national playoff semifinal rotation during the 12-year term, starting after the 2014 regular season.

http://espn.go.com/college-football/...wl-sources-say

Not sure why hosting the SEC championship game would be a mark against Atlanta. Once the Big XII re-establishes a championship game, it will likely be held in Arlington.

Arlington probably has the edge. Cowboy Stadium is the newest, and seats over 100,000, right? That would be a tough venue to pass up.

[kepp]

Originally Posted by mnchiefsguy

Not sure why hosting the SEC championship game would be a mark against Atlanta. Once the Big XII re-establishes a championship game, it will likely be held in Arlington.

Arlington probably has the edge. Cowboy Stadium is the newest, and seats over 100,000, right? That would be a tough venue to pass up.

And Arlington would give the SEC exposure on its new western boundaries.
Posted via Mobile Device

[Saul Good]

Interesting (and kind of funny depending on your perspective) article about the Longhorn Network. What a train wreck that thing is.

http://www.hornsports.com/one-year-l...for-texas-fans

Has the granting of rights been signed yet in the Big 12, or has any progress been made on that front?

[Valiant]

I keep reading that nebraska is a national brand. When I travel I see just as many huskers gear as I do mizzou gear. Does that mean mizzou is a national brand now or that nebraska is not. This is not the 90s. They had a great year, but calling them a national brand is a joke. Only elite, are national brands. The schools that have there gear in stores all over the nation. Get talked about by other conference fans. Even though I have officially adopted mizzou since the sec move(go ducks) they are not elite yet and nebraska is certainly not.

[Mr. Plow]

Originally Posted by Valiant

I keep reading that nebraska is a national brand. When I travel I see just as many huskers gear as I do mizzou gear. Does that mean mizzou is a national brand now or that nebraska is not. This is not the 90s. They had a great year, but calling them a national brand is a joke. Only elite, are national brands. The schools that have there gear in stores all over the nation. Get talked about by other conference fans. Even though I have officially adopted mizzou since the sec move(go ducks) they are not elite yet and nebraska is certainly not.

Not that I necessarily disagree with your take, but a national brand doesn't just go away that quickly. They were an elite team for a long time and they don't just drop off of being nationally known because of some down years. Look at Notre Dame for another example.

[Frazod]

Originally Posted by Mr. Plow

Not that I necessarily disagree with your take, but a national brand doesn't just go away that quickly. They were an elite team for a long time and they don't just drop off of being nationally known because of some down years. Look at Notre Dame for another example.

Yep. You say Nebraska, people think football. Even though most have no idea what city the campus is in and couldn't find the state itself on a map.

[DaKCMan AP]

I spent the past 7 days in College Station. Campus was plastered with SEC signs and bars & restaurants had SEC banners everywhere including flags of every SEC team hanging.

[Saul Good]

Originally Posted by DaKCMan AP

I spent the past 7 days in College Station. Campus was plastered with SEC signs and bars & restaurants had SEC banners everywhere including flags of every SEC team hanging.

What is the attitude of casual fans towards the move?

[DaKCMan AP]

Originally Posted by Saul Good

What is the attitude of casual fans towards the move?

I didn't talk to anyone about it. However, one of my coworkers who was on the opposite shift wore a Gator hat out to the bars one night and had a lot of people come up and talk to him. The sentiment he reported was that they were glad/proud to join the SEC and happy to break away from UT but still would like to keep the rivalry going. He said many people told him they were excited for the A&M/UF game although they felt UF was going to whip them (not sure I agree).

[Pitt Gorilla]

Nice article on Marcus Lucas on PowerMizzou. ML is 6'5" 215 pounds. DGB is 6'6" 220 pounds. Both are fast and can catch. We appear to have SEC size at wideout.

[Saul Good]

Mizzou, yet again, will have the largest freshman class in school history. For the first time ever, out of state applications outnumber in state applications.

[ghak99]

Originally Posted by Saul Good

For the first time ever, out of state applications outnumber in state applications.

Little surprised by this, did they happen to give any geographic stats with it? I hope they are a little better prepared then they were when the enrollment growth started a few years ago.

[Saul Good]

Originally Posted by ghak99

Little surprised by this, did they happen to give any geographic stats with it? I hope they are a little better prepared then they were when the enrollment growth started a few years ago.

I didn't see a breakdown on the geography, but it did say that the average ACT score hasn't changed.

[Saul Good]

Anything going on with the Big XII? Haven't heard anything about the granting of rights, adding Notre Dame, etc. lately. Need my fix...