Today is the kickoff of college football's regular season, signaling the upcoming arrival of autumn. That means the kids will be back in school and the leaves will change colors, making for some breathtaking scenery. That also means that we'll see the Alabama's, Clemson's, Georgia's, and Ohio State's dominate the football landscape... again.
This summer, Oklahoma and Texas announced their intentions to move to the SEC, dramatically shifting the college football landscape to the southern conference. Both schools are arguably two of the sport's biggest cash cows, giving commissioner Greg Sankey a stranglehold on the sport. Paul Finebaum has officially creamed himself.
That also means the potential demise of the Big 12. How will the conference stay solvent and find two new members, if not, more? Even if the Pac-12 doesn't make a power move, there's the possibility the Big Ten and the ACC will. I'm looking at you, Kansas, Iowa State, and West Virginia. You will be on the chopping block if both conferences want to compete with the SEC.
In the wake of the two southern school's big move, it leaves the other three at a disadvantage in the sport. How can they compete when the SEC has a clear recruiting advantage? What can they do to combat this issue to ensure the sport doesn't fall into obscurity from a thirst for money?
Thankfully, the Pac-12 joined forces with the Big Ten and ACC to form... an alliance. I don't know exactly what that means other than "stabilizing" college football. There's no contractual agreement in place, which could make matters volatile should one of the conferences go rogue.
There is a scheduling component for college basketball in this regard, which is nice. It's also meant to weaken the hold ESPN and the SEC have on college football, which makes sense. However, what will happen when one of the conferences goes rogue before 2026? That's something to watch for in the upcoming years.
Oklahoma and Texas joining the SEC has made the conference broken in college football. It's basically a disadvantage partially due to the television contract ESPN has with the SEC. Right now, the sport is headed in a new direction that'll likely lead to a dystopian future. That's something nobody except the south wants.
