According to a report by the Houston Chronicle, the Texas Longhorns and the Oklahoma Sooners have apparently reached out to the Southeastern Conference to inquire about possibly making the move to leave the Big 12 behind. If that actually came to fruition, it would be a monumental move for the college sports landscape, particularly so in college football.
This comes 10 years after the last major college conference realignment, which was incredible and ridiculous at the time.
There’s a ton to dislike about the possible move and a ton to like about it, but one thing to consider is this: Mississippi State gets some new teams to beat up on regularly in baseball. Alternatively, something else worth keeping in mind is this: things could get more difficult for Mississippi State in football (and possibly men’s and women’s basketball and also softball and then also
So, part of me is saying this: please move Texas (and Oklahoma) to the Southeastern Conference so Mississippi State baseball can beat them every year. Part of me is saying this: does this truly benefit anyone except Oklahoma and Texas?
But does it even really benefit Texas all that much?
Before you come over here, Texas, there’s a few things you need to keep in mind:
Look, Texas, I sincerely doubt anyone in the Southeastern Conference is gonna make a big deal about preventing you from getting hit with a few dozen “Horns Down” hand signals each and every week whenever someone makes a big play against you like the Big 12 has vowed to do.
People simply will not care.
You also need to come prepared with the knowledge that you really aren’t that special to anyone in the SEC. There are (AT LEAST) a half dozen other football programs in the conference that are as good as, or better than, your football team right now.
If you’d like, I can list them right here:
- Alabama
- Georgia
- Florida
- LSU
- Texas A&M (yes, that Texas A&M)
- Auburn
And that’s not counting Oklahoma, who would absolutely be in the top three of that grouping right there. Texas, as it stands right now, you’d probably be a mid-tier program in the Southeastern Conference. Is that something that you’re comfortable with?
Winning at a high level would get more difficult for both the Sooners and Longhorns in just about every sport but softball (and arguably men’s basketball). That doesn’t mean that either of these football teams can’t succeed in the SEC, they absolutely have the resources to win at a high level here, but it’d be hard for them to consistently be the best team in the SEC.
Could either of these schools live with having the third or fourth best football team in the conference for a few years in a row? Because that seems like a likely outcome, more often than not.
For more independent Mississippi State news and commentary, follow The Underdog Tribune on Facebook and Twitter. Follow Ethan Lee on Facebook and Twitter.
Leave a Reply