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Message: [QUOTE="UConnNick, post: 2351400, member: 1526"] Houston joined the SWC in 1976, many years before Arkansas left the conference in 1991. Houston actually won the SWC championship and beat Maryland in the Cotton Bowl during their inaugural SWC season. I think they finished ranked No. 3 or 4 in the country. Regardless of whether or not SMU might have been able to maneuver its way into the B12 when the SWC broke up in 1995, the perception is that the death penalty eliminated any possibility they may have had to do that at the time. They were a doormat in the SWC from 1989 to 1995. They quit playing their home games at the Cotton Bowl since they had no fanbase left and likely couldn't afford to pay the rent if only 15k were going to show up for most of their games. Conference realignment did ultimately kill their football program permanently, but the death penalty was the catalyst that sent them hurtling toward that downward spiral. Baylor made the B12 cut because then Texas Governor Ann Richards was an alum. That was a political deal she helped them make. [/QUOTE]