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Message: [QUOTE="jostar1, post: 1745311, member: 1737"] What's not known is the motivation behind expansion: • Is this a pure money-grab? The Big 12's television contracts say the networks will up the ante if the league expands. If the Big 12 expands to 12, it would get 20 percent more money from television, and the league wouldn't necessarily have to give all the extra proceeds to the new members. • The Big 12 could negotiate with prospective members and invite the schools that accept the deal most advantageous to the conference. That would be quite short-sighted and disingenuous, but the Big 12 has been short-sighted before. • The Big 12 could be serious about establishing a conference network, digitally as much as on traditional cable, and if so, the likes of Brigham Young and/or Connecticut would bring a lot of eyeballs and potential payouts. • The Big 12 could be figuring out that a 10-team league with a championship game is on the goofy side, so it's going to shore up the league with the best football available, be it Houston or Cincinnati or whoever. Who knows the answer, which might even be different for different schools. Hard to imagine a Kansas State or Iowa State or Baylor voting for a short-term plan. Schools with limited options want to see this league get strong and stay strong. Here's when you know the Big 12 has reached real stability: when OU and Texas extend their grant of rights, the way the ACC did. [/QUOTE]