Political Pressure Meets Football

It was 1991; Nebraska and Colorado were busy splitting the Big 8 Conference Football Championship. The Baylor Bears were busy losing 24-0 in the Copper Bowl to the mighty Indiana Hoosiers. Behind the scenes the Big 8 Conference was looking to expand. They would eventually expand by adding three of the Southwest Conference’s elite, Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, and added Baylor to become the Big 12. How did Baylor get in over Houston, Rice, and Arkansas? The answer; the good ol’ fashion way, politics.


The late Ann Richards only served one term as Texas governor, but her mark on Texas football would be felt for many more years to come. The 1954 Baylor graduate was Texas governor during the Big 8 expansion negotiation stage. To add more political clout to the picture the powerful Lt. Governor for many years during this time was Baylor alum, Bob Bullock. The end result was Baylor being added to the Big 12. To add insult to injury, the headquarters were moved from Kansas City to Irving, TX. So, what did Baylor do in their Big 12 tenure? 46-108 in conference play.

Now it’s 2010; 19 years later Nebraska is joining the Big 10, and Colorado is joining the PAC- whatever. The PAC- whatever is negotiating with the Big 12 elite to join them. UT can name the conference they would like to grace with their presence. OU will find a home in a major conference but are completely at the mercy of the Texas decision. Tech has timed it perfectly and is deserving of a place in a major conference. OK State will try to follow OU. On the other hand, Texas A&M couldn’t have worse timing. A&M hasn’t finished in the AP Top 25 in over a decade. It would seem that they would be heading for the Mountain West, right? Well, not so fast. Current Texas Governor, Rick Perry is a proud Texas A&M alum. The only A&M grad to ever be governor is sure to apply massive political pressure to allow the Aggies to follow UT wherever they go. If history is an indication, whether it’s Baylor or A&M, politicians can’t tackle. So, A&M joining the PAC- whatever or the SEC might lead to a nice 46-108. Good luck with recruiting players to College Station with that unless they are interested in becoming a farmer or an engineer.