The House of Blue

Here we go. Buckle up. The SEC is about to become the first superconference. Don't be surprised if a couple of other Big XII schools follow suit. I'd love to see Mizzou added, as well as Oklahoma or Okie St. And, get VA Tech or F$U from the ACC.

Agree.

It should be clear to anyone that to be competitive in football in the SEC requires competitiveness on the national stage, e.g. a top 25 level program. A commitment to win 6 or 7 games a year will not get it done on the field, even though being the SEC Doormat will certainly pad the old bank account.

Then we should join CUSA or the BE.

I'm affraid you may be correct. If this happens will UL remain on the schedule?

If Texas A&M is added, then another team would have to be added, making the East go to 7 teams. This has all but been confirmed by the Presidents. With 14 SEC teams, the league would need to add another conference game, as you would have to play your East teams, as well as play 3 West teams to avoid a 7 or 8 year rotating schedule. I'd be shocked if the schedule remained at 8 games.

I don't believe I said anything about the Big East or CUSA.

Don't be so sure the Presidents will jump at this. Who besides "an unnamed SEC source" for ESPN has said that the SEC wants aTm? Maybe it was the same source that said Les Miles to Michigan? And, like you said, aTm would be in the West, do you really think Alabama, Auburn, and LSU want another high quality team that they have to go through to get to the BCSCG? There's as much incentive for the powers to say no to Texas A&M as the little guys. And if one school has more pull in this than others, it would be Alabama.

Another thing that isn't getting mentioned that isn't part of the logistics and is more sentimental is what the SEC means. Saturdays in fall are the best days of the year. A big reason for that is SEC football. It's something that all other conferences envy. It is the most prestigious conference in sports. Why take away from that? If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Increasing the SEC from 12 to 14 or 16 waters down the conference. Sure, more quality teams are added, but they aren't the same quality as Alabama, LSU, Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, and Auburn. It would be comparable from Mensa changing admittance from the 95th percentile to the 90th. Is it still better than everybody? Absolutely. But is it still that select few? No. The SEC is great as it is. Leave it alone.

Keep in mind that the SEC will balance out with an east team within a year if they accept A&M this year. My bet is that A&M joins in 2013-14 so they avoid paying a huge exit fee. This also gives time to bring Virginia Tech or a North Carolina school into the SEC. I think Va Tech could become a great rivalry for UK. Also, UK is stronger than any of the North Carolina schools in football now that UNC is in trouble.

I know you didn't mention the Big East or CUSA, I was just making the point that I don't care if more good programs join. I would rather have a schedule full of quality teams as opposed to playing a Big East or CUSA schedule. You make good points, however I believe this is going to happen and you could be correct about the addition of a 9th conference game. It's hard for me to believe that AM would go out on a limb and inform the Big 12 of their intentions if something wasn't already in the works. Because now that they have informed the Big 12, what happens if the SEC does say "No Thanks". AM would look really silly if they didn't have anywhere to go.

But the SEC is in a position of being the chooser at the moment, not the beggar. Everyone is getting in position for the inevitable 16 team power conferences to allow an eventual playoff. I think adding A&M and Va. Tech would be a net positive for the SEC tradition and atmosphere. Go on the A&M board. They are giddy just thinking about being in the SEC. What I worry about is team 15 and 16. if they compromise and add someone like Clemson, NC State, or Georgia Tech, I agree that it is bad for the conference. I like Florida State for a cultural fit, but they would never get past the Georgia, South Carolina, and Florida no votes. If UNC and Duke would come as teams 15 and 16, I think it would be a great fit. UNC would be tremendous rivals for South Carolina, which right now is nobody's first or even second biggest rival. They would also create a good rivalry with Tennessee. Duke would be great for Vandy and would boost our academic standing among the conferences. Plus, UNC brings a decent football program, but beatable. Duke will be on par with Vandy. This lifts Kentucky to a perennial mid level threat in the East instead of hanging in the bottom half.

The only scenario where I would support SEC expansion is, as you mentioned, if power conferences begin to form. But, I don't see power conferences forming unless the SEC is that first domino. Clemson, Florida State, and Va Tech have all reaffirmed their commitment to the ACC. This has already been discussed and is a point worth bringing back up, but I don't see any of those teams having desire to join the SEC. Being in the ACC in football is a huge advantage for those teams. All have good recruiting grounds, solid programs, and big fan bases. It is not relatively difficult for them to reach the BCS. That won't be the case in the SEC.

Finding that 14th team might present some challenges unless it is a mid tier ACC or Big 12 team.

Very true that the ACC teams are showing solidarity... for now. The assumption is that 4 conferences with 16 teams each will emerge. The SEC, Big 10, and PAC 12 are strong and not going anywhere. That leaves the Big 12, ACC, and Big East to survive kind of like when the Joker broke that pool cue and made the 3 gangsters fight to the death to see who joined his crew. The Big East is doing what it can to survive (see: invitation to TCU, which makes no geographical sense.) If Notre Dame threw their weight toward the Big East since they already play with them in everything except football, then it is possible that the ACC would die a Big 12 type death and absorb into the Big East and Big 10. Apparently, the ACC is shakier than they appear from a revenue standpoint, at least in football. Their conference championship game has never gotten any steam behind it, either. Very fun stuff to speculate about. All in all, I think this is what ultimately happens:

Pac -12 - Picks up Texas and Texas Tech if the legislature makes a power play, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State

Big 10 - Missouri, Maryland, Rutgers, do their best to get Kansas without having to include Kansas State (schools must be AAU members, which is why Oklahoma would never get an invite). I could see Virginia here, too.

SEC - Texas A&M, Virginia Tech, UNC, Duke. If the ACC dissolves, I could see UVA trying to come along with Va Tech. The Virginia legislature acts very much like Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas when it comes to keeping their schools together.

Big East - Florida State, Miami, NC State, Clemson, Notre Dame comes on in football

So, Wake Forest, Georgia Tech, Boston College, Kansas State, Iowa State, and Baylor get the squeeze.

I'm going to have to disagree. To quote a very wise Ol' man "The rest of the SEC is not going to come down to our level. We need to step it up to climb the SEC ladder" (paraphrasing of course). I think Joker sees this the same way. When asked about how adding TAM will effect UK he said "it won't". By that I think he understands that the only way UK will be relevant in football in the SEC is to take that next sep up the ladder, win championships. His goal is not to just go to a bowl game. He wants to see UK win championships. I don't know about you , but I'm with him. I'm all in!