Are you happy U. of Missouri is leaving the Big 12? (St. Louis: fit in, university)

[kanhawk]

Kinda of sad to see them go. Such great rivalries with KU and other teams that will be lost now.

[stlouisan]

Yes and no. I'm happy that it's leaving, but IMO it is headed for the wrong conference. Mizzou belongs in the Big Ten, not the SEC. Culturally, geographically, and in terms of rivalries, Mizzou really doesn't fit in with the SEC, and is a much better match for the Big Ten.

[GunnerTHB]

Pretty neat article on all of this:

Regional differences complicate question of MU's future - KansasCity.com (http://www.kansascity.com/2011/10/15/3209565/regional-differences-complicate.html - broken link)

I won't be a Mizzou fan at all if they go to the SEC. I've never really followed the Big 12 anyway and my favorite team is in the SEC. I think a move to the SEC is motivated by money and access to TV markets in St. Louis & KC than anything. The TV market in Cape is already at least partially SEC oriented however.

[aragx6]

Originally Posted by GunnerTHB

Pretty neat article on all of this:

Regional differences complicate question of MU's future - KansasCity.com (http://www.kansascity.com/2011/10/15/3209565/regional-differences-complicate.html - broken link)

I won't be a Mizzou fan at all if they go to the SEC. I've never really followed the Big 12 anyway and my favorite team is in the SEC. I think a move to the SEC is motivated by money and access to TV markets in St. Louis & KC than anything. The TV market in Cape is already at least partially SEC oriented however.

You are exactly right about what the SEC gets out of this. I still don't quite see what Mizzou gets though ...

Color me displeased -- MU Alumni, class of '07

[aragx6]

MU officials say they don’t know of timeline for SEC move - KansasCity.com (http://www.kansascity.com/2011/10/29/3237520/mu-officials-still-mum-on-timeline.html - broken link)

[stlouisan]

I wish the Big Ten would give Mizzou a second look...Mizzou has many natural rivalries in the Big Ten. Nebraska and Illinois to name two. The only part of the state which I believe benefits from a move to the SEC is the southeastern part. I know that if the Big Ten renewed its offer to Mizzou, they would immediately tell the SEC to look for someone else. Since that hasn't happened, the SEC makes the most sense for now.

[stlouisan]

Originally Posted by GunnerTHB

Pretty neat article on all of this:

Regional differences complicate question of MU's future - KansasCity.com (http://www.kansascity.com/2011/10/15/3209565/regional-differences-complicate.html - broken link)

I won't be a Mizzou fan at all if they go to the SEC. I've never really followed the Big 12 anyway and my favorite team is in the SEC. I think a move to the SEC is motivated by money and access to TV markets in St. Louis & KC than anything. The TV market in Cape is already at least partially SEC oriented however.

It's pretty clear to me from this article that the only parts of Missouri supporting the move to the SEC are the extreme south central and southeastern parts of the state, which is perfectly understandable because their ties lie with Kentucky, Arkansas, and Tennessee. The rest of the state (which is most of it) either wants to remain in the Big 12 or move to the Big Ten. IMO, if the Big Ten allows Mizzou to join the SEC, they are going to find a hard time finding a better candidate to join their ranks right now, unless of course Kansas is considered, but that seems highly unlikely at this point. Anyone IMO who views Mizzou's move to the SEC as a symbol of the state joining the south needs a reality check...this state wanted strongly to join the Big Ten. It doesn't want to remain in The Big 12. If the Big Ten chooses not to pick up Mizzou, the SEC remains the logical choice. The only reason Mizzou is looking at the SEC right now is because they are having no luck with The Big Ten.

[MUTGR]

Originally Posted by stlouisan

I wish the Big Ten would give Mizzou a second look...Mizzou has many natural rivalries in the Big Ten. Nebraska and Illinois to name two. The only part of the state which I believe benefits from a move to the SEC is the southeastern part. I know that if the Big Ten renewed its offer to Mizzou, they would immediately tell the SEC to look for someone else. Since that hasn't happened, the SEC makes the most sense for now.

The money and stability of the SEC, which is the premier football conference in the country, add quite a lot to Mizzou, and to the extent our flagship state university benefits, it does benefit the entire state.

While I believe Mizzou would be a better fit in the Big 10, that's just wishful thinking. You don't pass up an opportunity to join the SEC and stay in a very unstable big 12 with a faint hope that the Big 10 will someday come calling.

The Big 12 is simply too unstable at this point. I wish we could somehow put the horse back in the barn and get Nebraska, CU and Texas A&M back and all make a blood oath to stay together, but this conference began to unravel when Nebraska bolted (if not really before).

[stlouisan]

Originally Posted by MUTGR

The money and stability of the SEC, which is the premier football conference in the country, add quite a lot to Mizzou, and to the extent our flagship state university benefits, it does benefit the entire state.

While I believe Mizzou would be a better fit in the Big 10, that's just wishful thinking. You don't pass up an opportunity to join the SEC and stay in a very unstable big 12 with a faint hope that the Big 10 will someday come calling.

The Big 12 is simply too unstable at this point. I wish we could somehow put the horse back in the barn and get Nebraska, CU and Texas A&M back and all make a blood oath to stay together, but this conference began to unravel when Nebraska bolted (if not really before).

That really is the point I'm getting at. The only reason Mizzou is looking at the SEC is because The Big 12 is too unstable, and The Big Ten has yet to renew its interest in adding an additional member. Mizzou has been trying to get into THe Big Ten for years...the SEC is a brand new interest that is likely their best alternative, at least in the short term. So it makes more sense to be an alien in another stable conference instead of staying in one that is collapsing.

[MUTGR]

Originally Posted by stlouisan

That really is the point I'm getting at. The only reason Mizzou is looking at the SEC is because The Big 12 is too unstable, and The Big Ten has yet to renew its interest in adding an additional member. Mizzou has been trying to get into THe Big Ten for years...the SEC is a brand new interest that is likely their best alternative, at least in the short term. So it makes more sense to be an alien in another stable conference instead of staying in one that is collapsing.

I agree to an extent, but I think the "cultural" differences are a bit overblown. I think it is overstating the case to say we would be an "alien" in the SEC. Culturally speaking, we are and always have been a bit different from the likes of OU (with whom we've almost always been in the same conference) and even Nebraska, where the football stadium in fall Saturdays is the third largest city in the state.

And I can tell you as a Mizzou football fan and a fan of college football in general, the idea of having teams like LSU, Alabama, Tennessee and Florida come into Columbia Missouri on occassion is very exciting to me. I've had season tickets in the past but dropped them due to other committments with kids playing sports at home, etc., but I plan on renewing now.