Is there a Big XII Curse?

Not on us, but on the teams that chose to leave the Big XII (and possibly extending to Arkansas, which began the exodus by exiting the SWC).

As of this week:

Nebraska
4-3, 3rd in Big 10 West

Aggy
3-3, 5th in SEC West

Colorado
3-3, 5th in Pac 12

Arkansas
2-4, 7th in SEC West

(Idle speculation while recovering from Texas-OU)

 

Good question. I think Mizzou is also having a marginal season to add to your list.

 

Doggone it, I knew that I was leaving someone out.
But Mizzou is 5-1 and 1st in the SEC East.
(Then again, SEC East is the weaker of the two divisions.)

 

And Missouri has had other successful seasons since leaving the Big XII like 2013 & 2014, when they went 12-2 and 11-3, won the SEC East and we’re ranked #5 and #11.

They took a step back when Pinkel had to retire. But Odom has them moving slowly but in a positive direction again.

 

Maybe the other conferences are just alot tougher

 

I stand corrected - Mizzou is handsome 5-1 so far this season.

 

I don't think it's a curse, per se, they just are finishing in their new conferences about where they finished in the Big 12.

 

There is actually a post right now on Texags regarding this subject. I actually asked this question to this board in regards to Nebraska and the Aggies A while back.
To me, it is absurd that Texas A&M and Arkansas are in the Southeastern conference. It makes no sense at all.

Once the four Texas teams joined the big 8 the writing was on the wall that Nebraska and Colorado would be better fits other places. I understand that. Although I do really miss our annual Nebraska game over Thanksgiving weekend.

It just happens to be that a good friend of mine was very high up in the University of Oklahoma administration. He told me that Oklahoma kind of became the go-between with the frustrated Northern B 12 schools and the new Texas schools. The fractions were mostly understandable and impossible to really overcome. Nebraska, Colorado, and Missouri had some legitimate beefs. But, they were completely perplexed as to the Bizzarre and unreasonable anger that Texas A&M had towards the university of Texas. As an Okie that does not live in Texas I do not get that whole thing.

The truth is, since those other teams left it has been good for Oklahoma and Texas. We both make more money than we did with the other teams here. The conference is probably a little easier, but prestigious enough that even last year Oklahoma got in to the playoffs with one loss. I would say that we may be hurt by a weak conference when it comes to playoff time, our defenses, but Clemson seems to play at a high-level and their conference is worse than ours.

 

Boomer, nice post. Please continue to chime in on this board here and there. Good win to y'all. Obviously, the new DC made a huge difference.

 

I think a lot of us Longhorns are perplexed about it, too. I understand the state school rivalry part of it (not unlike OU/OSU, Iowa/Iowa State, so on and so forth). But aggy took it to a whole additional level with a cult-like, near-religious obsession, even to the point about being indignant/paranoid over an imagined Burnt Orange Media Conspiracy. Just typing this makes me realize why most Longhorns aren't too hip about the idea of reviving the UT-aggy game (much less getting them back into the Big XII). And they won't let go of it because they are so steeped in those hokey rituals that are hopelessly out of date. E.G.: the other day I was stuck in traffic behind a pickup truck that had a big SAW 'EM OFF sticker (including the BEVO head with severed horns) in the rear window. I wanted to tap on his window and say "Dude, you've been out of our conference for almost a decade. Get yourself a new object of obsessive hatred." But of course I shook my head and laughed it off.

 

They've been good but they also haven't played the meat of their schedule yet. They have a stretch in a couple weeks at Kentucky, at Georgia, and then hosting Florida. (BTW their SEC West schedule this year was Arkansas and Ole Miss. If they're gonna make a title run in the East, they better do it now.)

 

I'd tell them to join the club, but clubs require people to care a lot more than most people do.

 

To me, that sounds like where each of the four belong. The surprise has to be Mizzou but maybe the surprise is really how horrible the SEC East is.

 

Missouri lost to Vanderbilt last night.
The Curse Lives, Hurrah!!!