Boise State could be kept out of the Big 12 because of academic issues.

According to Jon Wilner of the San Jose Mercury News, sources said the Big 12 has “reservations about Boise State on academic front, in addition to geography.” (Source)

Right.

When did academics become so important to the Big 12? Oh right, the Big 12 includes those hotbeds of scholarship—Lubbock, Texas and Stillwater, Oklahoma!

Don’t be fooled. This isn’t the real reason the Big 12 wants to avoid Boise State.

The Big 12 fears Boise State. The Big 12 doesn’t want another butt kicking from the Broncos.

Oklahoma doesn’t want to remember the humiliation the Sooners suffered at the hands of Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl.

Texas doesn’t want a real challenge on the way to a BCS bowl.

Who can blame them? It is fine for Texas and Oklahoma to look out for their own interests, but please spare us the sanctimonious BS about academics.

There are real issues involving Boise State joining a conference like the Big 12. Geography is one of those real concerns. There are serious questions involving stadium capacity and television appeal. However, it is insane to claim academics has any role in conference realignment.

Everyone knows money is driving this realignment drama and conference expansion circus. So, why won’t Big 12 athletic directors and presidents be honest with us? Just how dysfunctional is this league?

Things are bad in the Big 12. This latest example of cowardice is a blot on the entire league. It doesn’t deserve to be called the Big 12. Little 12 is far more accurate.

34 thoughts on “Conference expansion: Big 12 afraid of Boise State”

  1. Maybe so, but I would take Okie and Okie State any day over Missouri. Missouri is a leftist school that does not fit into the SEC from a cultural or geographical standpoint. When you add teams for TV markets only, you’re losing your soul

    1. Agree with that — Mizzou just doesn’t “fit” the “model” — plus — other than basketball — they really suck at football with the exception of a year here and there.

  2. Yeah haven’t you seen Boise’s win/loss record for the past ten years? They clearly “suck”. This guy’s clearly a Vandal fan or an SEC fan whose team refuses to schedule a non-conference game against Boise.

  3. Oklahoma State is an Ivy League institution in comparison to Boise State, and that is saying quite a bit about both schools.

  4. I have to admit I thought it was pretty stupid myself seeing as how Texas A&M and Missouri are both members of the Association of American Universities and therefore ARE hotbeds of academics. But then I had almost forgotten that WE have A&M and maybe Missouri too. Kind of leaves the Big 12 a little short handed in the brain department doesn’t it? However logistics certainly are a problem with Boise, not to mention the TV footprint leaves a hell of a lot to be desired unless you can sell to Prairie Dogs and Jack Rabbits. Boise’s stadium is quaint, but so is Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile. Bwaa haww haww! RTR!

  5. What’s to like about Boise State? The Broncos are good in football, but that’s it — all other sports are terrible. A small, isolated market, long distance from Big 12 footprint. So many better options on the table.

    Let the Pac-12 take Boise if academics aren’t important.

  6. If BSU does not get a invite from a AQ then no one should sit around and whine about their SOS. Fans can try and predict how they would do vs better competition but until it happens it just blowing smoke. I would love to see a team like Texas on the blue turf, but I doubt it will ever happen. Its a shame Oregon and Oregon St. have the courage to give it a shot and the rest of the BCS schools would rather find a easier win. If a BCS school really wanted to prove something then go and win on the Blue. Oh thats right its too small there, not enough people rooting against them. I bet there has been a ton of meetings behind closed doors with the words we do NOT need a BSU on our schedule we can find a easier win. On a note if ANY top 10 ranked team did come and beat BSU on their blue field they would go straight to #1. But as the story goes the blue field only attracts ducks not chickens.

    1. when u have a 30k stadium if u want to be considered legit u have to do a 2 for 1 home home …fsu miami and others all did it ….boise refuses b/c they like it the way it is – unexposed fraud

  7. The Big 12/9 or whatever they are this week are full of shit if they use academics or geography as a reason to avoid Boise St. Didn’t Texas, Oklahoma, OK State and Texas Tech try to move to the Pac 10/12/16 a week or so ago? It is all about money and what is best for their school. Oklahoma and Texas are in the same time zone as the SEC yet they are two time zones away from the Pacific schools. Last time I checked Idaho was east of Oregon and Washington. Texas A&M has been in the shadow of Texas and Oklahoma for years so moving to the SEC is of not much concern when it comes to football, they are used to loosing big games. The Longhorns and Oklahoma teams would Sooner travel out west where they can compete than to get beat up on weekly in the SEC.

    1. wow working like a hell to get to 53k capacity
      As the Boise State football program rose to national prominence in the early 2000s, Bronco Stadium became increasingly insufficient. The school completed a new 3-story complex on the stadium’s west side, the Stueckle Sky Club (pronounced Stickle), that features levels for a new press box, luxury suites, loge boxes, and club seating (in descending order) and which increased seating capacity to 32,000.

      South end zone expansion
      The practice facility, named the Caven-Williams Sports Complex, officially opened in February 2006, is located immediately northwest of Bronco Stadium.[20] Construction began on the Stueckle Sky Club on February 11, 2007, and it officially opened on August 27, 2008 with a gala for ticket holders prior to the first game on August 30.[21] Additional temporary seating of 1,500 was added prior to the 2009 season. The removable bleachers increased Bronco Stadium’s capacity to 33,500.
      In late August 2010, new expansion plans were revealed for Bronco Stadium. The first stages will include adding a new facility to the north endzone, which will house the football offices, weight room, training room, equipment room and locker room. This would also include a 13,200 seat grandstand. The later stages of the expansion plan include: removing the track, lowering the field, and adding 3,300 seats in front of the first deck of the stadium; completing the south endzone horseshoe; building an east side skybox; and renovating the east side concourse. The expansions may be divided up into as many as six phases. The total cost for all planned expansions is around $100 million. The total seating capacity for a fully expanded Bronco Stadium is estimated to be around 53,000.[22] The Boise State athletic director aims to have the north endzone complex open in time for the 2013 season.[23]

  8. i am calling on espn cbs etc to set up – 2 for 1 – tv deal with boise a couple of top ten calibre teams to play concurrently and expose the non-players

    1. The total seating capacity for a fully expanded Bronco Stadium is estimated to be around 5 3,0 0 0 The Boise State athletic director aims to have the north endzone complex open in time for the 2 0 1 3

      1. fyi – dec 2/3 2011
        pac 12 championship/fri nite @ best record div winner
        sec championship/sat 3pm central @ atlanta
        big 10 championship – sat 7pm ” @ indianapolis
        acc championship – sat 7 pm ” @ charlotte

        big 12 – marquee gm – sat tba @ stillwater

  9. Priority #1 if they join anywhere ….pull up the blue carpet and get a real field. That vomit blue rug is disorienting and is a competitive advantage.

  10. Phuck the Big 12 and Boise St. This is Florida week and today is the day that Bama decides if we end up the regular season in Atlanta or not. This has been a pathetic week on CR. Not one thread on Bama-Florida or the football season that has generated more than half a dozen posts. So: I’m sick of hearing about Florida’s phucking race cars. Where the hell was Harvin last year when this defense was still pubescent. Richardson lost to him in the 100 meters by .1 of a second. Completely irrelevant on a football field and whats more that was in track gear. Richardson is bigger and stronger. Bet you in the weight and resrictions of pads and football gear he’s faster than Harvin, especially at the end of a 50+ yard run. Besides Richardson and Harvin don’t compete against each other and Bama has their own burners on defense. And with all the talk about race cars for Florida, where in the hell has Maze disappeared to? Is he phucking invisible? I’ll lay odds he’s faster than anybody on the Florida O. Bama 35-10. RTR!

      1. BAMA WILL DO WHAT IT ALWAYS DOES TO RACECARS – SHUT THEM DOWN…AND WE WILL DO WHAT WE DO – RUN OVER THEM

        1. I bet the “we” in “we will…run over them,” is not part of the “we” that actually played. Now, maybe “they” ran over Florida, but “we” didn’t at all.

  11. Oh yeah, and Lacy is supposd to be a step faster than Richarson. Then there’s Blake Sims who’s lightening quick, can throw, catch and run and remember we haven’t run the Wildcat yet in which everybody expects Blake to be a killer. I say the so called Florida speed is bullshyt. Bring it Gayturds!!! RTR!

  12. Not sure why, but I’ve enjoyed watching Boise the last decade, maybe the blue field? No, it’s just fun to watch very talented underdogs, get better year after year. The SEC in football is somewhat similar to the NFL, most teams are very competative, but week after week of dealing with bowl quality teams, beating each other up, has been both good and bad. It’s hard to argue that’s it’s not good since bowl records and championships have been good of late; and that’s my only big knock against TCU’s and Boise’s, that’s why I’d like a playoff system where a good team must beat a few other good teams in a row to win it all. That’s always been a knock against Texas, Nebraska, Penn St., etc; one or two hard games, rest your players and keeping them from getting hurt, healthy for one bowl game. The Big 12 should invite Boise, BYU and TCU amoung others, to join. Quality teams shouldn’t be excluded from the BCS totally because they’re unable to schedule harder opponents; but they also shouldn’t be able to waltz in with one or two notches either. Let the good teams join a troubled conference or incorporate a playoff system similar to march madness, using existing bowl games as semi’s etc. some cities already have multiple bowl games. If anyone can beat Alabama, USC and Oregon type programs, back to back, unquestionably, name them Champs! Academics, other sports are very important; but it’s football that is the engine driving the economics that makes all this possible. And somehow Texas has made everyone angry, Big 12 member schools, Pac12, somehow Texas has a misguided thought that they’re above all others; I respectfully disagree. I won’t say others are better but will submit many schools are at least equal, but they don’t.

  13. I think there is more to the story at Boise than meets the eye — for one they are on probation — for minor stuff — but think about it — who would want to play in Idaho over some west coast teams — there has to be money being thrown around over there for blue chippers to go there — because there isn’t MUCH THERE!

    I know sometimes players, mostly individuals and not team oriented players, want to stand out at a University to enhance their pro careers — but something is fishy about Boise — a nobody who started knocking off big tier programs — hmm,

  14. Damage it’s even stranger than you think. Cause Boise doesn’t have any Blue Chippers. They don’t even have a 4*. So go figure. For one thing they are being coached up. No. 2 they play with confidence. No. 3 they play with a chip on their shoulder and something to prove. But no. 4 is that they started the Spread Option during the modern era. We had West Coast, Run and Shoot, Fun and Gun, etc. But until the Boise – Oklahoma fiasco no major program ran a helter skelter offense like Boise or now among others Michigan, Auburn and Clemson. It’s a medical fact that the Malzahn style of Offense can make a team of 2 and 3*s as efficient and hard to control as a team of 4 and 5*s. You can also add some kind of intangible such as they sacrifice Chickens or Virgin Cheerleaders (Do those exist?), to Satan or something, cause they lost their coach and never missed a beat with the new one who may be even better. That they may have had to stipend 3*s to get them to come up there to play really shows just how difficult their position is and how amazing their success has been. RTR!

  15. You must be on crack. Boise Idaho is WAY outside the conference footprint. Regardless of their football pedigree a 33,000 seat stadium (that is under renovation I understand to add seats) makes any trip there a money loser. Plus you don’t want to spend money sending your womens volleyball team to Boise for a “conference” game. Its too freaking far. If you are able to add BYU as well it makes more sense but Boise on its own doesn’t have much to offer when apparently the only thing considered is size of market.

  16. let’s all be honest boise plays 1 big game a year and hope that team doesn’t lose to many. the schedule leaves them fresh for any bowl game. but if any of you think they could play a conference schedule like the sec or hell even the little 9(b12) and be much better than 500 after being beat to hell by the schedule is a damn joke.

  17. I can only hope BSU gets in the B12. I would love to see them play competition more their levels.

  18. “Little 12”? Let’s not go overboard.

    Shrinking 12 is more like it because of defections, and isn’t too insulting.

    As a Boise State fan, I say it’s long overdue for them to get an invite. They’re not one-year-wonders, their success is consistent over a decade. Those who whine about BSU’s strength of schedule are the same cowards who refuse to play them – the SOS isn’t Boise’s fault. And contrary to the lies some fanbois want to tell, teams can’t force their way into conferences. Boise State would jump at any chance to get into an AQ conference.

    The Shrinking 12 needs Boise State, BYU and one other to get to twelve. I’d prefer to see West Virginia rather than Louisville. You can’t call your conference tough if there isn’t a gauntlet of tough teams to play, and bringing in Louisville over WVU would make the Big 12 worse than the ACC. If Missouri jumped ship, then I would be all for Louisville joining to have a team in that region.

  19. Why Boise will not be invited to an AQ conference despite how good their football program is (ranked in order of importance):

    1) Market/Location – enough said
    2) Other Sports – while football drives the bus you need to be competitive (read ncaa tournament bids) in basketball, baseball, swimming, soccer, etc) to get into an AQ conference
    3) Academics – this is important to the college presidents who vote on these things – Boise’s not ranked in Top 200 and makes West Virginia look like Ivy league in comparison
    4) Stadium Size – 33K is laughable and going to 50K would be on par with Kansas smallest in Big 12 – schools like WVU and Louisville are also promising to upgrade their already 60K stadiums to get in the Big 12

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