College Confidential

Big 12 officials distribute league-record $198 million in revenues to members

Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby announced today that his league will distribute a league-record $198 million in revenues to its 10 members for the 2012-13 school year.

The revenue distributions, announced at the conclusion of the Big 12 spring meetings in Irving, break down to approximately $22 million per school for the league’s eight charter members. First-year members TCU and West Virginia each will receive half-shares of $11 million as part of a four-year phase-in agreement put in place when those schools agreed to join the Big 12.

Even as half-share recipients, the $11 million represents a significant jump in revenues from last year for TCU and West Virginia. TCU was a member of the Mountain West last year, where it never earned more than $2 million in any school year. West Virginia competed in the Big East.

For the other members, the $22 million is the largest per-school take in Big 12 history. It also exceeds today’s announced distribution of revenues in the Southeastern Conference, which passed out $20.7 million per school ($289.4 million total) to its 14 members, including Texas A&M.

Bowlsby said the Big 12 distribution numbers, derived primarily from television contracts, bowls and NCAA basketball tournament appearances, will only increase in future years. Bowlsby said projected revenues will reach $30 million per school by 2015-16, the first year that TCU and West Virginia will receive full shares, and could top $40 million by the end of the league’s existing television contracts with Fox and ESPN that run through the 2024-2025 school year.

_ Jimmy Burch

 

TCU men's hoops assistant set to join former coach at Texas Tech

TCU assistant men's basketball coach Pooh Williamson is taking an assistant job at Texas Tech, sources said. Williamson coached under Trent Johnson for one season at TCU. Williamson played for new Texas Tech coach Tubby Smith at Tulsa in the mid-1990s. Smith was named the Red Raiders coach April 2. He's Tech's fourth coach in four years.
Johnson said a replacement for Williamson will be named soon.
-- Stefan Stevenson
@FollowtheFrogs 

Fox Sports SW to offer live telecasts of OU, Texas Tech spring FB games #RedRaiders, #OU

Fox Sports Southwest will offer live telecasts of the Oklahoma and Texas Tech spring football games, network officials announced today.

The telecast of the Oklahoma game, set for Saturday in Norman, Okla. (2 p.m., FSSW), will be preceded by a two-hour pregame show. Tech’s spring game will be played April 20 in Lubbock (1 p.m., FSSW).
Both games also will air nationally on Fox College Sports.

Texas A&M’s spring game, set for Saturday (2 p.m., Kyle Field), will be an ESPN national telecast. Network officials announced plans to air the Aggies’ spring game last month.

In May, FSSW officials also will air a series of 30-minue shows recapping spring drills for area colleges. Below is a look at FSSW’s planned schedule of spring football coverage for area colleges:

FOX SPORTS SOUTHWEST SPRING FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
(All times listed are Central; Schedule subject to change)
 
Spring Games:
Sat., April 13      Noon            Sooner Sports Gameday1
                           2:00 p.m.      OU Spring Game1
Sat., April 20      1:00 p.m.      Texas Tech Spring Game2
 
1 – Available on FOX Sports Plus in Houston, Central/South Texas, Arkansas & Louisiana markets
2 – Available on FOX Sports Plus in Houston and Oklahoma markets
                           
Spring Football Series:
Baylor: Saturday, May 4, 1:30 p.m. & 10:30 p.m.; Sunday, May 5, 10:00 p.m.; Tuesday, May 7, 1:00 p.m.; Wednesday, May 8, 10:30 p.m.; Sunday, May 12, 7:00 a.m.; Friday, May 17, 10:00 p.m.; Saturday, May 25, 3:30 p.m.; Wednesday, May 29, 4:30 p.m.
 
Oklahoma: Monday, May 6, 10:00 p.m.; Tuesday, May 7, 1:30 p.m.; Saturday, May 11, 11:30 a.m.; Tuesday, May 14, 8:00 p.m.; Wednesday, May 22, 6:30 p.m.; Saturday, May 25, 6:30 p.m.
 
Oklahoma State: Thursday, May 9, 10:00 p.m.; Friday, May 10, 6:30 p.m.; Saturday, May 11, 11:00 a.m.; Wednesday, May 15, 11:00 p.m.; Tuesday, May 21, 12:30 p.m.; Saturday, May 25, 6:00 p.m.; Wednesday, May 29, 5:30 p.m.
 
TCU: Thursday, May 9, 9:00 p.m.; Saturday, May 11, 9:30 p.m.; Monday, May 13, 6:00 p.m.; Saturday, May 18, 3:00 p.m.; Monday, May 20, 5:30 p.m.; Saturday, May 25, 4:00 p.m.; Wednesday, May 29, 8:30 a.m.; Friday, May 31, 9:00 p.m.
 
Texas A&M: Tuesday, May 7, 10:30 p.m.; Wednesday, May 8, 3:30 p.m.; Friday, May 10, 5:00 p.m.; Wednesday, May 15, 10:30 p.m.; Saturday, May 18, 11:30 a.m.; Friday, May 24, 10:00 p.m.; Saturday, May 25, 4:30 p.m.
 
Texas: Wednesday, May 1, 6:00 p.m.; Friday, May 3, 9:00 a.m.; Saturday, May 4, 1:00 p.m.; Tuesday, May 7, noon; Thursday, May 9, 9:30 p.m.; Sunday, May 12, 7:30 a.m.; Friday, May 17, 9:30 p.m.; Friday, May 24, 2:30 p.m.; Saturday, May 25, 5:00 p.m.; Friday, May 31, 9:30 p.m.
 
Texas Tech: Sunday, May 12, 10:00 p.m.; Monday, May 13, 8:00 p.m.; Wednesday, May 15, 10:00 p.m.; Friday, May 17, 11:30 a.m.; Tuesday, May 21, 10:30 p.m.; Friday, May 24, 2:00 p.m.; Saturday, May 25, 5:30 p.m.; Tuesday, May 28, 10:00 p.m.
 

_ Jimmy Burch

 

Tee times set for Tuesday's North Texas College Shootout, with top two finishers to join LPGA field

Participants in the North Texas Collegiate Shootout, which will send two college golfers into the field for North Texas’ upcoming LPGA Tour event in Irving, will take the course at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday at Las Colinas Country Club.

The top two finishers among the 18 college golfers in the 18-hole competition will earn berths in the North Texas LPGA Shootout, a full-field event scheduled April 25-28 at Las Colinas CC.

Tee times for Tuesday’s competitors:

9:30 a.m.:  Natalie Reeves, Texas A&M; Hally Leadbetter, Arkansas; Alexanra Ann Rossi, SMU.

9:40 a.m.: Chelsea Mocio, Texas A&M; April McCoy, TCU; Taylor Slagle, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.

9:50 a.m.: Sarah Beth Davis, Texas A&M; Melanie White, SMU; Flower Castillo, Incarnate Word.

10 a.m.: Jenny Haglund, SMU; Madison Pressel, Texas; Alexandra Bonetti, TCU.

10:10 a.m.: Casey Grice, North Carolina; Sanna Nuutinen, TCU; Katerina Ruzickova, Texas A&M.

10:20 a.m.: Kelsey Vines, Oklahoma State; Mary Michael Maggio, Texas A&M; Jennifer Park, SMU.

 

_ Jimmy Burch

 

Texas, Texas Tech draw two Thursday FB telecasts, including T'givng night; TCU, Baylor get one #UT, #TCU, #Tech, #Baylor

Texas and Texas Tech will play in two of four Thursday night football games to be played by Big 12 teams during the 2013 season, including a Thanksgiving night matchup in Austin, league officials announced today.

The Thursday night telecasts, with times and networks to be announced later, include Texas at Iowa State (Oct. 3), TCU at Texas Tech (Sept. 12), Oklahoma at Baylor (Nov. 7) and Texas Tech at Texas on Thanksgiving night (Nov. 28).

_ Jimmy Burch

 

Texas Tech-SMU football opener moved to Friday, Aug. 30 for ESPN national telecast #RedRaiders, #SMU

Texas Tech and SMU have moved the school’s 2013 football opener to Friday, Aug. 30 as an ESPN national telecast, officials from both schools announced today. The contest will kick off at 7 p.m. at Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas.

The contest will be Tech’s first game under coach Kliff Kingsbury, who replaced Tommy Tuberville after the former coach took the Cincinnati job in December. Tech will be making its first Friday night TV appearance since 2002, when Kingsbury led the team to a 49-0 victory over New Mexico as the team’s starting quarterback on Sept. 27, 2002.

_ Jimmy Burch

Spring football drills open Thursday at Texas; fellow Big 12 members TCU, Baylor begin March 1

Texas will open its spring football drills Thursday in Austin, just 15 days after adding its latest crop of recruits on National Signing Day. And the remainder of Big 12 schools will not be far behind the Longhorns in returning to the field for workouts.

Baylor and TCU begin spring football drills on March 1, with Oklahoma (March 6), Oklahoma State (March 11) and Texas Tech (March 24) opening later in the month. Texas will close its spring drills on Saturday, March 30 with its Orange-White Game in Austin (6:30 p.m., Longhorn Network).

Below is a look at the spring football schedules for league teams:  

 
Big 12 spring football dates
Baylor: March 1 start, spring game April 6
Iowa State: March 26 start, spring game April 20
Kansas: March 5 start, spring game April 13
Kansas State: April 3 start, spring game April 27
Oklahoma: March 6 start, spring game April 13
Oklahoma State: March 11 start, spring game April 20
TCU: March 1 start, spring game TBA
Texas: Thursday start, spring game March 30
Texas Tech: March 24 start, spring game April 20
West Virginia: March 10 start, spring game April 20

NOTE: Dates are subject to change.

_ Jimmy Burch 

Big 12 ADs support seeking alliance with other leagues, have not ruled out expansion

IRVING _ Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby said league athletic directors expressed unanimous support for exploring a scheduling and marketing alliance with the ACC and other conferences during a Monday meeting but did not close the door on the possibility of future expansion.

Bowlsby said Big 12 administrators seek to prepare themselves for “any eventuality” on the realignment front and discussed multiple options during a three-hour discussion about the league’s future. But he stressed that league officials would not rush to expand from the existing 10-member configuration unless it makes financial sense.

Based on a recent Forbes projection for the current school year, the Big 12 is expected to have the highest average payout of any conference in terms of television, bowl and NCAA Tournament revenues _ roughly $26 million per school. Prospective new members would have to bring a comparable amount of value to the table to trigger voluntary expansion.

“Anybody we would look at would have to bring pro rata or a very high likelihood of sustained growth that would bring benefits to the league,” Bowlsby said. “We are never going to get bigger just for the sake of getting bigger.”

Bowlsby acknowledged expansion by other leagues could force the Big 12’s hand and said officials “have to be prepared to respond to that changing environment.” Speculation has centered on Big 12 interest from Florida State and Clemson, with Connecticut and Cincinnati among the most desirable remaining assets in the crumbling Big East.

But the league’s favored option, expressed in a unanimous vote at Monday’s meeting, would be an alliance with the ACC and two other leagues Bowlsby declined to name. Commissioners from the Pac-12 and SEC said Monday they are not part of the discussions with the Big 12, ACC and other leagues.

“Our group said these alliances have merit and we’re willing to support it,” Bowlsby said. “The discussions are probably furthest along with the ACC, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that’s what we’re going to end up doing.”

Big 12 athletic directors deferred questions to Bowlsby but indicated they joined him in considering Monday’s session a step forward in solidifying plans for the league’s future.

“I think we did gravitate around some principles that will guide us going forward,” said Bowlsby, who declined to offer details. “I think we created some filters that we all agreed on and I think there was a fair amount of unanimity in the room.”

The two-day meeting continues today, with discussions about future football schedules and bowl partnerships.

 Twitter: @Jimmy_Burch

_ Jimmy Burch

Texas Tech RB Stephens, a Mansfield Timberview grad, to play in Jan. 19 Collegiate Bowl #TexasTech, #RedRaiders

Texas Tech running back/receiver Eric Stephens, a Mansfield Timberview graduate, committed today to play in next week’s NFLPA Collegiate Bowl in Carson, Calif. The contest, set for Jan. 19 (6 p.m., ESPN2), features draft-eligible seniors and is run by the NFL Players Association. Stephens rushed for 489 yards and five touchdowns for the Red Raiders last season.

_ Jimmy Burch

Where is TCU going bowling? My guess is back to San Diego or Houston but final week could alter destination for many

So where is TCU headed bowling? Wish I could tell you. Too much is still riding on the outcome of the final week of games, especially the Horned Frogs’ regular-season finale against No. 11 Oklahoma at 11 a.m. Saturday at Amon G. Carter Stadium.
The outcome could affect where the Horned Frogs (7-4, 4-4 in the Big 12) are headed in the postseason. If TCU upsets the Sooners, and incidentally, wins its first Big 12 game at home, Oklahoma's hopes of earning a BCS bowl berth would be dashed. The Sooners (9-2, 7-1) could still win the Big 12 title and earn a Fiesta Bowl appearance with a win and a No. 6 Kansas State loss to No. 18 Texas. If Oklahoma loses, then they’ll likely play in the Cotton Bowl.
If the Frogs lose to Oklahoma, they appear headed to the Holiday Bowl in San Diego. That's if San Diego isn't sick of TCU. The Frogs have played in three Poinsettia Bowls, also in San Diego, since 2006, including last year. The Meineke Car Care Bowl in Houston would likely be attracted to TCU, expecting more Frogs fans to travel to Reliant Stadium for the Dec. 28 game against a Big 10 team. The Frogs have played three bowls in Houston since 2001, the last coming in 2007.
Of course, more than conference finish comes into play when bowl representatives are looking to fill the matchups. If TCU wins Saturday, then the Frogs would finish ahead of Texas Tech (7-5, 4-5) and would seem to be in line for the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl in Tempe, Arizona. And if Baylor wins its third consecutive game by beating Oklahoma State Saturday then the Bears would potentially finish in a four-way tie with TCU, Tech, and West Virginia at 4-5. If that happens, then all bets are off on bowl positioning, at least for the middle-tier bowls.
The bowl matchups will be announced Dec. 2.

Here’s how I project the Big 12 standings finishing, with the favored team (Kansas State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and West Virginia) winning Saturday, with bowl destinations and bowl payout (per team) for each bowl:

	Projected standings	Projected bowl	Payout per team (in millions)
Kansas State	11-1, 8-1	BCS Fiesta (Glendale, Ariz.)	$17
Oklahoma	10-2, 8-1	BCS Sugar (New Orleans)	$17
Oklahoma St.	8-4, 6-3	Cotton (Arlington, Tex.)	$3.625
Texas	8-4, 5-4	Alamo (San Antonio, Tex.)	$3.175
Texas Tech	7-5, 4-5	Buffalo Wild Wings (Tempe, Ariz.)	$3.350
TCU	7-5, 4-5	Holiday (San Diego, Calif.)	$2.075
West Virginia	7-5, 4-5	Pinstripe (New York City)	$1.8
Iowa State	6-6, 3-6	Heart of Dallas (Cotton Bowl)	$1.1
Baylor	6-6, 3-6	Meineke Car Care (Houston)	$1.7
Kansas	1-11, 0-9

-- Stefan Stevenson
@FollowtheFrogs