As we predicted, the Big XII's fate revolved around the decisions that the folks at the University of Texas would make. They jumped their Tuesday regents meeting by a day and began declaring on Monday that they would stay in the conference. Apparently, they are being fed mo'money.
It's nice that your schools are in a conference that gives them lots of exposure and helps with money for the athletic program as a whole and helps with recruiting students and such. I'm happy that the exposure will continue for the worthy state institutions of Kansas, Kansas State and Missouri. But my biggest concern is not as a sports fan but as a resident of a medium sized city in the plains of America. College athletics are a big part of our identity in Kansas City, a big part of our investments, and a big donor to our economy. I still feel pretty vunerable that this could come apart at any minute. Remember, this all started with rumors of Missouri leaving the conference.
We are secure for now. What can we do to insure college sports continuing presence in our city? What can we do to insure that our really cool rivals still play each other--or are economics going to undo 100 years of athletic history? We can't bask long in this victory. We must shore up our proverbial levies. I'm pretty sure there will be another hurricane.
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