(11-07-2021 02:16 PM)Porcine Wrote:  

(09-17-2021 03:32 PM)JRsec Wrote:  

(09-17-2021 03:08 PM)Gamecock Wrote:  

(09-16-2021 10:09 AM)JRsec Wrote:  

(09-16-2021 08:56 AM)Gamecock Wrote:  I sort of agree OP, I don't really see the positives either. They have plenty of money and the Big 12 was a much easier path to the playoffs. But perhaps that is now moot with the proposed expanded models.

The positives for Texas are enumerated in the "What if Texas..." thread. The positives for Oklahoma are similar.

The positives for the SEC are mostly economic and partially academic.

The question should be "Why is it necessary?" The whole nature of college sports realignment should be a big red flag to the public. It signals an economic seed change in the nation away from the middle class and toward corporatization of almost everything including government. And as our schools see those changes on the horizon fear is driving these moves, not greed. And when even a Texas, the wealthiest of college programs, gives up control of its own conference to move anywhere else, it is about positioning itself to ride out that change that's coming.

Agree on that last point.

It's sort of like the equivalent of leaving your small town, low stress law firm where you make 200k/year to move to a big city and do corporate law for 300k. Sure you're making more and have more prestige, but at what cost? It just seems so unnecessary.

You miss the main issue. Texas saw it as necessary. They needed to separate their brand from the other Texas programs which they elevated by association because competition for students will be fierce within 10 years. We have a sagging birth rate coupled with a cost of higher education which is not a solid ROI for most not interested in STEM fields and even some of those are losing viability to increased automation. Add the death of Boomers as the last vested generation in the nation and it becomes clear that private donations, outside of CEO's, are likely to take a major hit. Then you have strapped State budgets and a Federal Government 32 soon to be 36 Trillion in debt which impacts likely grants.

Schools are positioning themselves to radically expand undergraduate in an effort to use increased tuition revenue (with possibly lowering tuition to enhance volume) to fund research.

Look around at all of the construction at old state flagship schools. They are building at seemingly the wrong time (baby decline of the middle class the last 20 years), but in actuality it is preparation for a massive downsizing coming in higher ed.

Some smaller state schools will be retasked to teaching, to vo tech, or closed. Large State schools will likely become the umbrella as administration.

Texas and Oklahoma are gaining separation not for athletics sake, but for branding which attracts they eyeballs of young applicants who want a full college experience.

I assume you are referring to current U.S. legal citizens, and not future, legal immigrants (and I am not talking about rubber-stamping current illegal immigrants as legal immigrants either, although our current presidential administration seems to want to do just that so that it aids in their political objectives.), because I have begun to notice that more Latinos/Latinas have started wearing more SEC apparel where I work. The vast majority don't, but, as they say, "The times they are a-changin'!!!" If both the big state schools and the small state schools start recruiting more legal immigrants, the dropoff won't be nearly as bad as you say JR, but that's my opinion. The other thing to keep in mind is a possible big recession though.

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1. The history of legal immigration into the U.S. shows that is the third generation of immigrant families that are usually the first to attend college. Asians do it in the second because they are massively frugal and pool resources to educate their children (think Chinese, indian, Japanese, and Korean).

2. I personally believe a massive recession / depression looms to hit within the next decade. China is backing there Renminbi with 10% gold in an effort to wrest World Reserve Currency status away from the United States. They have used our corporations as dupes to build their infrastructure and manufacturing base, have accessed them for patent theft, have placed their spies posing as grad students in our universities, and plan to use their influence through multi-national PACs to encourage more non productive red ink projects. They want high debt to erode confidence in the Dollar and Euro so they can dictate trade in Renminbi. So it's not if their is a financial collapse, but when.

China is encouraging fools in the west into crypto currencies while the are the leading purchaser of Gold, Silver, especially Copper, and Platinum which is down due to Palladiums use in catalytic converters. Copper screening is what they put into the walls and ceiling of all key government, military and medical buildings to stop emp weapons. Platinum is the skin for all satellites and gold its circuitry. Silver is antimicrobial.

So yeah, its coming. And the downsizing of unneeded bureaucracy is a must at every level if we are to survive this current idiocy.

As to men's soccer, it will be served like fine wine, when it is time.