“There’s no sense in dragging it out once we know all the pieces to the puzzle.”

There are times when I honestly wonder whether the Big 12 deserves to exist.  Take, for example, Bob Bowlsby’s latest thumb up his ass move.

As the Big 12 inches closer to decisions about its future, most of the data is in.

Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby said Monday that data compiled by consultants — up to 40,000 simulations from Navigate Research — indicated the best model for placing a team in the College Football Playoff is a 12-team conference playing eight league games plus a championship game.

Yes, that is something he actually spent money on.  And how much of an advantage would such a format give the conference in grasping the Holy Grail?

Bowlsby, who said the computer modeling showed the 12-member, eight-game schedule would slightly increase the league’s likelihood of getting teams into the Playoff, believes the data “will probably persuade some people one way or another.” But he said he wasn’t sure what his recommendation would be. He confirmed that the 12-team, eight-game modeled result indicated a four- to five-percent increased likelihood for a team to make the Playoff.[Emphasis added.]

To repeat, yes, that is something he actually spent money on.

In other words, in a best case scenario, rejiggering your conference from ten to twelve teams and adding a championship game (currently unnecessary with the Big 12’s round robin regular season schedule) would net you one additional appearance in the CFP every twenty to twenty five years.  That seems like a whole lot of trouble to go through when you consider they’ll expand the playoffs to eight teams long before then.

Maybe I ought to see if Bowlsby would pay me something for this post.

Honestly, I think the conference will vote to expand, but not because of this silliness.  It’ll be because of other silliness.

Bowlsby reiterated something he’s said before, too. For its financial stability, the Big 12 needs to act. The Big Ten’s recent reported $250 million deal for a portion of its media rights only highlighted the issue.

“If we do nothing, we’ll fall behind with the SEC and Big Ten,” Bowlsby said. “We may still be just as competitive as we are today, but we’ll fall behind financially.”

Aside from bruised egos, what exactly would that mean for the Big 12 schools?  A touch less opulence in locker rooms?  One less recruiting trip to Dubai?  A little less money in athletic administrators’ pockets?  What?  I doubt Bowlsby knows anything concrete.  He just knows they need to do something.  Now there’s a recipe for success.

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