On the Banks, a Rutgers Scarlet Knights community

Clemson and Georgia have started talks that could result in the cancellation of the football series planned between the two schools for 2013 and 2014.

UGA athletics director Greg McGarity confirmed the talks Tuesday, though there has been "no resolution or final determination yet," according to UGA.

Talks were initiated by Clemson as a result of the ACC’s move earlier this year to expand to a nine-game conference schedule to accommodate 14 members in the league.

Dear Alumni, Parents and Friends:

I want to provide an update regarding the Big East Conference and how changes announced this afternoon will impact Villanova University and the Big East moving forward.

This morning, the Conference's Board of Directors invited Temple University into the Big East for football, beginning with the 2012-2013 academic year, and as a full member in all sports in 2013-2014.

Villanova endorsed Temple University's invitation, and while some of you may wonder why we would support adding a second Big East team to the Philadelphia market, it was clear that Villanova University will benefit from the expansion as will the Big East and the City of Philadelphia. We knew that we wouldn't be the first pair of same-conference/same-market teams: Duke and UNC, Cal and Stanford, and UCLA and USC have all found ways to be highly successful in their respective markets.

First and foremost, we saw this expansion strategy as the best way to ensure our University is strongly positioned to achieve our overall goals and strategic vision. In addition, this approach will further fortify the Big East brand in the Philadelphia market.

Throughout the process, I worked closely with the other Big East Conference presidents. I pressed strategically and aggressively to advance Villanova's interests, while at the same time recognizing this was also an effort to bolster the Conference and all member institutions. While strongly advocating for our University, it is essential that the Conference and both institutions can thrive in Philadelphia, the fourth largest media market in the nation.

To achieve this, my fellow presidents and I developed a framework in which the Big East membership clearly and tangibly recognizes the equity that Villanova has built for the Conference in the Philadelphia market over many years. The framework also positively addresses some very important and unique logistical issues related to television exposure, scheduling and facilities. Importantly, the Conference offered a strong vote of confidence in our football program by providing substantial financial resources to us to assist in best positioning it to move forward in this dynamic landscape.

You may ask how this announcement affects our basketball program. I recently spoke with Jay Wright, head coach of our men's basketball team, who said that, "Villanova and Temple will work well together to ensure the Big East's status as an elite conference and to make Philadelphia a great Big East city. We look forward to adding new chapters to our great rivalry with Temple in the years to come."

Strategically, it was essential that throughout all our discussions, we kept our principles and in no way limited our future options for our athletic programs and the University as mandated in our Strategic Plan.

As always, I am grateful for your support and dedication to Villanova University.

Sincerely,

Fr. Peter Donohue, OSA
President

McGarity said Thursday that a new model would be used for 2013 and beyond. It’s not known what that model will be, but it will not be a nine-game schedule, Bloom said. The SEC has repeatedly asserted it is not adding another conference game since expanding to include Missouri and Texas A&M.

University [of Missouri] curators voted unanimously Tuesday night to consider leaving the Big 12 instead of committing to the league for the long term. The governing board's members agreed unanimously after a 4-hour closed meeting at the system's St. Louis campus to give Deaton authority to look elsewhere, specifically "any and all actions necessary to fully explore options on conference affiliation....which best serve the (school's) interest."

Multiple Big East sources said they have been told by WVU officials that WVU rejected by ACC & SEC

[Louisville] AD Tom Jurich tells @CBSSports UofL's "intention to stay in Big East, but will explore all options w/in [Big East] & outside conference"

Big 12 commissioner Dan Beebe promised big bucks last month to save his disintegrating conference at the last possible second, and Texas A&M is taking the man at his word: University president R. Bowen Loftin said in a statement/warning Wednesday that A&M "fully anticipate(s) that the Big 12 will honor its commitment" to distribute $20 million a year to its biggest fish, TAMU, Texas and Oklahoma, beginning in 2012. If it doesn't? A&M will "explore every legal avenue" to get its money, according to another high-ranking official, including the much-rumored defection to the SEC the Aggies held over their rivals' heads when it looked like the rest of the Big 12 South was about to bolt for the Pac-10.

But before I boarded the TRAX for my return trip downtown, I noticed something that the Utes have that can only make Arizona blush with envy: two huge banners draped on the backside of Rice-Eccles Stadium.
One is for Utah's 13-0 Sugar Bowl season of 2008. The other is for the Utes' 12-0 Fiesta Bowl season of 2004; two enormous, colorful, logo-laden banners celebrating seasons that made everyone forget that Utah was mostly a football puffball from 1965 to 1995.

They came into our place with the nation’s longest win streak and it was a heck of a game," he said. "They have a really strong program.

Everyone comes out more or less ahead... Texas gets the big television payday it wanted and the shot at a profitable network it doesn't have to share with anyone. Nebraska and Colorado both move into conferences they consider better academic and cultural fits. Kansas, Kansas State, Iowa State, Missouri and, yes, Baylor hold on to their spots in a big-money conference and aren't forced to seek refuge in the Mountain West, Conference USA or Big East. The Big Ten and Pac-10 (assuming it makes a play for Utah out of the Mountain West) both pick up a 12th member that facilitates a conference championship game. Assuming the Big Ten is content at an even dozen – Missouri is presumably locked into the Big 12 for the foreseeable future, and Notre Dame remains by all appearances firmly committed to independence – the once doomed Big East will remain intact without losing a single member. Even if it loses Utah, the Mountain West picks up the slack with the addition of Boise State, a net boost (albeit a small one) in the MWC's bid for an automatic BCS bid in 2012.

The Pac-10 ultimately whiffed on the blockbuster score it was hoping for, but it did expand in exactly the (relatively modest) fashion everyone expected when it first announced its plan to add teams. No one is in worse position as the smoke begins to clear than they were when the fires started burning.