FORT WORTH, Texas \u2014 Even the irony is bigger in Texas. Nor was any of it lost on Rick George, who acknowledged that while he was kibitzing and black-slapping with Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark like an old college pal, the Pac-12 Conference woke up Friday to find itself … the Pac-2. (The Pac-Dos? The Pac-D’oh!)<\/p>\n
\u201cI mean, certainly there is (some feelings),\u201d the CU athletic director said following a news conference with Buffs chancellor Phil DiStefano, Yormark and TCU officials at swanky Amon G. Carter Stadium. \u201cYou know, I hate where some of my peers are and what their options may or may not be. It\u2019s tough. But again, we had to stay focused on what was best for us. And you never know what dominoes are going to fall when you do that.\u201d<\/p>\n
The final domino for the Pac-12 as we know it fell in the morning, when the Atlantic Coast Conference defied geography and logic, those nefarious arch-enemies of television executives and college presidents, by welcoming Stanford, Cal and SMU into the family.<\/p>\n
The Cardinal and Golden Bears still get to keep their passkeys to the \u201cAutonomous 5\u201d penthouse. The ACC gets more name brands in reserve in case Florida State, Clemson, Miami and\/or North Carolina eventually bolt for the SEC or Big Ten. ESPN gets Cal-Pitt kicking off from Strawberry Canyon at about 11:06 p.m. Primanti Brothers time. Washington State and Oregon State get left holding the bag.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor us, it was about giving ourselves stability, giving ourselves a platform so, three to five years from now, the viewership of the CU brand is going to be significant,\u201d George continued, \u201cand we felt that was really important in our decision-making.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yormark and TCU let George and DiStefano do a ceremonial victory lap Friday on Coach Prime Eve, rolling out the purple carpet, playing a celebratory video that included the Buffs\u2019 greatest Big 12\/Big Eight hits, and crediting CU as the critical thread that unraveled the Pac-12\u2019s fraying sweater.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe appreciate you making that decision when you did,\u201d Yormark told Rick and Phil. \u201cI think that was a catalyst for some of the things that followed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Maybe. Lordy, they had help. The Buffs didn\u2019t just jump from the Pac-12 on a wing and a prayer.<\/p>\n
They were pushed.<\/p>\n
Everybody was. Any blood from Friday, and indeed from the death throes of the last six weeks, is on the hands of former commissioner Larry Scott and his enablers. It\u2019s on USC and Stanford, for their decades (\u201cPlay with BYU or Baylor? Never!\u201d) of shameless hubris. It\u2019s on administrators such as Arizona State president Michael \u201cStar Trek\u201d Crow, who apparently doesn\u2019t get it and probably never will.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don’t know anybody else’s motivation but ours,\u201d George continued. \u201cAnd we made the decision at the time that we felt was right. We had just completed our due diligence, and the chancellor and I met (with the Big 12) … (and) that was the right time for us to make that decision. And I feel really good about where we are.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAll I\u2019ll say is, we ended in the right place,\u201d the commissioner added, \u201cand we\u2019re just thrilled.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tip your cap to Yormark, who read the room and won the day. While the Pac-12 (again) misjudged both its collective television value and the market \u2014 Disney corporate was merciless in its belt-tightening this year \u2014 as a whole, the new Big 12 commish did an end-around to bend the ears of both FOX and ESPN last autumn.<\/p>\n
\u201cThankfully, (both networks) were open to it,\u201d Yormark recalled. \u201cThey welcomed the opportunity. For us, it was always about being the best version of ourselves. We weren’t chasing in what the SEC was doing (or) what the Big Ten was. Could we get to a fair deal? Could we get a deal that would provide us with the stability and clarity we’re looking for?\u201d<\/p>\n
They got one, stonewalling the Pac-12 in the process. Yormark, a veteran of Jay-Z\u2019s Roc Nation entertainment agency, loves puttin’ on a good show. The man also doesn\u2019t mind tweaking opposing commissioners \u2014 or Texas Longhorns fans \u2014 in front of a hot mic.<\/p>\n
Deion Sanders is darn near perfect for his Big 12. And vice versa.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think the way (Coach Prime) uses social media, I think really fits with what the Big 12 is doing,\u201d Yormark said, \u201cand I think there’s a tremendous fit in alignment on that as well. I mean, since I’ve been here, we want to modernize and contemporize this conference. We want the youth culture (to be) the guiding principle for everything, whether it’s creating new IP or championships or even working with ESPN and FOX … and that’s what he’s doing as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
DiStefano said CU officials were expecting roughly 2,000 fans in Fort Worth for an official Buffs rally Saturday morning. The luggage carousels at DFW Airport just after lunch Friday seemed to have at least twice that number milling about. However we got here, the Metroplex looks awfully good in gold.<\/p>\n