SEDALIA DEMOCRAT

Start saving up for gas money, Mizzou fans

By JOHN HANSEN

NOV. 8, 2011

Here are some numbers you won’t see in most reports on Missouri moving from the Big 12 to the SEC.

645. That’s the average mileage from Columbia to another SEC campus. Adding to the insanity, Mizzou is going to be in the SEC East (including a 1,008-mile trip to Florida) rather than in the West with closer teams such as Arkansas (a 312-mile trip).

524. That’s the average mileage from Columbia to another Big 12 campus (including the geographic outlier West Virginia). Whereas the closest trip in the SEC is 312 miles, there are three closer trips in the Big 12: to Ames, Iowa; Lawrence, Kan.; and Manhattan, Kan.

104. That’s how many years Mizzou has been in the Big 12 and its precursor, the Big Eight.

120. That’s how many years Mizzou has played Kansas — the longest-running annual game in major college football.

All of those numbers suggest that the Big 12 vs. SEC debate is a no-brainer: Mizzou should stay in the Big 12.

But Mizzou’s move came about because of another number that isn’t reported, but generally speaking, it’s a big number and it has a dollar sign in front of it. The SEC, because its schools are generally in bigger cities than the Big 12’s, brings in more money through its TV network, which it then spreads evenly to its schools.

That’s why you’ll hear it said that the Tigers’ move to the SEC is “in the best interest of the university.” The best interest of the administrators? Maybe. The best interest of the athletes? Probably not; I doubt that the gymnastics team is relishing the road trip to Gainesville, Fla., instead of Lawrence, Kan. The best interest of the students? Probably not, unless the SEC money is going straight into the classroom. And if you believe that, I have tickets to the 2013 MU-KU Border War to sell you.

The best interest of the fans? Certainly not. This new influx of SEC cash isn’t going to be doled out to Tiger fans in the form of gasoline vouchers or to their fans’ employers so they can give people more vacation days. Several Big 12 road trips could be made in a day; an SEC road trip requires the hiring of a vacation planner.

Saying that Mizzou’s move to the SEC is in the best interest of the university is like saying the Browns moving to Baltimore was in the best interest of the franchise. It may be true, but it’s of no comfort or relevance to the fans who are losing their team.

The professional analogy is apt because the BCS — shortened to “BS” by many fans and columnists since its inception in 1998 — operates major college football like a professional sport. The BCS runs it immorally, and probably illegally. The BCS arbitrarily decided that six of the 11 conferences get automatic bids to a BCS game (and access to the money). In addition to the TV money, that’s another reason why every school is trying to get into a “BCS conference.” It’s why, absurdly, West Virginia is joining the Big 12 and, insanely, Boise State is joining the Big East.

As a Tiger fan, you may think that while you can’t make it to conference road games like you used to, you’ll still get to follow Mizzou on TV via the SEC’s TV network. If you live in Missouri, that’s true enough, although you also were able to follow them on the Big 12 Network.

But if you’re a Mizzou fan in a neighboring Big 12 state, you might be cut off from your team. These conference networks operate on a principle of exclusivity rather than widespread access. I’m a Nebraska fan who happens to live in Missouri. Because Missouri isn’t a Big Ten state, I don’t get the Big Ten Network on cable here.

So this season, in addition to not being able to see the Huskers in Columbia or Lawrence, I also can’t see them on TV as much as when they were in the Big 12.

And Mizzou’s move could negatively affect Missouri-based fans of other Big 12 teams if the Big 12 Network uses the same principle of exclusivity as the Big Ten Network. For example, Kansas fans living in Kansas City could now get the SEC network but not the Big 12 Network. I’m naturally inclined to think nothing that stupid would happen, but then again, I never would’ve thought Nebraska would be in the Big Ten, West Virginia would be in the Big 12, Mizzou would be in the SEC and Boise State would be in the Big East.

Even though these conference moves have everything to do with football, they affect all college sports. So not only will Mizzou’s football team have to make a league trip to Florida, but so will its swimming and diving team. Some schools are showing a shred of sanity. For example, Boise State’s move to the Big East is football-only. It won’t force its soccer team to make 2,601-mile league trips to Connecticut.

Despite Nebraska’s move, I still planned on going to the Big 12 basketball tournament every time it’s in Kansas City. But with Missouri not being a Big 12 state anymore, I imagine most of the Big 12 hoops tournaments will be played in Texas or Oklahoma now, despite almost universal acknowledgment that KC has the best fan atmosphere.

I’ll conclude with one more number: 10. That’s about how many years before schools will start to switch back to conferences that make geographic sense in an attempt to win back fans whose interest has waned. TV and BCS revenue are the driving forces now, but once the dust settles and everyone gets their cut, schools might take notice that fans aren’t coming to games — on the road, or at home — like they used to.

By then, it might be too late.