DTN Daily Diatribe | Texas Tech News, Notes and Links | 2011-08-02

Although I do feel exactly the way HeertoTX does in many ways, in the world of public perception I think Hocutt is doing the best thing for the big picture. This thing isn’t over by a long shot and I would submit that you want to keep those bullets in the gun for now. The Non Bovine 9 have accomplished what was needed at this time. Each and every time the longhorns try to bring up airing a conference game in the future, they take another hit in the PR wars and still walk away empty handed based on how I think the new rules will lead the league’s teams to vote. The reality is that Hocutt (or any of the other AD’s for that matter) isn’t going to risk job security by letting UT have a game. That is mega taboo and no fan base will accept it. I like what happened here. The long term effect of last year was to galvanize the Non Bovine 9.

Here is where my brain has taken all of this to date: Over the past year I believe that it is becoming more and more clear to UT that independence is a losing venture for them in the long run. So, they got their network – but along the way a handful of things happened; the most valuable content of that network was taken off the board, they gave up more in revenue sharing via the latest conference agreement, they solidified the rest of the conference against them (something that was not at all the case previously) as it is now exceptionally clear that UT does not give a crap about any of the others at all, they lost the ability to seriously threaten that they would leave the conference (as the only comparable conference that will take them with the LHN is the SEC, and they are palpably afraid of being in the SEC – and as I mentioned it is becoming clear that going Indy would be a long term disaster for UT) and they have somehow managed to come off looking even more arrogant and obnoxious (which I didn’t think could happen). Yes we lost NE and CO and that is a bad thing in my opinion, but I’m not so sure things aren’t actually better than we expected they’d be when the shit hit the fan last year.

The NCAA will make a ruling on LHN type networks and what they can show on around 8/22. Maybe later now that the immediate threat has been tempered by the Big 12. I still think that the NCAA is trying to reassert itself and this presents a grand opportunity, so I’m guessing they crack down quickly. I see no way that they allow high school games. That, and the inability to show conference games, will effectively neuter the LHN’s ability to gain any larger audience than it’s alumni and t-shirt fan base for all intents and purposes.

Nobody can say with any certainty that UT won’t go it alone anyway, and no one can say that MO or A&M won’t jump at an offer – but it seems as though the core issues that would make those likely are not nearly as compelling as they once seemed.

Holcutt’s words have no hint of worm in them, he is standing firm and has told the world where we stand.

so it’s that simple."

That looks soft, but it is loud ! It is that simple, i.e., do not try to clutter it up with this story about the poor hs’ers that won’t get on tv, or this opportunity for Tech to be seen by thousands, we prefer a neutral setting.