If conference shakeups happened 5 years ago, TCU wouldn't have been on any one's radar. But somewhere after that 5th or 6th top 25 finish since 2000 or that 2nd consecutive BCS bowl, or that 13-0 season and Rose Bowl win over Wisconsin a year ago, TCU became sexy. They knew it, too, agreeing to a $105 million expansion to their football stadium last year which currently only holds 44,000 people. Expected to be done in 2012.
TCU has an enrollment of just over 9,000 students, by far the smallest in the Big 12. It's basketball program has been a joke forever, along with it's basketball facility, the Daniel-Meyer Coliseum. The 50-year old building has a capacity of just 7,166. The only truly redeeming qualities of TCU are football and playing in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.
Now with the top 25 football program and 4 million sets of eyeballs in tow, the fun begins. If the Big 12 wants to gain some credibility back, it should probably add two more to get to 12 to have a title game. Of course, until the SEC decides if it wants Mizzou or not, things are at a stalemate. Here's a few scenarios..
1) The Big 12 stays at 10, TCU steps in for Texas A&M and has the Aggies' old schedule.
2) Louisville, Cincinnati, BYU, and West Virginia are offered with some sort of hierarchy, i.e. Louisville gets first option to join, then WVU, etc. or something like that until we have 12 schools.
If Mizzou somehow does leave, you could still ask the above four schools but you'd obviously have to get commitments from 3/4 which would be tough. Without Mizzou, I see the Big 12 adding just one more to get back to 10 to stay above water for another year. Not a great spot, but certainly better than where the conference was a month ago. Baby steps.
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