Breaking: The Big 12 has sent a "cease and desist" letter to ESPN. The letter demands ESPN end "all actions that may harm the conference and its members and that it not communicate with the Big 12 Conference's existing members.... 1/2
Truly the sign of a very stable conference. Wonder if we could’ve sent out cease and desist letters when ESPN was asking Tom Herman during pre-game interviews about his next position.
This indicates that they believe ESPN had a hand in UT(a) and OU leaving for the SEC.
Also, aimed now at the very public and constant ESPN push for the AAC to swallow the Big 12.
ESPN pushing of the AAC narrative makes sense.
They save a bunch of money from the demise of the Big 12 (the issue of exit fees and a substantially downgraded contract) as well as sticking it to FOX.
ESPN will have lots of saved money to spend elsewhere.
Perhaps Aresco and ESPN have already been talking in this regard.
I’d be pretty impressed if Aresco has been playing this hand all along.
Oh, I think that is EXACTLY what the exit strategy is, and UT(a) has likely already agreed.
ESPN is the clear player in all of this, and it hasn’t finished making its moves yet.
The Big 12 knows this quite well, and out of desperation is willing to antagonize ESPN even further by publicly threatening it with this “cease and desist” letter.
They are telling the mouse not to communicate with any NCAA conference member regarding any BIG12 conference member. I smell a lawsuit and more defections. Talk about biting the hand that feeds you.
At this rate the Big 12 will be streaming games on YouTube and Twitter in 2025. Money is involved, so they’ll have to come back to ESPN if they want any sort of balance to a lowball from Fox. I’d like to know if Bowlsby did this on his own, or in consultation with the Big 12 members. One would think some of them are saying WTH?
This sounds like a push from the no love group. KSU, Baylor, TCU. “ESPN is about to gut us and leave us for dead, I mean more dead” No one needs the whole group to holdd the line more than these 3 schools.
“It appears as though ESPN has been in contact with at least one Big 12 school and is likely trying to recruit more members to leave. Ross Dellenger of Sports Illustrated obtained a copy of the report.”
The letter, signed by Bowlsby, does not name the school or schools ESPN is trying to lure away, as far as I can see with my oldy eyes.