I agree about Tech, but not sure about UCF and USF. I think their disdain s more likely to be “they can rot”
I agree. they’re pretty much the only ones that pass The Test. I’d definitely like to keep playing them in basketball.
The ONLY true rivalry we’ve developed in the AAC is Memphis. PERIOD.
UCF is not a rival.
After we go to the Big 12 our main focus will be on Baylor, Tech and TCU. They are the schools we have history with.
I think SMU’s become a rival over the last few years. I’d say starting with that butt-whipping they put on us in 2016 in football, but I think you could argue as far back as 2012. Certainly they’ve been a rivalry in Basketball since at least the Larry Brown years.
Moving forward to 2016. The big12 acknowledged that it needed to expand in 2016 to secure its future but chose to cuts its own throat by not expanding. In 2026, UH would have more than 8 years in the power conference, a massive inflow of power revenue and recruiting- and a trip or two to the CFP finals.
It would have been UH, not the dithering 8 that would have anchored this conference going forward. Even then i don’t think both UT and OU would have left. The dynamics would have been completely different.
The Test: Would you be interesting in keeping SMU on the schedule?
I always felt like I had a more rivalrous attitude towards them than a lot of people (I am very grateful my daughter chose to be born that day they hung 72 on us), but my answer there is pretty “meh”. I wouldn’t refuse to play them, but there are other G5 schools in Texas I’d schedule before them.
It’s a close series, but we’ve played them a total of 10 times despite sharing a conference for the last 16 years. One of those was in a season where they went winless. We’ve played, for example, ECU in more and bigger games, and have a closer series record. Are they a rival?
Who Sucks?
Smoo Sucks!
I never thought we were great candidates in 2016. I mean, our resume was good that year! But a fifth school in Texas was always going to be a tough sell.
I thought the conference whiffed by not inviting us five years earlier, TCU’s on-the-field success notwithstanding.
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In basketball, definitely. In football, I’d be interested, but the logistics make it complicated and I’m more committed to playing Rice than I am SMU. If UH were independent and i were putting together the schedule, they’d be on it, but with likely 3 non-conference games, I don’t think it works out.
I suspect they’ll pair TT with BYU once UT and OU leave. OR they could pair TT with OSU since their two matches both depart and keep BYU with ISU. BYU isn’t a horrible partner since they travel quite well. UCF isn’t so bad for us either. We’re more like them than we are like TX Tech, although I like the Texas fanbase.
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Right now, at least, I think it’ll be Texas Tech and Oklahoma State.
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I think if we get 3 protected rivals it’ll look something like this
| Team | Rival 1 | Rival 2 | Rival 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baylor | TCU | BYU | Texas Tech |
| BYU | Baylor | Houston | TCU |
| Cincinnati | WVU | UCF | Houston |
| Houston | Cincinnati | UCF | BYU |
| Iowa State | Kansas | Kansas State | WVU |
| Kansas | Kansas State | Iowa State | Oklahoma State |
| Kansas State | Kansas | Iowa State | Oklahoma State |
| Oklahoma State | Texas Tech | Kansas | Kansas State |
| TCU | Baylor | Texas Tech | BYU |
| Texas Tech | Oklahoma State | Baylor | TCU |
| UCF | WVU | Cincinnati | Houston |
| WVU | Cincinnati | UCF | Iowa State |
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Ugh.
I can’t say you’re wrong.
But ugh.
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The worst part is I think we wind up in a situation where both UH and TCU would rather play each other than BYU, but since somebody has to play BYU we wind up as the only team with both BYU and an Eastern team as rivals.
That would stink like a dead skunk on a hot highway.
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Can’t wait until this board sees we’ve been waiting for years to get a Big XII schedule of:
@ BYU
Cincinnati
UCF
TCU
@ Kansas
Iowa State
@ WVU
@ Oklahoma State
TDECU is gonna be PACKED for those heavy-hitters.
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TCU will be a better draw now than in the past, given that their program is way better than before, and now P5.
If all those games were away, it’d be unfortunate, but I’ve seen Okie State, Tech, and BYU all draw well here in Houston, so I’m sure we’ll have big crowds for them.
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I can say he’s wrong…Youre WRONG, T-Moar !! our protected rivals will be TCU, Tech and Baylor…youre goofed on skunkweed if you think we will ever play just 1 Texas school in any given year…
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