Is BYU back on Big 12's wish list?

This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Well, here we go again. Last night's announcement from the Pac-12 that it is not interested in expanding, detailed in this Tribune story by my colleague Michael C. Lewis, has again touched off speculation that BYU could be invited to the Big 12. Plenty of articles out there from Big 12 country saying BYU is again a target if the Big 12 stays together. And it looks like it will now that the Pac-12 has said no. A new issue for BYU fans who want to see their school go to the Big 12 is that with the weakening of the Big East (Pitt and Syracuse to the ACC), schools in the Big East such as Louisville, Cincinnati, West Virginia and TCU (next year) might be more prone to listen to the Big 12, and perhaps join if invited. I have a feeling the craziness and speculation is far from over. Here's a sampling of the speculation from the Tulsa World, which says a "source also said if [Big 12 commissioner Dan] Beebe was removed (it is believed Boren has enough votes to make things happen) Boren would agree to a 10-team Big 12 that included BYU, TCU, or Air Force, or a 12-team league that included all three." If BYU does go to the Big 12 (and that's still a big 'if' right now) my guess is it wouldn't mind having Air Force and TCU in the league as well. New Mexico is another former league foe that I've always heard BYU officials speak fondly of; although the Lobos are way, way down in football, the basketball programs are strong, and their Olympic sports are better across the board than most people think. —————————— A few more morning links: * Here's my main offering today, a future scheduling story examining how BYU will play a lot of Conference USA schools (such as Central Florida) if it remains an independent. * My collection of notes today leads off with BYU's concern over the versatility of UCF quarterback Jeff Godfrey. * Florida Today says UCF is fired up to play BYU.

—————————- I talked to BYU center Terence Brown after practice last night, and the senior said a very big focus in practice this week — besides ironing out problems with the shotgun snap to Jake Heaps — is on keeping the team together. Finger-pointing is not allowed, he said. "I would say so. It is on the seniors, and on the team as a whole. I am encouraged by what I see. No one has come in and tried to point fingers. It is just a team effort. You win as a team, you lose as a team. That's what we have to do, is come together as a team and get through this," Brown said. He said there is a different resolve this week, with every man looking inward first to determine what he can do better to help the team. "You just gotta dig deeper. You always want to give your best, and I think people have been trying to give their best, but we got to find the extra whatever it is we are missing and bring that out, and I think we are working hard to try to do that," he said.