oma. If Texas went to the Big Ten or SEC, it would no longer be the biggest voice in the room, and it would have to change its beh

Fifteen months ago, Oklahoma president David Boren provided a two-word diagnosis: psychologically disadvantaged.Thats how Boren felt about the state of the Big 12 when he told Oklahomas student newspaper that the league, smaller than the other Power 5 conferences, needed to explore ways to grow.So began the Great Big 12 Runaround.When it ended Monday afternoon in North Texas, after a truncated meeting of the Big 12s board, we all felt like shrinks who dont get paid for their services. The Big 12 isnt expanding. Talk about a circular conversation.I made one recommendation -- to bring this process to closure one way or the other, Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby said Monday. We shouldnt kick the can down the road.Given the past 15 months, that might not be so easy. In that time, Boren talked and talked, and then he talked some more. He was pro-expansion, then lukewarm and, eventually, seemed to back away from the whole thing. In a perfect twist for this wandering process, Boren became chair of the Big 12 board this spring after Kansas State president Kirk Schulz left for Washington State.Someone suggested Ive had a brain transplant, Boren said Monday. Rumors to that effect are not true.The Big 12 hired two consulting firms to explore how expansion could impact the league, particularly in the long-term. For a league that had lost four members since 2010 -- two of which, Texas A&M and Nebraska, have football teams currently ranked in the AP Top 10 -- and appears vulnerable to further pillaging when its grant of rights agreement expires in 2025, getting bigger made sense.After the leagues spring meetings in Arizona, expansion appeared somewhat likely. At the Big 12 board meeting a month later in Irving, Texas, the league announced that its football title game was returning in 2017 and that it wouldnt explore a conferencewide TV network. The Big 12 announced record revenue distribution, celebrated its solidarity and civility behind a well-respected commissioner in Bob Bowlsby. Expansion seemed dead, and we all seemingly could get on to other business.But this is the Big 12, folks. Nothing can be wrapped up so neatly.In July, the Big 12 announced that expansion was back on the table. Candidates surfaced and lobbying began, especially in Texas. The Big 12 eventually narrowed the pool to 12 schools. Of those, six -- Houston, BYU, Cincinnati, Connecticut, South Florida and Central Florida -- generated the most attention.In the end, none received enough support from the Big 12 presidents. The Big 12 remains a 10-team league with a footprint, other than Texas, that covers a sparsely populated area of the country. It is still the only Power 5 league without its own television network. It is still a league that has seen its football recruiting suffer in recent years and could have benefited from members in new regions.Were there any great candidates out there? No, not with the potential toxicity swirling around BYU. But think about some of the recent Power 5 expansion additions: Maryland, Rutgers, Colorado, Utah, TCU, West Virginia, Syracuse, Pittsburgh, even Louisville.How many of those were or are considered home runs? None. But some have added value, including TCU, a conference nomad which quickly became one of the better Big 12 football programs. If the Big 12 really wanted to give this process its due, it should have looked for the next TCU, projecting 5-10 years out rather than talking in circles. And if the Big 12 is ultimately doomed in the long-term, adding members would have brought a short-term financial windfall, which could help current members who wont find soft landing spots if the conference dissolves.In not expanding and, equally important, not extending its grant of rights, the Big 12 possibly signed its own death warrant Monday. It remains the most vulnerable league. The loss of one more heavyweight, Texas or Oklahoma, likely would TKO the conference. A very bad strategic move, a source close to the process told ESPN.com. Painfully incremental decision-making.Theres still a very valid and underplayed argument that the Big 12 is the best place for Texas and Oklahoma. If Texas went to the Big Ten or SEC, it would no longer be the biggest voice in the room, and it would have to change its behavior and its expectations. It would have to accept (gasp!) equal revenue sharing and no Longhorn Network. Oklahoma also could make a move but would likely have to accept being No. 3 or No. 4 instead of clearly in the top tandem.Texas and OU seem happy for now, because, in the end, neither favored Big 12 expansion. How will they feel in eight or nine years?Most expansion explorations are quick and stealthy. After the Big Tens first expansion study in 2010 generated more buzz than commissioner Jim Delany anticipated, Delany didnt go public with his pursuit of Rutgers and Maryland and shocked everyone in November 2012. ACC commissioner John Swofford is the king of expansion guile, twice pillaging the Big East.The Big 12, meanwhile, spent a lot of time and money to keep the status quo.It was a deliberate process, one that included a lot of people, Bowlsby said. It was a lot more public than a lot of these other processes have been.Meanwhile, theres an imprint in all of our couches, in the shape of a former Oklahoma governor and senator and current university president.Psychologically disadvantaged? The Big 12s issues go much, much deeper. Nike Air Vapormax Online . -- Yogi Ferrell orchestrates pretty much everything in Indianas offence. Nike Air Vapormax Sale .J. Ellis hit two-run homers and the NL West champion Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the San Diego Padres 4-0 Saturday night. https://www.fakevapormaxwholesale.com/ . After Mondays hard-fought loss, the wait seemed longer than usual. Getting set to go their separate ways for a short Christmas break, the Raptors coach credited his team for their effort on a seemingly impossible three-game road trip, urging them to build on that success when they get back to work at the end of the week. Fake Nike Air Vapormax .C. -- Al Jefferson joked that he feels he can score from anywhere on the court. Nike Air Vapormax Outlet . LeBron James and Chris Bosh didnt need any more. Williams scored 11 points in 10 minutes, Alan Anderson scored 17 points, and the Brooklyn Nets finished the exhibition season with a 108-87 win over the Miami Heat on Friday night. Lance Stroll believes he is not just on the 2017 Formula One grid because of the money he will bring to Williams next year.Although the details of his new contract are being kept secret by the team, Stroll comes with healthy financial backing from his billionaire father Lawrence. He will drive his rookie year at Williams next season alongside Valtteri Bottas, but after dominating Formula 3 this year he believes he has the talent to warrant a place on the grid.Everyone has their own opinion, I cant change that, he said at Williams driver announcement in Grove on Thursday. I come from money, Im not going to deny that. But I believe I won my shot in F1, because I won every championship Ive competed in in single seaters.Now the FIA have put in super licence [points] for that reason, so that people cant buy their way into F1 -- you have to prove yourself and win in junior categories.I dont want to say when Ill be able to show Im not just here for money. That just depends on some many things and various things falling into place. Im just going to worry about my business. Im very happy to be here looking forward to next seasoon.ddddddddddddDeputy team principal Claire Williams insists money was not the defining reason behind the teams decision and is confident Stroll will shed his pay driver tag next year.I know there have been a lot of comments about Lances background, and I want to make it clear to everyone that Williams has been a team that has made it clear and a statement of intent we would not allow financial considerations to influence our driver choice.That has been the case this year. Money doesnt drive performance. You either have the talent or you dont. Lance has proved he has talent and has what done what he has done. He has to do the job next year, and he will do that, to dispel those rumours.Strolls junior career has been funded by his father, who invested in the Prema team he drove for in F3 and also paid for a series of tests in a 2014 Williams this year. Lawrence Stroll earned his money in the fashion industry and owns a collection of vintage Ferraris as well as Circuit Mont-Temblant in Canada. ' ' '