Shatel: Big 12 is packing big punch

The Big 12 football media days start Monday, and they'll be trying to avoid a Southeastern Conference-type scandal.

You know, like the one at SEC media days last week, when it was revealed that a coach didn't vote for Tim Tebow as preseason all-conference quarterback.

Oh, the horror!

ESPN and several media outlets spent two days hunting down the scoundrel, and when South Carolina's Steve Spurrier fessed up, the ol' ball coach was painted a Gator traitor.

If you are in the Big 12, your side hurts from laughing.

You are also just a tad jealous.

ESPN celebrated SEC media days by televising three hours a day. It might have been more. I fell asleep watching Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen. Or maybe it was Auburn coach Gene Chizik.

Get used to it. ESPN and the SEC signed a $2.2 billion deal last year. That's a total of $3 billion for 15 years with ESPN, CBS and others. That's about $17 million per school — or a BCS bowl-sized payout — every year.

And that's just TV. That doesn't count all of the Tebow jerseys flying off the racks nationwide.

Compare that to the Big 12. According to World-Herald reports, Big 12 schools took in total conference revenue of $103 million in 2007-08.

It's nice coin if you can get it. The SEC has great talent. It has better marketing. The SEC pushes itself as the ultimate college football experience, with a side of tailgate ribs. It's hard to argue with SEC food.

The actual product is another story. Last year, SEC depth was overrated; six (half) of the 12 SEC teams finished 6-6 or worse. The SEC has won the past three national titles. But after the top two or three titans, it's nothing to write home to ESPN about.

Still, the SEC is what the Big 12 wants to be when it grows up.

Don't look now, but the Big 12 is hitting puberty. Its voice is changing. It's growing out of its clothes. It wants a BlackBerry.

It has taken 13 seasons, but the Big 12 finally is an identity.

It's Xbox, live.

The Big 12 plays the fastest and scores the most. It's got the best quarterbacks, fleetest receivers and maddest geniuses on the sidelines. It has no-huddle, no-fear offenses created by Steven Spielberg.

This week, Big 12 media days will roll out two of the top three teams in the country (Texas and Oklahoma) and a third in the top 10 (Oklahoma State). There will be the reigning Heisman Trophy winner (Sam Bradford of Oklahoma) and the quarterback who finished third (Colt McCoy of Texas). There will be two other quarterbacks (Zac Robinson of Oklahoma State and Todd Reesing of Kansas) who are arguably among the top six in the nation.

The Big 12 is a big-boy league and getting bigger by the year. Last year SEC types referred to the Big 12 as “flag football'' (more SEC marketing). True, Big 12 defenses didn't look good. Maybe the offenses made them look that way.

Whatever. The Big 12 has won national championships. No apologies necessary.

What's more important now for the Big 12 is to build off its image.

Part of that is how the Big 12 sees itself. The league, in some corners, is still fighting the Civil War. There are too many South vs. North comparisons. Maybe they should do away with the divisions. Maybe a revenue-sharing plan (like the SEC) would strengthen the bottom.

The league should start marketing that “Star Wars'' image. Defense may win championships, but offense sells tickets. It also turns heads in recruiting living rooms. It can't be bad for TV ratings, either.

Tell me, if you are ESPN, would you rather show an explosive Oklahoma State-Texas sprint or a 21-14 Alabama-Tennessee “shootout?''

The Big 12 should have a better TV deal. It has outgrown its current deal with Fox, which expires in 2011-12. Now is the time to renegotiate its deal with ESPN, which goes through 2016. Whatever the Big 12 is getting now, it's not enough.

There may be another option. The Sporting News reported last week that the Big 12, ACC and Pac-10 will look into the feasibility of a single national channel that would combine programming of two conferences. Which two? Which network?

The Big 12 can't afford to sit on the sidelines. It needs to get into its no-huddle offense. The time is right. The Big 12 is sprouting. It may never be as big as the SEC. But SEC tailgate crumbs aren't bad.

Contact the writer:

444-1025, tom.shatel@owh.com

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