Heartland Sports: Texas, Oklahoma improved Big 12 by leaving

August 8, 2023 1:13 pm CT The Big 12 has solidified its spot in major college football. While that much is fair to say some who cover the league are taking things a little too far. Bryan Clinton of Heartland Sports insinuates that by leaving the Big 12, Texas and Oklahoma saved the conference.

That’s a bit of a stretch. Clinton’s thoughts on the two blue blood programs add perspective to why Heartland Sports is one of the lone holdouts from predicting Texas to win the conference. Give the Big 12 conference its due credit.

It has ensured its viability moving forward. Even so, let’s be clear about where the conference stands. College football’s third superconference now has three national championships from its 16 teams: Colorado (1990), TCU (1938) and BYU (1984).

That’s an underwhelming set of accomplishments for the league. The conference loses Oklahoma’s seven national titles along with Texas’ four national titles. Frankly, it falls well short of the Big Ten and SEC when it comes to winning games.

There won’t be a TV network for only one program in the new Big 12 and the members will be treated like equals. Perhaps the problem is that they are equals. Most of the remaining members still bring little prestige and value on their own.

Together they form a collection of teams that bring little excitement to national audiences. Is the Big 12 better without Oklahoma and Texas? Perhaps it all depends on your perspective. Its relevance in games that Colorado doesn’t play will be worth watching moving forward.

Since OU and Texas left the Big 12, the conference has doubled in size. What part, if any, did they play in that? https://t. co/L1lVyrFODO — Heartland College Sports (@Heartland_CS) August 7, 2023 .