Conference Realignment: An Unsettling Calm

Well the immediate crisis has passed with Texas, Texas A&M, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State continuing to acknowledge that the Big XII (now with only ten teams) is where they will stay for at least a while.  The air went out of the balloon (even if I've represented that fact with a giant dirigible) and the media seems to have gotten the impression that all is well and we're done with this wave a realignment at least as far as huge adjustments are concerned.

I'm not exactly convinced for two reasons.  The Big XII has the same problems it always did, and in fact, they're a little worse now.  From what I can tell Texas now has gotten an even bigger slice of the revenue pie and while that's certainly made Texas happy how long will the other nine member schools of the newly misnamed Big XII stay content-- put another way, how long before the Pac-10(11, soon maybe 12) or SEC begin to offer those schools more money?  Plus, it's like we've all forgotten how all this started: the Big Ten being suspected of pillaging the Big East.  None of the developments regarding the Big XII really have any bearing on that... At least, not as far as I'm concerned they don't... What does the Big Ten care that the Pac-10 failed in its aggressive bid to wreck the Big XII.  The Big East is an easier target, in any case, and the Big Ten Network monster still needs feeding.  Anyway, we'll have to keep watching.  In other news, the Pac-10 has offered Utah and it's expected that Utah will accept, reducing the Mountain West back to its former size.  ESPN article here.