Over the past few weeks Bowlsby has been saying that they don't want to expand etc ...  He's seemed downright dismissive to the idea and has said that they like to stay pat if possible.  Boren took to the airwaves and print media to let it be known that "staying pat" was a HUGE mistake, that they needed at least 12 teams, a CCG, and a Big12 Network.  Crickets from Bowlsby.  Safe statement from UT AD about loving the LHN.  TCU AD says "10 is a beautiful number."  Gee says he's for expansion and that a slight majority seem to favor that.  Rumors of the firm holdouts being UT, TT, TCU and weaker expansion opponets possibly being OSU and Kansas.

Then the SEC Network and BIG Network revenues figures have come in and have apparently instilled quite a bit of good old fashioned envy.  Lowly Vandy and South Carolina, via the SEC network, pulled in over DOUBLE ($32+ mil) what mighty Texas did though it's LHN ($15 mil ... and that $15 mil is going to look smaller and smaller each year and will be downright TINY in relative terms with 17 years of inflation.  This will probably give Texas plenty of motive to WANT to renegotiate the LHN ... though they will use their leverage of having the network to get a larger peice of the pie than everyone else (this IS Texas we're talking about still).

Most here have seen the article today where Bolwsby's new lines seem to be that there has been no focus on who to add, because they haven't even decided the "IF" question on the matter (yeah right buddy ... as if either decision could be made in a vaccuum without the other)

Best quote of the article, though, Bolwsby straight out quoting Boren's reasoning.:

“We’re smaller, we don’t have a championship game, we don’t have a network,” he added. “Right now, our Tier 1 media (rights) is slightly undervalued. Over the next 15 years, the delta between us and the other major conferences is going to get large.”

Ture True words!  I love the use of the word "smaller" ... that's got to get under the skin of all the TEXAS schools (bigger = better in old-school Texas mentality).  Also, the use of the 15 year horizon.  That is about the time when UT will be looking towards contract renegotiation of the LHN.  Coincidence?  I think not.  

This new line of reasoning is aimed directly at UT and getting them to the table and getting the hold-outs on expansion on board with everyone else.

If Bowlsby/Boren/Gee can convince the others of this then it's game, set, and match for expansion.  CHOO CHOO!