ESPN College Football

Recruiting season got started in earnest on Tuesday with the release of the ESPN 150, so it's time to offer our first real check-in on where the Big 12 recruiting classes sit with a little less than 10 months before players can officially sign.

Remember, this card is in pencil. Players are free to switch commitments until they sign a letter of intent with a school.

1. Texas Longhorns

Total commits: 13
ESPNU 150 commits: 7
Key commits: QB Tyrone Swoopes, WR Ricky Seals-Jones, C Darius James, OT Jake Raulerson
Class notes: Texas' top three commits are all the best at their positions, and 10 of the class' 13 commitments are four stars or higher. That's nothing new in Austin, but Swoopes looks like the quarterback of the future in Austin, though he hails from a smaller school in Whitewright, Texas. Seals-Jones is a physical presence at 6-foot-5, 220 pounds.

2. Oklahoma Sooners

Total commits: 4
ESPNU 150 commits: 3
Key commits: RB Greg Bryant, RB Keith Ford, DE D.J. Ward
Class notes: Oklahoma's class is still pretty small for now, but the Sooners are getting some much needed help at running back, where numbers are suddenly thin following a rash of transfers after the season. Ward joins fellow DE Matt Dimon in the class, too.

3. Baylor Bears

Total commits: 6
ESPNU 150 commits: 1
Key commits: QB Chris Johnson, RB Johnny Jefferson, WR Quan Jones
Class notes: No surprise here: Baylor's new class is loaded with skill position talent. Johnson is the nation's No. 2 dual-threat passer and Jefferson is the nation's No. 36 running back. It seems like almost every year, Baylor reels in a huge prospect. For now, 2013 is no different, and coach Art Briles looks like he can continue his QB lineage. Johnson is a four-star, and Jefferson and Jones are three-star recruits.

4. Texas Tech Red Raiders

Total commits: 5
ESPNU 150 commits: 0
Key commits: ATH Devin Lauderdale, WR Dylan Cantrell, CB Will Barrow
Class notes: Texas Tech has landed top-25 recruiting classes in each of Tommy Tuberville's first full seasons in Lubbock, and the Red Raiders are off to another nice start in 2013. Super recruiter Robert Prunty's developed a penchant for reeling in ESPN 150 talent, so keep an eye on the newest major player on the recruiting scene. Lauderdale is a four-star recruit.

5. Kansas State Wildcats

Total commits: 3
ESPNU 150 commits: 0
Key commits: ILB Tanner Wood, DE Jordan Willis, WR LeAndrew Gordon
Class notes: Two of Kansas State's three commits are three-star recruits. The Wildcats won 10 games in 2011, but another solid year in 2012 could help spur recruiting efforts even further.

6. Oklahoma State Cowboys

Total commits: 1
ESPNU 150 commits: 0
Key commits: WR Fred Ross Jr.
Class notes: Ross is a four-star and the nation's No. 21 receiver, but OSU could climb this list quickly, riding the success from its first Big 12 title in 2011. It's a slower start than you'd envision for OSU, but we'll see if the Cowboys can win some battles with Texas Tech, TCU and others.

7. TCU Horned Frogs

Total commits: 2
ESPNU 150 commits: 0
Key commits: OLB Sammy Douglas, OG Patrick Morris
Class notes: Douglas is a three-star recruit and the nation's No. 36 outside linebacker. That's a big position of need for TCU, but the Big 12 entrance and recent campus drug sting that resulted in four players being arrested will be battling for positive and negative pushes on the recruiting trail. We'll see which one wins out in 2012.

8. Kansas Jayhawks

Total commits: 3
ESPNU 150 commits: 0
Key commits: QB Montell Cozart, TE Ben Johnson, LB Kellen Ash
Class notes: Kansas doesn't have a nationally ranked recruit, but Weis sounds like he's high on Cozart, a highly recruited QB from the Kansas City area who had offers from West Virginia and Minnesota.

9. West Virginia Mountaineers

Total commits: 0
ESPNU 150 commits: 0
Key commits: None
Class notes: WVU is one of two teams without a commit yet in the 2013 class. We'll see if that picks up if WVU can validate its membership in the Big 12 with a strong debut season.

10. Iowa State Cyclones

Total commits: 0
ESPNU 150 commits: 0
Key commits: None
Class notes: Iowa State has started slow, too. Another bowl appearance would help, but it has to be a bit frustrating for the Cyclones to be behind the eight-ball for now. That's especially true considering what Kansas has done thus far.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- Big 12 teams already get a special satisfaction out of beating Oklahoma and Texas.

Can you imagine how much that pleasure would be amplified if the Sooners or Longhorns said "sayonara" to the Big 12?

Welcome to Dana Holgorsen's world in 2011, his first year as West Virginia coach.

Oklahoma and Texas were the Big 12's only teams to win conference titles from 2003 to 2010 until Oklahoma State broke through in 2011.

West Virginia had captured five Big East titles under three different coaches since 2003 before Holgorsen landed the Mountaineers' sixth in 2011 and seventh since joining the league in 1991.

"There wasn’t a team in the Big East last year that didn’t want to beat West Virginia worse than anything that existed on their schedule," Holgorsen said. "This program, these kids, the fan base, the support staff, everybody’s used to winning."

West Virginia won 70 games over the past seven seasons, earning the first 10-win season since 2007 in 2011. The Mountaineers reached double-digit wins despite facing a 2011 Big East that was gunning for the Big 12-bound school.

"You could just feel that was the one everybody wanted to win, and it was challenging," Holgorsen said. "All seven games we played in the Big East, you had to fight for everything that you got, and you had to have your A-game, otherwise you were going to get crept up and get beat by Syracuse."

The Mountaineers did exactly that, a head-scratching 49-23 Friday night road loss to the 5-7 Orange, who didn't win another game the rest of the season.

Such is life at the top of the Big East or any conference's heap, even if the Mountaineers weren't leaving. Holgorsen let out a groan remembering the pressure.

"You felt that a little bit at Houston, too, because it wasn’t like that at Tech or Oklahoma State. You know who the two teams were. It was always Texas or Oklahoma that had to be on guard because they were the two that won the Big 12 every year," said Holgorsen, who spent two seasons as the offensive coordinator at Houston before moving to Oklahoma State in 2010. "At Houston we were more of the upper echelon of Conference USA, so we had a big bulls-eye on our chest, but it was nothing compared to what I felt last year, because West Virginia just had so much success and was at the top of the Big East just based on preseason rankings every year and based on the amount of wins every year."

Other than being the new guy, WVU won't have nearly as big of a bulls-eye on their blue and gold jerseys in 2012, but the opponents will be better in the stronger Big 12.

Can West Virginia handle the heat and win the league during their first lap around Big 12 country come fall?

"One way to find out, right?" Holgorsen said.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- Maybe it's silly, but I feel a bit like a trailblazer of sorts here in Mountaineers country. Those of us who hail from the Midwest or the South haven't had much reason to head to West Virginia, and I'd never been until yesterday. For most Big 12 fans and media, I'd say that's the case. Alas, I'll start there before moving to matters on the field.

• The rumors you've heard are true. This campus and area is beautiful, just as advertised by West Virginia coach Dana Holgorsen and just about anybody else who's been here. The drive from the Denver airport to Boulder used to be my favorite in the Big 12, but it's now been replaced by the drive from Pittsburgh to Morgantown. I had heard it was two hours. It's not. It's in the ballpark of an hour to 90 minutes. Easily doable. Unlike Boulder, there isn't one big looming mountain, though. The campus and surrounding area is set among rolling hills unlike anything you'll see in the Big 12, save some parts of Austin, Texas. The drive over gives you a sense of the landscape, and there are plenty of gorgeous views. You'll love the first time you make it. I grew up in Northwest Arkansas in the thick of the Ozark Mountains, and it reminded me of that area a lot. No huge peaks, but lots of gorgeous scenery. I can only imagine how it will look in the fall.
• As for travel, I have some advice for airlines: Add more flights on fall weekends between Pittsburgh and Kansas City, Dallas and Houston, the three biggest hubs for Big 12 fans. If you get a direct flight into Pittsburgh, the travel won't be much different than trying to get to Texas A&M, Mizzou or Kansas State. I had to connect through Philadelphia, though, and it was a legitimate half-day of travel. It might take a little out of you heading into a game weekend.
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Andrew Weber/US PresswireWest Virginia's Geno Smith is as physically imposing as any of his new Big 12 QB counterparts.
• Unfortunately, I was on hand for the coldest day of the spring in West Virginia. It had been in the 70s and 80s for much of the workouts, but it was overcast and 50 degrees with blustery winds throughout Tuesday's two-plus-hour session, which included plenty of team drills. Holgorsen's teams typically don't tackle much, but players were going full contact on Tuesday, tackling to the ground during team drills, a rarity in the spring for some programs. Running back Ryan Clarke went down with an ankle injury, but his status is pending more examination from doctors.
• I was struck by Geno Smith's physical prowess. I'm not sure I realized just how big he is. He's every bit of 6-foot-3 and 214 pounds, and maybe more. To me, he was more physically imposing than Landry Jones, who checks in at 6-4, 229. Other than Collin Klein, you won't see any Big 12 passers with the kind of physique Jones and Smith have.
• Stedman Bailey and Tavon Austin? Good grief, those two are as advertised. Nobody in the Big 12 is going to be able to cover Austin with any consistency. Bailey and Smith have been friends since growing up in South Florida, and Bailey will be productive, too. Smith's throwing reps were limited on Tuesday to give his shoulder a little rest, but he hit Bailey and Austin for rainbow 40- to 50-yard passes on consecutive plays during 11-on-11 drills Tuesday. Bailey isn't quite as physically impressive as Austin (namely his quickness), but he's really smart and coordinated, and he'll be able to get open and make plays like he did last year.
• The quarterbacks behind Smith, by the way? Both Texas natives who I'm sure are itching to go up against some familiar faces. Sophomore Paul Millard is from Flower Mound, a Dallas suburb, and Ford Childress (6-5, 224) is from Houston. Both looked strong, and Millard hooked up with Ivan McCartney on a deep ball while working some with the first team early in practice. Honestly, WVU might have the best full set of QBs in the league right now, beyond starters.
• The scariest thing about WVU right now? You probably know the skill-position players -- specifically at QB and receiver -- are as good as if not better than any in the Big 12. But look out for the youngsters, too. WVU is deep and have a lot of guys who keep on coming. One name already turning heads this spring: True freshman early enrollee Jordan Thompson, a Katy, Texas, native who made plenty of plays during Tuesday's practice, and took a huge hit from a pair of defenders. "They've been waiting to do that for a long time," yelled a teammate as another picked Thompson up and Holgorsen smiled at his "Welcome to Division I football" moment.
• You know about Bailey and Austin, but look out for J.D. Woods, too. He looked the part of playmaker in Tuesday's practice, and the senior could finally be turning a corner after a quiet junior season.
• I'll have plenty more through the week -- I'm here until Thursday -- so keep checking back for more from my trip to West Virginia.

Three more TCU football players have been charged with felony marijuana delivery after a six-month sting.

Defensive tackle D.J. Yendrey, linebacker Tanner Brock and offensive tackle Ty Horn were among 14 people charged Thursday in the drug investigation at the university, bringing the total number charged to 23. All three are charged with delivering a quarter-ounce to 5 pounds of marijuana.

Cornerback Devin Johnson was charged last month with three cases of delivering a quarter-ounce to 5 pounds of marijuana.

For more on this story, go here.

Across our little blog village here at ESPN, we're taking a look at the top newcomers in college football this year. You (probably) don't know their names yet, but here's who you need to watch this fall in the Big 12.

Will Smith, LB, Texas Tech: The Red Raiders only found Smith while recruiting another possible impact transfer, running back SaDale Foster. The California juco transfer stepped on campus this winter and by the end of spring, coach Tommy Tuberville called him the team's best linebacker. He started playing outside, but Tuberville moved the 6-foot-2, 220-pounder to starting middle linebacker in the middle of camp so he'd be on the field even during passing downs. He'll be important to Tech's new 4-3 scheme. Think K-State's Arthur Brown, a Miami transfer who's almost the exact same size.

Dayne Crist, QB, Kansas: You probably know this name, but Crist started nine games in 2010 for Notre Dame and appeared in 17 career games. He began 2011 as the starter, but was benched and transferred to KU to play his final season of college football for Charlie Weis, the coach who recruited him to South Bend as the nation's No. 2 quarterback and No. 22 overall prospect in the 2008 class. He threw 15 touchdowns and seven interceptions in 2010.

Brandon Moore, DT, Texas: Moore is part of a changing world in Austin, thanks to a revamped coaching staff with some SEC sensibilites. He and OT Donald Hawkins were the first juco transfers to sign with Texas since 2002 and Moore may be the lynchpin of the Big 12's best defense this year. Teammates have described the "full-grown man" as "unstoppable." Such is life at 6-6 and 330 pounds. Moore has to work on his conditioning, but he's going to wreak havoc on Big 12 offensive lines when he's on the field this year. Look for him to collapse a pocket or two early and often this season.

Trey Metoyer, WR, Oklahoma: Metoyer spent a year in military school after not qualifying academically, but he's already made an impact this spring after finally arriving at Oklahoma. He was the nation's No. 8 receiver in the 2011 class and offers the Sooners some much-needed sure hands. The unit came down with the dropsies late last season, and the FBS career leader for receptions, Ryan Broyles, is NFL-bound. Metoyer is exactly what the Sooners need to keep their offense on pace with the league's best, and he'll be catching passes from a Heisman candidate in Landry Jones.

Lache Seastrunk, RB, Baylor: Seastrunk's short-lived career at Oregon was marred by a recruiting scandal, but he's back home, 30 miles north of his hometown in Temple, Texas, and ready for a fresh start. Baylor needs a replacement for Big 12 rushing champ Terrance Ganaway, and Seastrunk, the nation's No. 6 running back and No. 40 overall prospect in the 2010 class, is battling Glasco Martin and Jarred Salubi for the chance to be the man.

West Virginia and TCU: Have y'all heard about this? It's gonna be kind of crazy. After losing four teams since June 2010, the Big 12 poached the Big East and added the former Southwest Conference-dwelling Frogs and the Mountaineers, badly in need of a home away from the weakened Big East. Here's how we welcomed the Frogs and did the same for WVU earlier this year.

The past few months have been filled with talk of a playoff, or at least something resembling a playoff that the men in charge don't want to call a playoff.

Either way, college football's postseason has never been this close to changing since the birth of the BCS more than a decade ag0.

So, what does the old postseason think?

Colleague Ryan McGee asked around the bowls for their take .

So what are they thinking as they read and hear the playoff comments? Are they confident about the future? Terrified? Indifferent?

"We are absolutely watching what's going on. Always have been," says Rick Catlett, president of the Gator Bowl Association. "But I also think that anyone in this business knows that there's not a whole lot we can do about it. We are in constant contact with the conference commissioners, the people who will ultimately make the decisions about the future of the game. But honestly, we don't have a lot of influence."

The 16-year leader of college football's sixth-oldest bowl game doesn't say this with a tone of fear or foreboding. Neither did the other half-dozen bowl executives I chatted with this week (on and off the record). No one mentioned extinction. Instead, they concede a curiosity as to where and how they will fit in to whatever format is adopted.

Lots of interesting stuff. You'll need Insider to read it all, but it's worth checking out.

AUSTIN, Texas -- College football's going to look a little different next year, and Mack Brown isn't so sure the new rule changes are going to benefit the game.

Texas' coaches spent an hour with officials on Monday, and Brown left with several concerns.

Perhaps his biggest complaint?

The ambiguity of the new helmet rule, which Brown says is "a little gray."

Next year, if a player loses his helmet, he has to sit out a play, but that's not the only rule change. Depending on the situation, the play can be stopped, or a player who loses his helmet can't continue playing.

When play will be stopped or a player made to quit playing, though, is a difficult judgment call with a 15-yard penalty at stake.

"If I'm a defensive end rushing the passer, supposedly I can rush him, but quarterback steps up, I can't continue to rush or it's a penalty," Brown said. "If you lose your helmet, you have to come out of the game for a play, regardless. So, your quarterback could lose his helmet on the next to the last play of the game and he's out for the last play. And also if you lose your helmet within  in the last minutes of the half at the end of the game, you can have the 10-second runoff rule."

Brown used the example of last year's last-second win over Texas A&M. The game-winning field goal was kicked with three seconds left, but if Texas hadn't had a timeout late, a player's helmet coming off could force a 10-second runoff and end the game.

While Brown, and I would assume most people, agree with the rule's intent -- protecting players -- the regulations could have some troubling consequences.

Brown wants to take some action before the season and get Big 12 Coordinator of Football Officials Walt Anderson involved.

"What you have is about nine coaches from all different divisions that are in a group with Safeguards Committee and they sit and make these rules. I really wish we would have more input instead of just being told, because we didn't even understand some of these until yesterday," Brown said. "What we've done when we make rules and make the official's judgment in a tough spot, I think we're hurting ourselves because how in the world are you going to know when to blow that whistle?"

Brown also took issue with the new, re-instituted halo rule that requires players to provide a one-yard buffer zone in front of players returning punts.

"Now, if [a defender is] covering me and I'm returning the punt and I bobble it and go toward him and he's within a yard of me and doesn't touch me ... it's a 15yard penalty," Brown said. "I really hope that we'll relook at some of those things and try to make a difference."

The halo rule applies to more than just punts now, too. Next year, onside kicks must hit the ground twice, or kick return teams can call fair catches and prevent defenders from trying to retain possession for an onside attempt.

"They're protecting the guy that's standing there getting ready to catch the pop up and everybody's running over him," Brown said. "If it touches the ground once I can call a fair catch now on the kickoff on the onside kick. You'll have to kick the ball on the ground. If you hit it twice, can bounce it twice, get it to jump, then there's no fair catch."

That's a tall order for kickers, and expect to see a lot more onside kicks on the ground next year. But where is the line? What if a player is bent over trying to pick up a kick and suffers a serious neck injury? Do you just ban onside kicks altogether?

Brown made a whole lot of good points and questioned the right things with the new rule changes.

Here's hoping his campaign for clarification, alteration or outright change is successful.

FORT WORTH, Texas — Inside TCU's team meeting room, an all-white triangle awaits some new colors come fall.

Well, one new color if the 2012 season goes TCU's way.

At the bottom sits the small things like keeping teammates accountable. Maybe its a rep in practice or on the bench press. He wants chemistry and a family atmosphere, as well as a good attitude.

Do that, and you've established the bottom rung of Gary Patterson's famed pyramid. The white base earns a full purple coat.

Above it comes a call to prepare in game weeks, a demand for mental toughness and a tradition of physical play that TCU has built its program upon.

Players sign the outside to show a promise of commitment to what the pyramid imposes.

This year, though, things are a little different.

The names of TCU's nonconference opponents — Grambling, SMU and Virginia — sit below a demand for the Horned Frogs to "Leave No Doubt."

Around Fort Worth, Patterson's Pyramid is a well-known commodity. Across the Big 12, though, get to know it well. You might not see it in person, but TCU's opponents will see its results. And in the past, they've been excellent.

If TCU suffers a loss, the purple triangle gets an ugly white block in the middle.

At the top sits a call: Go to a BCS bowl game and win.

TCU accomplished that in the 2010 season. Above that, though, sits one final goal: "#1 National Champions."

TCU strung together a 13-0 season in 2010 after beating Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl, but was denied a chance to play for the title by the BCS.

After returning home, Patterson couldn't rob his team of what it had achieved. It did everything it could.

Patterson colored in the top triangle to cheers and framed the all-purple pyramid, hanging it outside his office in the football facility.

In conference play, though, there's a new list of teams — certainly one that's welcomed. It's tougher. TCU's slogan for 2012 — it's hanging above the pyramid in purple print — is "Make It Personal."

Protecting home turf in conference play takes up the next level of the pyramid with a list of each opponent who will suit up at a rebuilt Amon G. Carter Stadium.

Teams that win big do it on the road. Conference road games take up the higher block on the pyramid.

Simple postseason goals — get to a bowl game, win and earn a top-25 postseason ranking — make up the block before the biggest goals.

The time to achieve those will come in September. For now, TCU is working on the building blocks while the pyramid remains white.

"We’ve got a long ways to go to get where we want to get to. The only way we’re going to get there is hard work, keep our nose down, understand we play one game at a time, just like we always have on the pyramid," Patterson said.

"But the top and the bottom have never changed."

TCU's means to reach the top, though?

Thanks to a new league home, they're more than they've ever been for Patterson.

FORT WORTH, Texas -- Early in Tuesday's practice under an overcast sky, a fitting anthem blared.

"You know where you are?" screeched Guns N' Roses frontman Axl Rose. "You're in the jungle, baby."

Nevermind that the song's next line prophesied death for the newcomer. TCU is officially preparing to enter the Big 12.

Welcome to the jungle, indeed. Hope you brought a machete.

Preparations start now in the spring for Gary Patterson's Horned Frogs. As TCU transitions into an AQ conference, it must tackle the No. 1 criticism of any non-AQ team: depth.

"Twos and threes win championships. Everybody loses ones," Patterson said. "How do your twos and threes play?"

He's already undergoing his third conference move as he prepares for his 13th season as TCU head coach. The program moved from the WAC to Conference USA after Patterson's first season and from C-USA to the Mountain West in 2005.

Patterson already has every Big 12 game from 2011 for viewing on his home laptop.

"Instead of watching 'CSI: Miami,' I’m watching Oklahoma State," Patterson said. "That’s what you have to do. There’s a lot of preparation. It’s not like we’ve been playing these teams 7-8 years and you know what they do. You’ve got to start preparing right now."

The same is true on the recruiting trail, where TCU cracked the national top 25 with its latest class. The Horned Frogs could see those dividends multiply with its new home in one of college football's best conferences, where former Southwest Conference rivals Baylor, Texas Tech and Texas reside along with new foes Oklahoma and Oklahoma State from the former Big 8.

"We’ve always recruited to play in the Big 12, because we knew if we could recruit to play in the Big 12, we could have a chance to win in the Mountain West," Patterson said. "So, the only big difference is now we’re recruiting kids and people can’t say, 'Well, you’re not going to go to TCU because you’re not in the Big 12.' Well, now we are in the Big 12."

TCU looks ready to grow, and if prospects in the Metroplex don't want to come along? Well ...

"We're like the girl next door. If they're not careful in the Metroplex, pretty soon they are going to go three hours down the road," Patterson said. "They are going to grow up and we are going to grow up and be beautiful and they are going to wish they would have went out with us because somebody else is taking them to the prom."

Yeah, but it's not all boutonnieres and roses (or Rose Bowls). Those recruiting inroads come with a price: a schedule that's likely to feature five preseason top-20 teams.

TCU can have its new stadium, undergoing a $164 million upgrade, including six $15 million suites 20 rows from the field (it will seat 45,000 when it's finished before the 2012 season). It can have its new locker room with pristine wood lining each player's space along with a cushy seat to park after long practices.

That doesn't change the obvious truth.

"All that doesn’t make any difference if you don’t win," Patterson said. "So my goal is to grow up the best football team I can and win.

"That’s what we’re doing right now."

We'll find out in the fall if Patterson is succeeding, but he's got the pieces. His Horned Frogs return an all-conference quarterback in Casey Pachall and his top three targets, along with an outlandish three 700-yard rushers from last year's team.

The big job this spring is patching together a defense that took a step back in 2011. It fell on its face when three starters were arrested in a campus drug sting and have been consequently "separated" from the team until the legal process plays out.

"The thing I like best about this team is they competed hard but they still like each other," Patterson said. "But for two hours, you’ve gotta hate each other. You’ve gotta learn."

His team is learning, but the fall tests will be much more difficult.

Will TCU pass or fail?

The discussion comes up every year, especially in years like 2008, 2009 and 2011 when the Big 12 mounts a serious threat at toppling the SEC's run of national title wins.

So what separates the two leagues? TCU coach Gary Patterson was asked the question this weekend. He's a Big 12 newcomer, and his answer confirms what you've probably heard before, but from one more source.

"There are a lot of good players every where else. If you look at the NFL per capita, Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi they put out more NFL players than anywhere else in the country," Patterson told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. "It's the body types in the regions of the United States that make a difference, too. You are going to find the skill players, but what we don't have as much in this state is the size of bodies of offensive and defensive linemen that the southeast part of the United States has. It's the gene pool."

I agree with Patterson. In the high-stakes games we've seen in the past few years, beefy linemen like Nick Fairley at Auburn and Marcell Dareus at Alabama have proved too much for spread offenses like Oregon and Texas.

But for those across the Big 12, Patterson's latter comments should be cause for concern.

Texas brought Bo Davis from Alabama to coach the team's defensive tackles and Stacy Searels to coach the offensive line. This year, both Davis and Searels will have junior-college transfers to coach.

Traditionally, the more mature-bodied talents show up on campus ready to contribute and have been staples of championship SEC defenses.

Texas' Brandon Moore has been described by teammates as "unstoppable" this offseason. Apparently, word has gotten out.

"Alabama is playing with 350-pound guys. Like the guy who just transferred to Texas; he's 6-7, 340. They ain't had 6-7, 340 guy forever that can run like he does," Patterson said. "(The state of Texas) has skill players. It doesn't matter whether it's 1-A or 5-A, they can all run. I'm not knocking what we do here at all. It's just a different body type."

Patterson's right, but could Texas be the first step in a changing game? Moore and offensive lineman Donald Hawkins are just the first.

Will they be the last? If either has a big impact, you better believe there's no way others won't follow suit, and we could see a whole lot of Big 12 teams gunning for those highly recruited jucos in the South.

During the commissioners' BCS meetings last month, Big 12 commissioner Chuck Neinas took a backseat on public comments regarding a playoff.

His thoughts on possible change to college football's postseason weren't as sought after as peers like Larry Scott in the Pac-12, Jim Delany in the Big Ten or Mike Slive in the SEC.

That was, in part, because Neinas plans to leave his post by July 1 and hand his brief title of commissioner over to a successor.

Neinas, though, opened up about his thoughts in a recent interview with The Oklahoman's Berry Tramel.

Eight and 16-team models seem to be losing steam, while the four-team model with three additional games is picking up traction. Neinas joined that chorus.

"I like the idea, if you're going to take four, take four champions,” Neinas told the paper. "They're not hard to identify.

"The selection process is one that would concern me. The easiest is taking four conference champions."

It's still very, very early in the process, but I'd bet we see a four-team playoff eventually. What that looks like, how teams are selected and where games are played could get messy, though.

Neinas said he doesn't see a downside to a four-team playoff, but the payoff?

"Looking at it very broadly, we've agreed, we've got to do something to maintain public interest," Neinas said. "We want a vibrant postseason. We have to explore ideas that will make it better. There's obviously strong support of a four-team arrangement."

Hoo boy. I'm going to have to sit down. I'm a bit lightheaded. Be still, my beating heart.

I'm not as anti-BCS as some, though I certainly prefer a playoff. I sleep at night by telling myself it's better than the old system, and until this offseason, I'd sort of given up on the idea of a playoff becoming a reality.

A four-team playoff would be a beautiful sight. We may see one soon, and the Big 12 isn't standing in the way.

In some ways, I like the idea of blocking out teams that don't win their conference title. They had their shot. Win, and they would be in, Tramel writes.

But would the playoff be about the four best teams? If so, you'd probably have to eliminate the conference champion requirement.

We saw it this year, though. The Alabama-LSU title rematch rendered the "Game of the Century" meaningless. A four-team playoff would intensify those games and turn conference title games into mammoth showdowns with national titles on the line in almost every major conference. The same would be true of late-season games in leagues like the Big 12, which lacks a conference title game.

Thinking about it gets me pretty excited. It has that effect, it would seem, on those with the power to change.

Stay tuned.

Before a couple years ago, few had much intimate knowledge of the Big 12 bylaws.

The league's recent spate of misfortunes and schools leaving has changed all that, particularly in regard to Section 3, which deals with the complicated matters of team exits.

Reads section 3:

Each Member Institution agrees that in the event such Member desires to withdraw from the Conference, that it will in good faith give Notice not less than two (2) years before the end of the Current Term or any Additional Term, as the case may be.

...

If, other than by giving a proper Notice pursuant to Section 3.1, a Member Institution (a “Breaching Member”) withdraws, resigns, or otherwise ceases to participate as a full Member Institution in full compliance with these Rules, or gives notice or otherwise states its intent to so withdraw, resign, or cease to participate in the future (a “Breach”), then the Member Institutions agree that such Breach would cause financial hardship to the remaining Member Institutions of the Conference, and that the financial consequences cannot be measured or estimated with certainty at this time.

Therefore, in recognition of the obligations and responsibilities of each Member Institution to all other Member Institutions of the Conference, each Member Institution agrees that after such Breach, the amount of Conference revenue that would otherwise have been distributed or distributable to the Breaching Member during the two (2) years prior to the end of the Current Term or the then-current Additional Term, as the case may be, shall be reduced by an amount that equals the sum of the aggregate of such revenues times the following percentages (such sum being the “Aggregate Reduction”); ... if Notice is received less than twelve months but on or before six months prior to the Effective Date, 90%.

It's a lot of words. In short, you're supposed to give the conference two years notice before leaving. Nobody's doing that in the Big 12.

If you don't give two years' notice, you're going to pay.

For Texas A&M and Missouri, two years' worth of conference revenue would have been in the ballpark of $30 million. Thus, 90 percent of that money would equal something close to $27 million.

Missouri will see $12.41 million withheld under a settlement announced Tuesday. Texas A&M will have the same amount withheld, but receive considerations from the conference money that leaves just a $9.31 million hole in Texas A&M's bottom line.

Nebraska paid 47.6 percent of the approximately $20 million it would have owed by the letter of the Big 12 bylaws. That totaled $9.25 million.

The precedent had been set.

Like Nebraska and Colorado, Texas A&M and Missouri can consider this a win.

I'm no lawyer. I like to think I can make some sense, though. The Big 12 bylaws say to pay one number. Four teams leave the league and all four pay less than half of what the bylaws say?

That is a problem. A big, big problem.

When West Virginia left, the Big East bylaws required schools to pay $5 million and give 27 months' notice. That number has since been raised to $10 million.

West Virginia didn't give 27 months notice, announcing in October that it would join the Big 12 on July 1, 2012. After months of legal wrangling, the Mountaineers announced they'd be leaving on time, but would pay $20 million.

Everyone has their price.

For the Big 12, though, that price seems to be well below what the rules require.

Why don't the laws have teeth? That's for the Big 12 to dig through the legalese and figure out.

Instituting changes to the bylaws after Nebraska and Colorado left had been discussed in the league, but never came to fruition. By the time A&M and Mizzou left, it was too late to make any new changes.

With the recent grant of media rights to the conference, the Big 12 won't have to worry about losing any members for at least six years. After granting the media rights to the Big 12, the league's current 10 members only hold any value for the Big 12 for the next six years. That's plenty of time.

Between now and then, change must happen. Maybe no one leaves the league ever again. No one can say with any certainty whether or not that will happen.

The league better make sure that if it does, its bylaws have the ability to flex.

So far, they've been nothing but steamrolled.

It's not really about preventing teams from leaving the league anyway. If a program wants to move conferences and has a viable new home, it will find a a way to leave. Public demand, among other things, assures that.

Tightening up the league's bylaws is more about getting the money that rightfully belongs to the conference members, according to rules they agreed to when the conference was formed, or in the cases of TCU and West Virginia, when they joined the league.

If the bylaws were tighter, the league's members would have shared just under a combined $100 million from outgoing Texas A&M, Missouri, Nebraska and Colorado. Instead, it withheld a total of just $37.83 million.

That's unacceptable.

Tuesday and Wednesday, Big 12 commissioner Chuck Neinas was one of 11 FBS conference commissioners (in addition to Notre Dame AD Jack Swarbrick) who met in Dallas to discuss the future of college football's postseason and possible changes to the BCS format.

He'll be leaving his interim post to his successor by July 1, but after the meetings concluded, he took a few minutes to speak with ESPN.com on the league's rocky recent past and possible future expansion.

David Ubben: The West Virginia situation is finally settled. How would you describe the process of the last few months, trying to watch that get settled while you handled your business and waited on West Virginia to handle its own?

Chuck Neinas: We were never in doubt that West Virginia was coming. It was only a matter of how they wish to extricate themselves from the Big East. There were a couple of paths they could have followed and they selected the one that they did, but there was never a question in our mind that West Virginia was going to be with us.

DU: Never a question they'd be in the league for 2012?

CN: 2012.

DU: What gave you so much confidence that you were going to have them for 2012?

CN: We had obviously explored it in great detail with the administration at West Virginia University and they kept giving us assurances, "We'll be there.'

DU: How would you describe the league's current attitude toward expansion in the future?

CN: Good question. I'd say that No. 1, the board of directors charged our expansion committee to continue to monitor the landscape of college athletics. We've just gone through a rather interesting year, and so we now have 10 good, solid members. We're very stable for a lot of reasons, and you can't ignore the fact that every one of the 10 signed a grant of rights, which means that the conference now has their television rights, so that puts us in a very secure position going forward.

DU: That was officially executed, correct?

CN: Oh, yes.

DU: When were the official documents actually signed?

CN: It was done. I can't remember -- I can't give you the date, but of course West Virginia was the last one to sign it over, but they're all in. So, right now, there's a feeling that 10 provides the opportunity for everybody to play each other in football and a double round-robin in basketball and that's appealing to a lot of our members. That's not to say there won't be further review of expansion, and that could well happen, but not on my watch down the road.

DU: Down the last road, you secured the first-tier money without a championship game, but that's up for renegotiation in 2014. Could you see that being a catalyst for future expansion?

CN: No -- well, it could be. But I don't think that's necessarily what would drive expansion.

DU: So, how would you describe the mood of the league as it moves forward without Missouri and Texas A&M?

CN: Positive. Very positive.

DALLAS -- Big 12 commissioner Chuck Neinas will leave his post by July 1, he told ESPN.com on Wednesday at the college football commissioners' meetings.

"I’ve agreed to remain on until the end of June," Neinas said, "so I’m fully confident they’ll have a new commissioner to be on board the first of July, and probably earlier."

He'll help find his replacement, too.

Neinas helped numerous Big 12 programs hire coaches in various sports with his search firm, Neinas Sports Services. The Big 12's search committee to find his replacement offered Neinas a spot to serve as an advisor for the group, which is led by Oklahoma State president Burns Hargis. Neinas accepted the offer.

"They are in the process of retaining a search firm," Neinas said.

More on this story here.

West Virginia and TCU will officially join the Big 12 on July 1.

We kicked off our spring preview on Tuesday, and you may have noticed a couple new faces making an appearance.

We're still integrating West Virginia and TCU into the Big 12 fold, but there's a lot to be excited about for both.

That said, which team's new membership excites you most?

TCU will renew its old rivalries from the Southwest Conference with Texas, Texas Tech and Baylor, though A&M has left for the SEC.

The Horned Frogs played a classic with the Bears last season, and until Tech beat the Sooners last year, the Horned Frogs were the last team to win a game in Norman, Okla., all the way back in the 2005 season opener.

Gary Patterson's built something special at TCU, and the Horned Frogs proved that non-AQ schools really can win their way into the big leagues.

Now it's time for TCU to win at the next level.

West Virginia? The Mountaineers have a recognizable head man in Dana Holgorsen, who made stops at Texas Tech under Mike Leach and Oklahoma State, where he revitalized the Cowboys' offense and helped win a then-school-record 11 games.

West Virginia will be a much larger unknown to Big 12 folk. Morgantown is a long way from Fort Worth. I've never been to West Virginia, and I assume plenty of Big 12 fans haven't been, either.

Now's your chance.

Both teams have big offenses coming back in 2012. Both teams have had big success on the BCS stage.

Which team are you most excited to see? Vote in our poll.