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SEC and Big 12 folks have been tweaking the Big Ten and Pac-12's love of the Rose Bowl of late. That made me grin because the primary motivation for those tweaks was jealousy.

Don't buy that assessment? Well, then what do you make of this: The SEC and Big 12 champions, starting in 2014 after the current BCS contract expires and we presumably adopt a four-team playoff, will meet annually in a prime time New Year's Day "bowl" game.

Unless, of course, the SEC and/or Big 12 champions are selected for the four-team playoff, which one is almost certain to be and both are likely to be.

But, if one or both is selected for the playoff, then, just like the Rose Bowl, a No. 2 team from both or either conference will be selected.

So the SEC and Big 12 have adopted the Rose Bowl model in its entirety. Other than the fact that they can't play in the Rose Bowl stadium as the sun goes down over the San Gabriel Mountains.

The location has not been set. The Sugar Bowl (SEC) and Fiesta Bowl (Big 12) already have a dog in this fight, but expect bids to come from Jerry Jones and his deluxe Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, as well as a play from Atlanta.

By the way, the Rose Bowl jealousy stuff is mostly good-natured ribbing while I'm gaping at another sudden shift in college football's tectonic plates.

Folks, this stuff is amazing, and there's a stunning plot twist seemingly on a weekly basis -- Florida State to the Big 12? Notre Dame back in play?

The main take-away: This is a step closer to four power conferences, with the ACC and Big East finding their footing suddenly precarious.

And, if you want to worry, Pac-12 fans, it looks like the SEC and Big 12 are being far more aggressive -- read: expansionist -- as college football remakes itself. Keep in mind that the Pac-12 could have ended the Big 12 last September and become the first 16-team super-conference if Texas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Texas Tech had made a jump.

Pac-12 presidents might end up regretting their decision not to expand -- and giving Oklahoma, in particular, the shaft. Newly enriched by a mega-TV deal, they might have lost track of the big picture while they were counting their money.

Commissioner Larry Scott has long held that further consolidation at the top of college football was inevitable. This is another example of him proving right, though this time without a blockbuster deal for Pac-12 folks to celebrate.

This latest news is a reason to get nervous. Or to just marvel at how quickly the game has changed.

PHOENIX -- The first reaction was shock: Junior Seau dead at just 43, his death ruled a suicide. Quickly came grief: An all-time USC and NFL great, a good guy known for his accessibility and philanthropy away from the field who didn't want to live anymore.

Then shortly thereafter: Anger. Another football player dead before his time. Surely head injuries -- concussions -- were to blame. Surely the game is to blame. These three stages have been repeated too often of late, and their repetition threatens our love affair with a sport that obsesses our country like no other.

We can't make you feel any better about Seau. That's a still-resonating tragedy. We can only note it's premature to arrive at any overriding conclusions as to why he did the unthinkable.

But we might be able to make you feel a little bit better about football.

The takeaway from a timely Fiesta Bowl Summit panel Thursday, "Sports-Related Concussions: Facts, Fallacies and New Frontiers," was twofold: 1. The NCAA and NFL, after the media forced them to pay attention, have been working hard to get their arms around the issue; 2. It's not unreasonable to believe they can.

Of course, there always will be head injuries in contact sports, and repeated head trauma can lead to long-term health problems. This knowledge isn't new. Doctors were aware of boxers becoming punch drunk -- dementia pugilistica -- in the 1920s.

Understanding concussions and how best to prevent and then treat them, however, isn't easy. As Dr. Margot Putukian, one of four panelists at the Arizona Biltmore, said, concussions are "a moving target." Each one is different, and each person is different. They are not anything like a torn ACL.

Yet there has been recent research progress that is particularly meaningful for football. Said Dr. Michael McCrea, "The news is promising."

McCrea's research found that 28 percent of athletes suffering a concussion no longer show symptoms from their injury after 24 hours. Sixty percent are asymptomatic after a week to 10 days. So nearly 90 percent of athletes passed tests that showed their symptoms were gone inside of 10 days. But that's not the good news. Passing tests that show symptoms are gone doesn't mean the brain has fully healed -- achieved full clinical recovery.

The good news is this: Those numbers, it turns out, do indeed run roughly parallel to a full clinical recovery. Using a multi-dimensional approach -- symptoms tests as well as MRI -- for assessing the recovery process can, McCrea said, "take the guesswork out of concussion management."

These numbers should make it easier to convince athletes who are eager to get back on the field and coaches who want them there to be patient. Simply, coming back too early greatly increases the risk of another concussion, and a second concussion almost always requires a far longer recovery time. Waiting the full seven to 10 days -- and missing a game -- greatly reduces the risk of re-injury, McCrea said. Ergo, there are now specific numbers that show it's better for athlete and team not to rush things.

But the issues with concussions extend beyond understanding them, treating them and even preventing them. Every institution needs well-drilled standards and procedures for dealing with them: A concussion management plan. And coaches and training staff need to know them and know them well. Putukian asked a rhetorical question that all parents of athletes should be asking coaches (non-rhetorically): "What medical personnel do you have there, and what do you do in case of emergency?"

How many layers of procedure are involved here? Lots. Here's one you probably didn't think of: Academic accommodation. A player who suffered a concussion on Saturday might have issues taking a test the following Wednesday.

There was a consensus among the four doctors about how the NFL and NCAA can continue to improve their approach to concussions.

• Education: Players and coaches need to understand how serious head injuries are, and the potentially harmful long-term consequences for returning to play too soon. This could include, for example, coaches deciding to limit contact during practices.
• Equipment: There are no helmets that prevent concussions, and there won't ever be. That doesn't mean some helmets aren't better than others. Virginia Tech has devised a respected helmet ratings system, and the Riddell 360, Rawlings Quantum Plus and Riddell Revolution Speed all achieved five-star ratings.
• Rules changes: Obviously, an emphasis on stopping head-to-head collisions has been front-and-center. A lot of attention also is being paid to when concussions are most likely to happen in a football game -- on special teams, in the open field and for specific positions.
• Culture change: This might be one of the most difficult to enact -- see the bounty scandal involving the New Orleans Saints. Football is a physical game. That's why it's fun to play and to watch. But there needs to be a recognition that brutality for brutality's sake, a zeal for hurting opponents, can have horrific ramifications after the cartoonish strut and taunt end.

Coaches seem to be taking this issue seriously. Among those who attended the concussion summit, which was presided over by NCAA president Mark Emmert, were Stanford's David Shaw, Wisconsin's Brett Bielema and Texas Tech's Tommy Tuberville. When it was over, UTEP coach Mike Price stood up to say it was the best talk on the subject he'd heard.

This was a sad week for football. A few folks are seriously raising the question of whether college football should be banned. Seau's death made it less easy to scoff derisively at such talk.

Concussions are a serious problem in football. The first step toward solving a problem is recognizing it. The concussion panel this week suggested that football now might be taking a second and perhaps third step.

Sometimes football players come from unexpected places.

Washington State's Andrei Lintz grew up frolicking outside his mom's office: The Catherine Palace, the Rococo summer residence of the tsars just outside of St. Petersburg -- yes, the Russian one, not the one in Florida.

"I remember walking around there. That was my place to hang out," Lintz said. "It was a cool backyard compared to Pullman, where you've got hills and five minutes out of town and you're in the middle of nowhere."

Lintz moved to the U.S. when he was 6. He grew up playing soccer and didn't play football until his freshman year of high school. But he did enough at Meridian High in Bellingham, Wash., to earn a scholarship to Washington State, where he was part of former coach Paul Wulff's first recruiting class.

The next four years weren't much fun. Though the Cougars steadily, if slowly, improved, Wulff was fired last winter after going 9-40 overall and 4-32 in conference play.

"It was heartbreaking from a personal standpoint -- these were the coaches who believed in you, trusted in you," Lintz said. "It is a business and that's the ultimate reality. If you don't win at the Division I level, you're going to get fired."

Then athletic director Bill Moos tapped former Texas Tech coach Mike Leach as Wulff's replacement, which generated plenty of positive buzz in Pullman.

Unless you played tight end, as Lintz did. His initial thought was he might disappear as a fifth-year senior in a spread offense. Heck, Leach didn't even have a tight ends coach.

"I had no idea what was in store for me," Lintz said. "I was pretty worried. I watched [Texas Tech] highlights and they very rarely had a tight end on the field. It was all four-wides and the receivers were small, quick guys."

Ah, but sometimes football players come from unexpected places. Or 6-foot-5, 252-pound tight ends become inside receivers.

Some might see the move as a gimmick. Clearly talented sophomore tight end Aaron Dunn wasn't impressed with his prospects. He quickly transferred after Leach's hire.

But Lintz was a revelation this spring, arguably the Cougs' most consistent receiver. In the final two scrimmages, he caught 12 passes for 145 yards and two touchdowns. Leach's "Air Raid" offense neglect a guy with a tight end's body? Well, last year as the No. 1 tight end, Lintz made just seven catches for 96 yards and one touchdown -- all season.

If you are looking for a breakout player next fall, a guy who could give opposing defenses fits and make them think they are trying to cover the second-coming of former Stanford tight end -- and potential first-round NFL draft pick -- Coby Fleener, look no further than Lintz. He's not as fast as Fleener -- not nearly so -- but he's plenty athletic. And he's capable of playing a jack-of-all-trades role -- receiver, tight end and H-back.

In other words, he's another guy who can help force a defense to do what Leach wants to force it to do: account for the entire field.

But will that be enough to get the Cougs to the postseason for the first time since 2003? Lintz said what has distinguished Leach's first spring, which ends with Saturday's spring game, was a sense of urgency.

"It's almost cutthroat," he said. "It's all go, go, go, now, now, now. We can't be the welcome mat of the Pac-12 anymore."

Lintz likely meant "doormat," but his point is clear. He might hail from Russia, but he's fully aware that the Cougars head into 2012 with an eight-year bowl drought, longest in the Pac-12.

Mike Leach is not afraid of the weather in Pullman, Wash., which could be a bit nippy -- and perhaps snowy -- for the first day of Washington State's spring practices on Thursday.

Heck, it's not like his first spring practice leading the Cougars could be more inclement than his first leading Texas Tech in 2000.

Cold? Snow? Not as bad as hail.

"It's flying off their helmets like popcorn," Leach said recalling his first practice in Lubbock.

Or do you know what happens when a hard rain meets a dust storm?

"A couple of times a year there, it rains mud," he said.

Leach the raconteur took control of his chat with reporters Wednesday afternoon and was, as usual, highly entertaining. But getting specifics from him about what he sees with his personnel wasn't part of the plan, and it led to briefer answers. Of course, that makes sense because Leach isn't sure what he's got as he installs his "Air Raid" offense and a 3-4 defense.

Evaluation is obviously a top priority, but Leach used the terms "precise" and "efficient" repeatedly.

Or, as he said, "Getting as good as we possibly can at practicing."

The first order of business is finding a quarterback. Leach said reps will be split 50-50, at least during the early-going, between Jeff Tuel and Connor Halliday. When asked if Halliday, who suffered a lacerated liver against Utah on Nov. 19, was ready to practice full-go, Leach said, "I assume."

Leach said the top two priorities for his QBs will be decision-making and accuracy. "Those two you really can't compromise on," he said. Quick feet also help, particularly for a team that has some questions on the offensive line.

Leach pointed out that he didn't pursue a JC QB because he's pretty satisfied with what he's seen on tape of Tuel and Halliday. "It's not like you're starting from zero," he said.

He seemed intrigued by his talent at receiver, noting that the crew was taller than what he typically had at Texas Tech. And, yes, he's been impressed by Marquess Wilson.

"What I like about him is he always wants the ball," he said.

On the other side of the ball, it will be interesting to see how things develop, particularly if the Cougars want to make new coordinator's Mike Breske’s 3-4 alignment their base scheme. After dismissing both C.J. Mizell and Sekope Kaufusi from the team -- both returning starters -- there's a decided lack of depth at linebacker. Count on there being some position shuffling, both from the backhalf and the line. Leach, in particular, seemed intrigued with Travis Long, who has started the previous three years at end. The 6-foot-4, 256-pound senior might be athletic enough to play an outside linebacker spot.

"He can do a lot of things," Leach said. "Moving him around as a player is pretty tempting."

It's obvious there will be a lot going on this spring in Pullman, so the often-challenging weather is not a chief concern. Getting guys into the right spot is.

Said Leach, "There isn't anybody who's not being evaluated."

Oregon coach Chip Kelly was baffled in a phone interview before the Rose Bowl. How the heck could little-old-him be important to a reporter?

"The big story," he said conspiratorially,"is all these new coaches."

Well, it's the big story now as the Pac-12 turns its attention away from the 2011 season and toward 2012 spring practices. And, of course, Kelly is part of a reason there are four new coaches in the conference. Mike Stoops, Dennis Erickson, Rick Neuheisel and Paul Wulff -- fired at Arizona, Arizona State, UCLA and Washington State, respectively -- never beat Kelly and, in fact, came within double digits of his Ducks only once (Arizona, with a 44-41 loss in 2009).

But the story isn't just four new coaches. It's four new coaches whom folks have heard of, each of whom is getting a big-boy salary that would fit in among the SEC or Big Ten. Big salaries are the new normal in the Pac-12 after the conference signed a $3 billion TV deal with ESPN and Fox.

So out goes Stoops and his $1,456,000 salary, and in comes Rich Rodriguez and his $1,910,000 paycheck. Out goes Erickson and his $1,503,000 salary, and in comes Todd Graham and his $2 million tab. Out goes Neuheisel and his $1,285,000 salary, and in comes Jim Mora and his $2.4 million annual take. Out goes Wulff and his $600,000 salary, and in comes Mike Leach and his $2,250,000 price tag.

The chief idea is obvious: Pac-12 schools are paying for an upgrade in coaching talent, and there are high expectations for getting their money's worth. And, by the way, there's an added bonus for each hire: Each new coach has a chip on his shoulder and something to prove.

• In 2010, Rodriguez was ingloriously dispatched at Michigan after three tumultuous and unsuccessful years. Athletic director Greg Byrne is betting that Rodriguez is far closer to the highly successful coach he was at West Virginia than the one who got run out of Ann Arbor, and Rodriguez surely wants that impression to be his legacy. It helps that he got his man, Jeff Casteel, to run the Wildcats' defense, which he failed to do at Michigan.
• Graham took a lot of heat from a pandering, sanctimonious media and a whiny Pittsburgh fan base for how he left the Panthers. "He didn't even say goodbye," they collectively sobbed. "Waaah." Of course, Graham does have an unfortunate habit of describing every job as his "dream job." All that stuff is mostly hogwash, though. What matters is winning, and if Graham does that, the media will all come down en masse to Tempe pretending they didn't trash Graham's character for taking a better job, in a better conference, in a better place to live while making his family happy in the process.
• Mora was fired in 2009 after only one season with the Seattle Seahawks, and he's bided his time looking for another head-coaching job. Seeing that he was two or three names down UCLA athletic director Dan Guerrero's coaching list -- Chris Petersen! Kevin Sumlin! -- some Bruins fans reacted with disappointed smirks to Mora's hiring. Then Mora hired an outstanding staff. Then he reeled in an outstanding recruiting class. Some of those frowns are turning upside down.
• Leach was fired at Texas Tech in 2009. He's one of the best offensive minds in the nation, and the almost universal reaction is athletic director Bill Moos hit a home run with this big-name hire. The Pirate Captain looks like the perfect match for Pullman and the Cougs, and he'll be plenty motivated to prove his critics wrong and erase the bad ending in Lubbock.

It's fair to say these four hirings have generated positive momentum for these programs, though, of course, to varying degrees. There's a hope among the fan bases that these four can create quick turnarounds.

And that also leads into another major coaching story entering the spring: The Pac-12's most senior coaches, California's Jeff Tedford and Oregon State's Mike Riley, sit on the hottest seats.

Tedford enters his 11th season in Berkeley having followed up his first losing campaign -- 5-7 in 2010 -- with a middling 7-6 finish in 2011. Riley, the man deserving the most credit for making one of the worst programs in college football respectable, enters his 12th year in Corvallis -- two tenures wrapped around an ill-fated stint with the San Diego Chargers -- burdened by consecutive losing seasons, including a 3-9 finish that felt so 1987.

Spring practices for Tedford and Riley will be about setting up turnaround season that give their frustrated fan bases hope -- and keep their athletic directors from issuing dreaded votes of confidence while checking their coaching Rolodexes.

Meanwhile, Kelly and USC's Lane Kiffin, still relative coaching newbies in the conference, enter spring likely trying to tone down the positive hype. Both will begin the 2012 season ranked in the top 10. USC could be preseason No. 1. Both are overwhelming favorites in the North and South Divisions. And their meeting on Nov. 3 in L.A. could have national title implications.

But that's looking ahead.

The big story this spring in the Pac-12 is newness and rebirth. One-third of the conference's teams hope that newness at the top of their programs will create a rebirth in the Pac-12 standings.

Paul Wulff almost turned Washington State around. Just like he almost kept his job.

But the Cougars going 4-8 this year after winning just five games the previous three years wasn't, in the end, enough to convince athletic director Bill Moos to retain Wulff for the final year of his contract.

“Paul and I met at length Sunday, and then spoke again this morning, after which I determined the best path for Cougar football moving forward is to have a change of leadership,” Moos said in a statement. “I appreciate all that Paul has done for Washington State football. He was hired with the objective of rebuilding this program and establishing a solid foundation. For that I thank him.”

Whoever replaces Wulff has a good chance to push the needle forward substantially next fall, starting with there being two talented quarterbacks on the roster in junior Jeff Tuel, the promising 2009 and 2010 starter who was hurt this year, and redshirt freshman Connor Halliday, who put up big numbers late in the season before getting hurt himself.

The Seattle Times reported over the weekend that Wulff would be fired and that former Texas Tech coach Mike Leach was the top target. The first part of that has come true. The question now is the second. Leach's name has been attached to a number of jobs, but he would seem to be a good fit for Washington State, even with his well-known baggage.

For one, he'd have two good options to get his high-flying passing attack off the ground. Second, he'd be working for a strong athletic director who wouldn't get nervous over a controversial comment or two. (Moos, in fact, is the sort to recognize the publicity might be more of a good thing than a bad thing.) And Pullman is the Pac-12's Lubbock, only with better bars.

Of course, to hire Leach or any other name candidate, the Cougars are going to have to pay more than the $600,000 Wulff was making (and will be paid for the last year remaining on his contract).

In fact, you might have noticed that the four Pac-12 coaches who have been fired this season rank from the middle down in annual salary in the conference, which means they were paid below market rate for AQ conferences. Wulff was the conference's lowest-paid coach.

It's hard to imagine Leach not expecting at least $1.5-$2 million. Leach's last contract with Texas Tech was a five-year, $12.7 million deal.

As for Wulff, he paid for the deliberateness of the program's progress under his watch. He went 3-22 his first two seasons with one Pac-10 victory -- over winless Washington in 2008 -- and coached what might have been the worst AQ conference team both years.

In 2010, the Cougars were far more competitive but finished only 2-10, with a lone conference win at Oregon State. This year, they started 3-1, lost five in a row, posted a shocking upset of Arizona State, then saw their bowl hopes end in overtime against Utah. A 17-point loss to Washington in the Apple Cup, however, likely sealed Wulff's fate.

There were a lot of what-ifs, and Wulff fought passionately for another year throughout the season, sometimes even bothering Coug fans with the frequency with which he called the program he inherited the "worst in BCS football." Wulff was probably right, but fans get tired of hearing that, both from an emotional perspective and from the perspective of it sounding like an excuse after four years.

Wulff didn't immediately return a message requesting comment.

This is an emotional day, and not just for him. While Cougars fans were mostly split on Wulff, few view his falling short with any bitterness. He was a former Coug player. It was clear he always got what Washington State football is about. If he had succeeded, he didn't seem like the sort who would have quickly bolted for a bigger paycheck and a bigger spotlight.

That was part of the appeal when he was hired. It just didn't produce enough winning.

One of Wulff's problems was loyalty. He brought most of his staff over from Eastern Washington when he could have used more coaches with Pac-12 experience. He made numerous changes over the past two years, bringing in veteran coaches, and that paid off on the field. Just, again, not enough.

It will be interesting to see where Wulff lands. He seems like a guy who might have learned some hard lessons he might apply when he gets his next gig.

As for the Cougars, the program has won before and will win again. While some folks with short memories try to cast it aside as an AQ backwater, Washington State has played in two Rose Bowls since 1997. It beat Texas in the 2003 Holiday Bowl. It won 30 games and finished ranked in the final top 10 three consecutive seasons from 2001-2003. A good coach who knows how to evaluate and develop talent can win there.

And the cupboard Wulff leaves behind is hardly bare. It's not farfetched to imagine a bowl game in 2012. For real.

But to get the right coach, Moos is going to have to do one of two things: 1. Get some money to pay a guy like Leach; 2. Have a really good eye for an up-and-comer who might not create much buzz but can coach like heck.

Of course, that's what Moos and others thought Wulff was in 2008.

In the Hemingway novel, "The Sun Also Rises," a character is asked how he went bankrupt. He replies, "Two ways ... gradually and then suddenly."

And so we have the firing of Arizona coach Mike Stoops midway through his eighth season Monday.

On Oct. 30 of last year, Arizona won at UCLA and improved to 7-1 overall. The Wildcats, then ranked 13th in the AP poll, were headed to Stanford for a marquee showdown. The program's first-ever Rose Bowl was in play. Stoops was coming off consecutive eight-win seasons. He appeared to be on the cusp of becoming a hot coaching prospect.

But the Wildcats were slammed 42-17. It would be the first of 10 consecutive losses to FBS teams. As the losses piled up, "hot" became the way to describe Stoops' seat instead of his prospects.

Stoops, 49, inherited a program in the absolute dregs in 2004. The Wildcats hadn't posted a winning season since 1998. After a slow start, he led Arizona to three consecutive bowl games.

But the wheels came off badly this season. After opening with a victory over Northern Arizona, the Wildcats were blown out in four consecutive games. The schedule was brutal. The losing streak included two losses each to Oregon, Stanford, Oklahoma State and USC. But it also included one to archrival Arizona State to end the 2010 regular season. Then on Saturday, the Wildcats lost to then 0-4 Oregon State.

When the Wildcats lost to the beleaguered Beavers, the universal reaction was Stoops was in trouble. But few figured it would end so quickly.

Stoops was told Monday afternoon by athletic director Greg Byrne of the decision to fire him. Defensive coordinator Tim Kish will serve as interim coach.

“It just ended," Stoops said. "That’s his decision as the leader of the program. It is what it is.”

Byrne and school president Eugene Sander told reporters at a news conference announcing the decision that the speculation on Stoops' future was becoming a distraction.

Stoops will get a $1.4 million buyout. When I talked to him Monday, he was more gracious than grim. It's possible that the losing and frustration were wearing him down as much as they were fans and administrators.

Stoops, who leaves Tucson with a 41-50 overall record and a 27-38 mark in conference games, was heavily criticized for his animated sideline persona. He was not a guy who tried to hide his frustrations -- at officials, players or other coaches -- during games. When he won, it was tolerated, even amusing. When he lost, it was seen as a significant negative.

And little went right this year, starting in spring practices, when injuries to several key starters -- most notably safety Adam Hall and linebacker Jake Fischer -- started a downward spiral.

Two other issues hounded Stoops: (1) He had the best quarterback in program history in Nick Foles (the Wildcats haven't had a quarterback who even approximates Foles); (2) the defense, Stoops' bailiwick, is terrible.

Don't cry too hard for Stoops, though. He'll land on his feet. He's respected and well-connected as a coach -- his brother is Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops and he's good friends with Nebraska coach Bo Pelini. He'll get job offers, most likely in the short term as a defensive coordinator. And he's probably learned plenty of lessons during his first tour as a head coach that might help him get a second chance.

So what next for Arizona?

The first question: How much is Arizona willing to pay? Stoops' $1.4 million annual salary sounds great for most of us, but is fairly middling among marquee coaches. And beyond Stoops' replacement, you have to pay a coaching staff. Salaries for assistant coaches have gone way up, well beyond what Stoops' staff was paid.

Top name you will hear: Boise State's Chris Petersen. Three words: Huge long shot.

Second name: Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen. Three words: Huge long shot.

Just because Byrne knows Petersen and Mullen doesn't mean either is eager to bolt to an uncertain situation.

Other names: Former Oregon coach Mike Bellotti, former Texas Tech coach Mike Leach and former All-American Ricky Hunley.

All three of those guys would raise enthusiastic eyebrows. Each has plenty to offer.

The Wildcats are off until playing host to UCLA on Oct. 20, a Thursday night game. It will be interesting to see how the players react. Part of the reasoning to dump Stoops now was to make it easier for players to focus.

If the Wildcats were to end their losing streak, that reasoning would make sense.

And, of course, Arizona fans can always start thinking about basketball season.

1. I am a fan of how The Associated Press poll reflects the sentiment of the week. Alabama and Wisconsin rout highly-ranked teams? Move on up. Oklahoma routs rent-a-victim Ball State? You drop anyway. Stanford pounds UCLA and falls for the second consecutive week. That may mean the voters made up their minds (or went to bed) before the Cardinal's late-night 45-19 win. Or it may be a sign of how far the Bruins have slid in the eyes of the voters. Stanford has won three straight against UCLA for the first time in 80 years.

2. Talk about a day that looked as if it may never arrive. Nearly a quarter-century after the NCAA meted out the death penalty to SMU, not only are the Mustangs 4-1 and coming off an Iron Skillet upset of No. 20 TCU, but the Big East reportedly discussed SMU as a potential new member. SMU doesn’t have the assets of a TCU -- motivated fan base, a decade of success -- but SMU has the quirky genius of coach June Jones, a recently refurbished stadium and a big TV market. In today’s college sports, that’s enough.

3. Texas Tech is one of 15 undefeated teams and the Red Raiders (4-0) better enjoy it while it lasts. Six of their remaining eight opponents are ranked, which is either a measure of the newfound strength of the Big 12 or a measure of the members' adroit scheduling. Give No. 3 Oklahoma, No. 6 Oklahoma State and No. 20 Kansas State credit. They have won tough road games. How Texas has risen to No. 11 based on its schedule (Rice, BYU, at UCLA, at Iowa State) defies gravity.

A day after conference expansion Armageddon was avoided with the Pac-12 taking a pass on Oklahoma and Texas, commissioner Larry Scott was in good cheer. And why not? Scott's conference still has the richest TV deal and is the most unified and stable in the nation.

"We could have expanded, but the deal didn't make any sense at the end of the day for us, especially given the position that we are in," Scott said. "There is a very high bar. It's hard to imagine very many scenarios for our conference to expand because the bar is so high."

And Oklahoma, Texas, Oklahoma State and Texas Tech, were not able to clear that bar, a determination Scott made over the weekend, which he recommended to the Pac-12 presidents on Monday and Tuesday. Thus the statement from Scott's office Tuesday night that the conference would remain at 12 teams.

The decision to not expand was greeted favorably from all corners of the conference.

Said Washington State athletic director Bill Moos, "I like the way the conference is now and I'm pleased the decision was made to keep it at 12 members."

Said USC athletic director Pat Haden, "I don't think there is any rush for us to get to 16."

On Wednesday, a source told The Oklahoman that Oklahoma was using the Pac-12 for leverage to get some concessions from the Big 12:

“But frankly, we wanted the impression out there that we might go to the Pac-12 because that gave us some leverage,” the source said. “We were using that as leverage to say, ‘Hey, you want us to stay? Let's have some of these reforms.'”

That would seem to imply that Oklahoma wanted to make it public that it was negotiating in bad faith with the Pac-12, but Scott had no issue with this strategy.

"I have nothing but respect for the leadership of the University of Oklahoma," he said. "I don't want to contradict anything that they feel they need to say as part of the process they are in."

The Big 12 has yet to announce reforms.

While a second negotiation within just over a year to create a Pac-16 didn't end with an agreement, Scott said he doesn't feel that relationships have been damaged.

"I can only speak from my own experience and say not at all," he said. "Not in terms of the folks I've dealt with. I have had very enjoyable dealings with everyone I've dealt with."

Scott, Moos and Haden each said they don't expect expansion talk to end across the nation, including with the Pac-12.

"I don't see any of our schools wanting to leave," Moos said. "We've established the Pac-12 as a destination. I would guess there will be overtures down the road of institutions inquiring about membership."

But the Pac-12's condition for membership will be non-negotiable, Scott said: equal revenue sharing. Even if that means leaving money on the table.

Said Scott, "An opportunity was turned down that could have generated more money for the schools but potentially could have torn apart the fabric of the culture of the conference."

The big question, however, is the future: How long before expansion chatter again engulfs the conference? Is the Pac-12 merely playing a game of chicken with other programs?

Scott doesn't see it that way, but he also maintains -- as he has since the first wave of expansion in 2010 -- that consolidation isn't going away in big-time college football.

"I absolutely expect we will stay 12 teams for a long while," he said. "But after what I've seen happen in the last year, I don't think anyone could stick their neck out and make any definitive predictions."

Oklahoma's and Texas' board of regents granted their school presidents the authority to take action regarding conference realignment on Monday, but that doesn't necessarily mean immediate moves are imminent.

Maybe we get a moment to breathe here. Maybe that's a good thing.

There are plenty of folks who remain uncertain about expansion, including Pac-12 administrators. UCLA athletic director Dan Guerrero released a statement Monday on potential Pac-12 expansion:

Expansion just for the sake of expansion is rarely a good thing. Dr. Martin Luther King once said, "We may all have come in different ships, but we are all in the same boat now." Those of us in the same boat, the existing Pac-12 members, need to think long and hard as to the relevancy and value of bringing new members into the boat. Issues of academic compatibility, student-athlete welfare, competitive and financial implications all need to be thought out carefully by the various stakeholders. If further expansion is the right thing to do, then it makes sense to proceed.

The chief question: Is the conference's long-term future best served by being a 12-team league or by adding Texas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Texas Tech and becoming a 16-team league? That means Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott needs to paint a picture for the Pac-12 presidents about what might happen if other leagues expand and the Pac-12 doesn't.

One thing to understand: Just about everything here is about self-interest. Treat everything you read -- from named and unnamed sources -- as working an angle and you'll be better off.

Texas coach Mack Brown's speech on the Big 12 conference call? ("As much as we talk about money," Brown said, "as much as we talk about college football, as much as we talk about realignment, as much as we talk about great games, playoffs and all that stuff, we better go back and make sure that we're taking care of the players and that the players and the high school coaches are always considered in the equation.")

Right. Texas wants the Big 12 to survive because its the Texas League, where it gets to do anything it wants. (And what do high school coaches have to do with this?)

Baylor's polling of Big 12 fans about conference expansion? Right. The poll wouldn't exist if Baylor were part of the foursome talking to the Pac-12. Or it might have emerged from Lubbock if Texas Tech were left out.

Even Guerrero, packing a Martin Luther King reference, is working an angle. His chief worry is UCLA falling further down the conference pecking order.

So don't listen to any of these guys. They all have agendas.

But you, the college football fan, do not get enriched by any of this, expansion or no expansion. In fact, you're the one who pay all the bills. You buy tickets. You watch TV. Your passion has created this multi-billion-dollar market that is driving these decisions. Your agenda is the game you love and your willingness to spend money -- and time -- on it.

I wonder if you're being taken for granted. No, wait. I don't wonder. I know. And I hear your massive skepticism.

Still, I am cautiously optimistic a Pac-16 would work and even work well, that it could be organized in a way that satisfies most fans interests. And as a college football entity -- heck, college sports entity -- it would be a powerhouse.

To me the larger issue is reaching an endgame where we can find long-term stability. How much of a guarantee would we have that four or so 16-team super-conferences will settle in for the next decade or so? Not much, I suspect.

That ultimately becomes an issue for the guys on the revenue end to consider: If upheaval becomes the standard, that eventually could significantly erode fan interest.

And then the next set of TV contracts might not end up leaving the schools so fat and happy.

We interrupt your final preparations for the opening week of the college football season for a word from our sponsor: Expansion.

Says Expansion, "We're baaaack!"

With Texas A&M officially tap dancing its way toward the SEC, the general feeling is the Big 12 now stands on shaky ground. Really shaky ground.

And there are two new power brokers as we look ahead: the Pac-12 and Oklahoma.

Recall how Texas left Larry Scott and the other Big 12 members of the Pac-16 plan, including Oklahoma, at the altar? Well, Scott is no longer a guy who transforms from blushing bride to despondent daisy.

Recall the scene in "A Few Good Men" when Col. Nathan R. Jessep tells Lt. Daniel Kaffee, "You gotta ask me nicely." That's the new Scott.

Scott has proved he can produce. Texas, the biggest expansion prize, knows now it will be richer as a member of an expanded Pac-12 than as an Independent or as a member of a watered-down Big 12.

But the team that needs to take the lead on the deal is Oklahoma, not Texas, as Jake Trotter writes here: "This time around, Texas does not hold all the cards and the Sooners have fewer obstacles in their path to another conference."

Kirk Bohls of the Austin Statesman believes Texas wants Oklahoma to make the first overtures to the Pac-12:

Should Oklahoma act upon its earnest desires and seek an invitation to join the Pacific-12 Conference — something I'm fully expecting to happen within days, if not hours — that decision could well be the killing blow to the Big 12 while also providing Texas the political cover to follow suit and ask for admission as well.

The Pac-12's not going to ask first. It's been down that road before, led along until the eleventh hour a year ago.

Bohls goes so far as to make a prediction.

Here's what I think will happen, probably before the calendar turns to October:

Your new Pac-16 members: Texas, Texas Tech, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State.
The era of the super conference begins.

What about the Longhorn Network, which has been seen as stumbling block (Scott has said as much in interviews)?

The Longhorn Network gets folded into the Pac-16 as a downsized regional network, joining the six regional networks that already exist within the conference.

Scott has long said he believes college football will continue to consolidate. And he knows he now holds a strong hand.

Are we headed for a Pac-16, with East and West Divisions (Arizona, Arizona State, Utah, Colorado, Texas, Texas Tech, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State in the East; California, Oregon, Oregon State, Stanford, UCLA, USC, Washington and Washington State in the West)?

Let's just say lots of folks think so.

Big winner in this: Utah, which wasn't part of the original Pac-16 plan.

Small loser: Colorado, which would switch out some glamorous Pac-12 road trips for more weekends in Stillwater, Norman and Lubbock.

Ring-ring! "Larry, Oklahoma is on line 16."

Big grin. "Tell them I'll be with them when I finish my danish."

Oh, and what is the "official" position of the Pac-12. Here's a statement from Scott:

"Our sole focus has been on developing the tremendous opportunities we have as a new, 12-team Conference and we have no current plans to expand the Pac-12. However, I have made clear my vision that the health, stability and future of college athletics will likely include further consolidation and re-alignment. While I can not predict if and when this might make sense for us, we will listen to and evaluate any scenario that would benefit our member institutions, our student-athletes and our fans. In the meantime, we are pleased to be in a strong leadership position in academics and college athletics, with both a rich heritage of success and recent moves that have greatly strengthened our conference and positioned us well for the future."

Hawaii: The surf, the sand, the sunsets. Surfing and rain forest hikes. Don't forget the luaus (a whole pig! Yum.).

Relaxation.

None of this is part of new Colorado coach Jon Embree's plan for the Buffaloes trip to Hawaii on Saturday.

"It has to be a business trip for us," he said.

Trips, business or otherwise, haven't been good to the Buffs of late. They are riding an 18-game road losing streak. Their last win outside of the state of Colorado came on Oct. 27, 2007 at Texas Tech.

You might guess this factoid annoys Embree. It does, but he doesn't duck it. While some coaches -- particularly new ones -- would ignore this unhappy trend ("The past is the past. We're looking forward."), Embree embraces it.

Embraces it in the sense that the former Colorado tight end has grabbed it in a bear hug, thrown it into the dirt and asked his players to stomp on it.

"It doesn't matter if we were playing on the moon," he said. "We have to learn how to play when we're not in Folsom Field."

Embree points out the obvious math: If you want to win more than six or seven games a year -- the Buffs play seven road games on their 13-game, bye-less slate -- you've got to be able to bring your A-game on the road.

It should help that Colorado has a veteran team, with 18 starters back, including quarterback Tyler Hansen and 1,300-yard rusher Rodney Stewart. Further, Hawaii appears to be rebuilding. It has just nine starters back, including three on offense.

Of course, one of those three on offense is QB Bryant Moniz, the best player many have never heard of. He threw for an eye-popping 5,040 yards and 39 touchdowns last season. He's also a pretty good runner, see four rushing TDs.

And a pass-happy team playing at home isn't a good recipe for Colorado, which lost both starting cornerbacks to the NFL draft from a secondary that struggled in 2010 in any event.

Beyond this, Embree has been impressed with film of the Warriors defense.

"That may be the strength of their team, their defense," he said.

It should help the Buffs cause that two Warriors starters have been suspended for the game -- linebacker Aaron Brown and wide receiver Darius Bright -- for their involvement in a nightclub brawl.

Embree admits he has no special secret for winning on the road. He's tried to, as he says, "paint a picture," of the itinerary so the players not only know what they will be doing but also why they are being asked to do it. He's tried to address the mental side of playing on the road, including the sense that a pattern of failure on the road may become a self-fulfilling prophecy as players tense up when the screws tighten.

"I feel the best way for us to address the issue is to talk about it," he said.

Of course, ending the streak means the topic merits no further discussion. Here's a guess no coach or player would object to that.

It also would mean the Embree Era gets off to a good start. And it might start to hint that the Buffs will be competitive in their first year of Pac-12 play.

Boy, there was a lot of not-news this weekend, eh?

Of course, the reports of Texas A&M bolting to the SEC might have been premature but not necessarily inaccurate in terms of what is eventually going to happen.

Conference expansion, it seems, is not dead. At least rumors thereof are not.

So what does that mean out West?

It could mean nothing. Texas A&M could bolt the Big 12, and the Big 12 could replace the Aggies with Houston and things would stay fairly stable.

Who thinks that's the endgame? Me neither.

The big prize has been and will continue to be Texas. If another round of expansion roulette begins a few years before everyone thought it might, count on Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott making use of his speed dial with Longhorns athletic director DeLoss Dodds.

I mostly agree with Kirk Bohls of the Austin American-Statesman:

I expect the six BCS conferences to fold into three: Pac 16, Big Ten and the SEC. And I still think if A&M leaves and the Big 12 chooses not to expand, a nine-team league won't work, Texas and others will join the Pac-12, and the Longhorn Network will be allowed under the current Pac-12 television package that already includes six regional networks: Arizona, Southern California, Northern California, Oregon, Washington and Mountain network with Colorado and Utah.

While Scott has been quoted as saying the Longhorn Network can't work in the Pac-12 framework of equal revenue sharing and the conference's total ownership of its network and regional networks, anything can be made to work if the money is right.

Texas with an equal slice of the Pac-12 pie and its own network separate from the Pac-12 is a huge win for the Longhorns, yes, but Texas in the Pac-12 -- or whatever it would then be called -- is a huge win for the Pac-12. A give-and-take negotiation, in the end, would mean more revenue for everyone, which is the ultimate goal here.

That said, plenty of folks with a dog in this hunt are saying that's not going to happen, such as Texas Tech president Guy Bailey.

"Here's the deal, what the Pac-12 offered last year, and I think they would be open to this year, is a package deal," Bailey told [Fox Talk in the Morning on KJTV 950 AM in Lubbock]. "You'd have to have four schools and Texas is the cornerstone to that. Remember, the issue last year came down to the Longhorn Network. The University of Texas wanted its own network for tertiary rights and the Pac-12 doesn't allow that. We can cut that out right there. I don't foresee that happening."

In other words, there's lots of intrigue here. The wheels are spinning in the heads of many conference commissioners, school presidents and athletic directors at present. It would seem there is weakness in both premature, impulsive action but also in being cautious and reactive.

Which is why I'm betting Scott is perfectly comfortable with these developments (or temporary non-developments). He wanted a Pac-16 in the first place. He's been on record for a long time espousing the likelihood of "super conferences." This is his comfort zone.

Scott isn't sweating this. He's grinning.

1. The path of destruction left by the tornado that tore through northern Alabama on Wednesday came perilously close to the University of Alabama. We know this because the tornado left McFarland Blvd., the artery that connects I-59 to the campus, looks like a war zone. And we know it because Christopher England, the director of TideTV, the video arm of the Alabama athletic department, braved the elements to record a 63-second video of the tornado and posted it on Vimeo. The state grieves; the university is lucky.

2. Oregon State quarterback Ryan Katz underwent offseason surgery to repair his right (throwing) wrist broken in the Civil War loss to Oregon last December. Katz assured me Wednesday that he’s throwing the ball well. He’s participating in seven-on-seven drills. He’s throwing against air. What he’s not doing is practicing live. The reason? Doctors won’t let Katz take a snap yet. Think of the force a wrist absorbs when the center slams the ball into the quarterback’s hands.

3. Texas Tech football coach Tommy Tuberville went on the "Sean Hannity Show" Tuesday and talked politics. Regarding President Barack Obama’s birth certificate, Tuberville said, “Obviously, there’s got to be something on there he doesn’t want anybody to see.” Obama released the document Wednesday. Never mind that Tuberville was wrong on the facts. For a decade, Tuberville survived the groundless gossip that emanates from the Alabama-Auburn rivalry with dignity intact. That alone means he should have known better.

1. Alabama is among the top public universities in National Merit Scholars, none of whom works as proofreaders in the athletic department. Last season, the Crimson Tide printed football tickets for a game against Mississipi (sic) State. Last Saturday, with great fanfare, the athletic department unveiled a plaque honoring the 2009 national champions. Engraved on the plaque are the titles awarded the Tide, including the “McArthur Trophy.” That would be the MacArthur Trophy, named for General Douglas MacArthur. As every Merit Scholar knows, spell-check is not the same as proofreading.

2. The Big 12 had relatively little time to create a 10-team schedule for this season. A lot of shifting had to be done after Nebraska and Colorado left. And the schedule isn’t finished yet. But the league authorized Texas Tech to release its schedule, and the Red Raiders got no breaks. Their open date is the second week, and they play the following five-game stretch from Oct. 22 to Nov. 19: at Oklahoma, Iowa State, at Texas, Oklahoma State, at Missouri. Here’s hoping it gets better for Tech in 2012.

3. UMass is moving to the FBS, thanks to an invitation from the Mid-American Conference. The Minutemen will play their home games at Gillette Stadium, 93 miles away from campus. It’s a smart choice. Patriots owner Robert Kraft won’t charge the school rent, and there are 120,000 alumni in the Boston area. Of greater interest: what does it mean for Boston College, UConn and Syracuse, the northeastern most schools in the FBS? There’s only so much talent up here.