When it comes to news regarding college sports, the sports departments of most TV stations come in somewhere ahead of Bleacher Report, message boards, and sports talk radio — but behind the Onion.

So, let’s wait and see a bit on this (via Deadspin).

Local 6 Sports Director David Pingalore is reporting that multiple college football sources have said that the University of Central Florida and Memphis could be invited to join the Big East conference as soon as next week.

Shocking. The same day an Orlando columnist makes the case — again — that the Big East should invite UCF to join there is a rumored story.

And of course, FedEx Chair, big time Memphis booster, and the father of the Memphis QB, Fred Smith has all but openly made an offer to pay the Big East any conference that will take Memphis.

There is no question, that of the options for Big East football expansion, UCF is really the best and only choice.

Just like everyone in the Big East would leave for any other BCS conference, no one in any other BCS conference would leave to go to the Big East

USF fans don’t want to see anyone else from C-USA come to the Big East. Especially UCF. I’m not particularly enthusiastic about Memphis in the conference.

I guess I have a hard time buying any of it right now. The only way they can really expand is to split from the basketball schools — whether completely or in some sort of weird alliance. I just don’t see the Big East leadership with the guts to do that.

The more I think about the Big 12’s survival, the more it reminds me of the desperation of the Big East in 2003 when Miami was getting ready to go to the ACC. There was a lot of desperation by the Big East. The leadership belatedly realized how much they needed the Hurricanes, and how unstable things really were.

Especially when the ACC was willing to add two more Big East schools to go with Miami.

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Okay. Conference expansion/realignment was an incredible timesuck. I’m having a hard time at the moment getting myself mentally up for a final round-up of the post-mortem.

In the meantime, a few things with basketball that I have not made time to post.

If you have heard the Tom Izzo to the Cleveland Cavaliers rumors, then you know that means that Michigan State may be a very late jump on the coaching carousel. You know what else that means…

Yes, they put Coach Jamie Dixon on the list. Along with Tom Crean, Brian Gregory, Jim Boylen and other assistants present and past of Izzo. Dixon and Mark Few are the only ones on the list not to be former Michigan State assistants.

In most circumstances, no coach would dream of jumping to a program in June or even July. It is too chaotic. It really is abandoning your own program late in the process. It is incredibly messy. Not to mention it usually speaks to a program in disarray.

Michigan State, though, is well-stocked. Coming off two straight Final Four appearances, and looking like they have the talent to do it again.

I don’t think Coach Dixon would really go at this point. Pitt is also looking very good for the coming year. I also think that if Izzo leaves the next coach is screwed. They have to match Izzo’s success. It wouldn’t quite be as bad as following Krzyzewski at Duke, but close.

Now back to the the SEC/Big East Invitational stuff from last week. How does Tennessee Coach Bruce Pearl feel about the game?

“The bottom line is the SEC had a contractual obligation and somebody had to play Pitt at Pitt, and the (SEC) commissioner felt we would be a good choice for that,’’ Pearl said. “Even though we’re not getting a game back, it’s something that will help our strength of schedule and something that sends a strong message to the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee.

“I’m also sending my team a message that I believe in them by taking this game. I’m putting them in harm’s way.’’

Not exactly a rousing statement of excitement. More like, we have no choice so after a dig at the SEC, I’ll try to give the positive spin.

This story on the game also included a quote from Coach Dixon that bothered me.

Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said the schools have yet to settle on a contract for a City Game site but that talks were progressing toward an agreement to play the game annually at Consol Energy Center.

Since 2002, the teams had been alternating home sites until last season, when Duquesne agreed to give up its home date at Palumbo Center to play Pitt in the final college game at Mellon Arena. The Panthers rallied from a 16-point second-half deficit to beat the Dukes in overtime, 67-58, on Dec. 1, Pitt’s ninth consecutive victory in the series.

“It’s a real possibility for that game to be played (at Consol Energy Center),” Dixon said. “We’re going to try to play there as much as possible.”

Pitt is expected to relinquish its home date this season if the schools can agree to shift the series site to Consol Energy Center.

I understand that the City Game being played there annually makes some sense. I suppose. I am, however, not wild about Pitt seeking to pull a Villanova and play extra games there. The difference is that the Pavilion on ‘Nova’s campus holds only 6500 people. So playing in the Wachovia Center at more than triple capacity (over 20,000) is a big source of more revenue.

The Consol has a capacity of 19,100 for basketball. That’s less than 7,000 more than the Pete holds. I’m not after you factor in the cost of rent to use and loss of concession revenues for those games are really significant. I really doubt that the amount of increased revenue would be worth the loss of a valuable home court advantage.

I admit to being biased from my experiences as a student at Pitt and the move of games to the Civic Arena that killed all homecourt advantage (yes, I know I’ve written this before). In the short term — with the novelty of a new facility — the energy and size of the crowds might be good. Long term, though, it is a bad idea.

Meanwhile, if you are looking for an excuse to go to a Pirates game, DeJuan Blair will throw out the first pitch on Wednesday night.

Blair, a star on the court at both Schenley High School and the University of Pittsburgh, will take the mound before the Pirates-White Sox game at 7:05 p.m.

“I have been a fan of the Pirates for as long as I can remember and I am thankful for this opportunity,” Blair said in a statement. “I am looking forward to getting out on the mound in front of my hometown crowd and taking part in such a cool Pittsburgh tradition.”

On the recruiting front, Pitt is targeting centers to finish the 2011 class. One of them is Desmond Hubert.

As for Pitt, Hubert said Panthers head coach Jamie Dixon “is a great guy.”

“I can sit down and talk with him. He makes me feel real comfortable when I talk to him. That’s a big plus for me. And then just they had a lot of good bigs lately [Sam Young, DeJuan Blair, Tyrell Biggs].”

The No. 7 center in the Class of 2011, Hubert, a rising senior at New Egypt (N.J.) High School said he also holds offers from UConn, Maryland, Wake Forest, Ohio State, Notre Dame,  Virginia Tech, Virginia, Rutgers and Seton Hall.

“I’m still pretty much wide open right now,” Hubert said. “Hopefully, after the live period I’ll be able to make my list.”

Hubert’s two front-runners right now are Pitt and Villanova. Should be an interesting battle for the 6-9  player.

Jaylen Bond, a 2011 verbal to Pitt, fought through injuries at “Rumble in the Bronx.”

Jaylen Bond, a 6-7, 220-pound combo forward from Plymouth Whitemarsh who committed to Pitt over West Virginia and Temple, battled an ankle injury but was still impressive in asserting himself. Bond said he wants to improve his handle and perimeter game going forward and imagines himself as a “Sam Young-type player.” “I think you’ll see a lot more to come of him,” Myers said. “He’s getting better and better.”

This was not the scenario anyone envisioned after Friday. Thursday was supposed to be the last chance to save the Big 12. Then Nebraska said goodbye, and all that was left was waiting for the official word from Texas and whether Texas A&M would go its own way to the SEC.

Instead, Dan Beebe pulled a miracle. After a weekend of being portrayed as a moron to a nice guy in the wrong place with no power — he got a fresh renegotiated contract for the Big 12/10 that made it worth Texas’ while to stay.

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Yeesh. Push out an expansion round-up. Head out to do some things with the kids (summer vacation in full swing). Get back and find out that nearly as soon as I posted, that the Big 12 may yet survive.

Orangebloods.com: According to sources, Texas will announce as early as today that UT will commit to a 10-member Big 12.

Or not:

One source said commissioner Dan Beebe’s last-minute plan to save the conference has “zero” chance to succeed. Another source said it is “very unlikely” to succeed.

Who knows at this point. Maybe Texas told the other members that they would stay if everyone agreed to stay and make a contractually binding agreement — filled with punitive penalties, costs to make it extremely prohibitive to leave and an extended unwinding. I would imagine Missouri would balk, and there would have been a good chance at Texas A&M also hesitating.

Here’s the thing. Texas has the position of strength that it can make, say a 5-year commitment to the Big 12/10. They will still be a sought after program by other conferences in five years.

Texas A&M and especially Mizzou cannot be that sure of things. If they make a commitment and then the Big Something does go to 16, they are stuck. They could find themselves missing their chance at the Big Something, the SEC could be set at that point,  and then still see Texas leave them in the remains of the Big 12/10.

I guess, it just seems are too far gone for Texas (and even Texas A&M) to do a 180 and save the Big 12/10.

As the Big 12 is in its slow motion death spiral, the Big East simply waits for the raiding to come east. What? You expected activity from the Big East leadership?

That isn’t the way things roll in Providence. As usual, it appears that the basektball schools are looking forward to the end.

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Expansion speculation round-up a little later. Lots of talk building up to what is expected to be a wild day tomorrow. In the mean time…

There is no doubt that markets and athletics drives conference expansion. Academics matter, but that is more of a tie-breaker. It is something that helps bolster the appearance that conference expansion is also about improving academics in the conference and finding the right fit.

Pitt can obviously sell a lot on the academic side. To wit:

The University of Pittsburgh has been ranked in the very top cluster of the nation’s public research universities in the recently released 2009 edition of The Top American Research Universities. This is the fourth consecutive year that Pitt has earned the highest ranking. Only six other universities were placed in the very top group of public research universities this year—the University of California at Berkeley, the University of California at Los Angeles, the University of Illinois, the University of Michigan, the University of North Carolina, and the University of Wisconsin.

The report clusters universities based on their comparative strength in research, private support, faculty, doctorates, postdoctoral appointees, and undergraduate quality, as assessed across nine objective measures. Reflecting a core belief that “universities of the highest quality tend to do most things very well,” the institutions placed in the top cluster must rank among the top 25 public universities on all nine measures.

(A big hat-tip to SteveG for pointing this out in the comments last week.)

You can find the full 232 page report here (PDF).  The list Pitt cites is on page 16. The next Big East school to show up on that list is Cinci at #26 and then Rutgers at #28.

Keep in mind that that particular list was limited to just public universities. The overall top-25 nationally (page 8) seems to include some different criteria, but Pitt still ranks #25 (the 6th grouping)  in a list that also includes private universities. Still the only Big East school in that list.

That primary list is also a big indicator of just how hard the Pac-10 schools are willing to swallow to get Texas, by taking Oklahoma, OK State and Texas Tech. The Pac-10 has sixschools in the top-50 (Stanford, Cal, UCLA, Washington, USC, and Arizona), and all but Arizona are in the top-15.

Looking over that list if you want to break it down by BCS conferences:

Pac-10: 6

Big 12: 2 (Texas, Texas A&M)

SEC: 2 (Vandy, Florida)

ACC: 4 (Duke, UNC, Virginia, Maryland)

Big 10: 8 (Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, OSU, Northwestern, PSU, Illinois, Purdue plus CIC member Chicago)

Big East: 1

Independents: 1 (ND)

The MWC has no schools on the list. C-USA actually has one: Rice.

In a less rigorous list, there was this article from the Daily Beast that listed Pitt as the 18th most powerful tech college.

Heading out real soon. Taking the family to the ‘Burgh for the Three Rivers Arts Fest, so I’m counting on the conference expansion madness to pause for a day.

Just a few things to mention

The letter from ECU AD Terry Holland to his fanbase is astounding. It is all but an admission that ECU is not going to get a Big East invite anytime soon.

It is my belief that most FBS institutions in the Big East would genuinely like to have a ninth FBS member, but at this time, a ninth member is not an absolute necessity. The desire for a ninth member is not enough of a necessity to disrupt their relationship with the seven non-FBS schools and Notre Dame in all other sports.

If the Big East does still end up losing a FBS member (or members) to expansion in another conference, it will replace that all-sports member or members based on a pre-determined pecking order that addresses the conference’s needs at that particular time. Those needs may range from (1) the best football program available to bolster the Big East’s chances to keep their BCS automatic qualification, (2) the best overall sports program, (3) the best location for travel for all sports, and (4) other perceived needs of the conference membership as a whole.

Replacements for all-sports members in the Big East would have to be approved by all of the remaining members, not just the FBS members. So, if two Big East FBS members are lost to expansion, there would be 14 members remaining in the Big East. Eight of the 14 votes would be institutions which are not playing football in the Big East.

Instead trying to rally the fans to the idea of making C-USA better by getting the remains from the soon to be dead Big 12.

None of this is actually wrong in my view. But the candor is shocking. The best reason I can figure is Holland knows he will be blamed by the fans if they don’t get the invite.

The fact is, every fanbase seems to have an expectation that the AD and the school president can somehow make the case to conferences for them to be picked. If it doesn’t happen, then those leaders failed because of their incompetence — because clearly “School X” is the best fit and choice for “Conference Y” regardless of reality.

Texas and the other four Big 12 South schools will probably announce their move to the Pac-10 sometime Tuesday after the Texas regents meet. My bet is, that the weekend will see a final push by the SEC and Big 10 to Texas to join with them. Unless there is something incredible, I don’t see it happening.

The Big Ten, by all reports will pause at 12, and resume its old timetable plan. Also known as — trying to wear down Notre Dame.

Missouri is still trying to figure out what happened and what is next.

At this point, the Big Ten’s interest in Missouri is the biggest missing piece of the puzzle. A Big Ten source said Missouri has not been eliminated from the conference’s expansion plans but is not considered a high priority at this time. The source said Texas, from the Big 12, and Notre Dame, an independent in football, are clearly alongside each other on the Big Ten’s top tier of targets, followed by Nebraska, soon to become the Big Ten’s 12th member, and then Rutgers, a member of the Big East Conference. Missouri and Maryland, of the Atlantic Coast Conference, and perhaps other less publicized targets, could figure into the mix if the top choices decide against applying for admission or the league expands beyond 14 members.

And, of course, the Big 10/11/12 might do nothing for an even longer time now that it is at 12. They might wait and see if the SEC makes a move that involves poaching from the ACC. If that happens, then the Big East will go the way of the Big 12. Getting teams snagged by the ACC and the Big 10.

But Missouri has never wavered from its roots.

With MU’s future uncertain, Deaton and Forsee shared a tone of conference loyalty, pitching an even stronger case in favor of the Big 12 than Deaton and Athletic Director Mike Alden expressed during last week’s Big 12 athletic directors meetings in Kansas City. While some media outlets in Oklahoma and Texas have portrayed MU as sparking the league’s combustion by flirting with the Big Ten, Forsee pointed to MU’s long history with the conference through all its stages.

“We can’t say it any more strongly than we continue to say it: We have been loyal members of this conference alignment, going back to the Missouri Valley, the configuration of the Big Six, the Big Eight, the Big 12,” he said. “So, there shouldn’t be any question about where we have built our record, where we’ve built our legacy, where we’ve built our fans, where we’ve built everything, including the great rivalries.

“I don’t think we have to justify our loyalty. That’s been in place for 104 years.”

Yeah, but everyone else in the Big 12 thinks that Mizzou has been whining for about 103 years.

In the mean time, head over to Pitt Script and Cardiac Hill (formerly Eye of a Panther) for other expansion stuff and both are on top of the big recruiting gets for Pitt yesterday.

It is just a matter of time. Colorado is already gone. Nebraska should make it official today.

It’s all up to what Texas and Texas A&M do. They still don’t seem to be on the same page.

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You know the real problem for me, with these conference expansion round-ups? It is too easy to lose track of a point that was trying to be made.

There was an actual point to my earlier post and the preamble.

You know, I think I have a vague notion of how this conference expansion, realignment and overall sanity will eventually end. It’s just that the trip there is going to involve a lot of missed exits, detours, mistakes and probably take a lot longer than expected.

So let me make it now.

If you are hoping or thinking that this whole conference insanity will even come close to be sorted out before the end of 2010, you are setting yourself up for a lot of frustration.

There are just too many schools, too many conferences, too many egos, and simply too much money involved for this to fully shake out for some time.

This is part of why I keep putting these expansion round-ups together. To show just how complicated and convoluted the whole process is. To make sure there is some record in a way to show how things are progressing to the eventual end.

If you want Pitt in the ACC, some rejiggered Big Mess (my official name for the idea of combining the Big East football schools with the Big 12 remainders), or Big Whatever — you are going to have to be patient. It is not happening right now.

Like it or not, Pitt is not a major player in this. Pitt is a piece, and has value — more than most in the Big East — but Pitt is not going to be a primary figure for some time.

Right now the major players are the Pac-10/16 and the SEC. There is a tug-of-war for Texas and Texas A&M. That has little to do with Pitt.

The  Big 11/12 is the first force that concerns Pitt, but for them, Pitt is at best a complimentary piece to expansion. A chip to try and coax ND into the conference — as Pitt is their 5th most played opponent (behind USC, Navy, Purdue and Michigan St.).

While Pitt has to wait for what the Big 11/12 does, the moves of the SEC are probably the real key.

What the SEC does is probably more important for Pitt. If the SEC makes moves that either expand their conference to 16 and/or snag some ACC teams, then Pitt truly gets into the expansion game. Pitt would be a top choice for them to replace a lost member and/or to help expand their conference to 16.

The ACC definitely seems disinclined to be proactive at this point, so do not expect some sort of preemptive move on their part.

Best guess, Pitt won’t be making any sort of announcement of leaving the Big East — or some new Big Mess until some time in 2011.

You know, I think I have a vague notion of how this conference expansion, realignment and overall sanity will eventually end. It’s just that the trip there is going to involve a lot of missed exits, detours, mistakes and probably take a lot longer than expected.

As we all know, Nebraska is heading to the Big 11/12. I think the question that most people want answered is: How are they going to tweak their “ten” logo now?

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And so it begins…

Nebraska does what Nebraska needs to do. They will head to the Big 11/12. The Big 11/12 will take them, and then pause.

“Jim is getting his hand forced, and he doesn’t like it,” the source told the Tribune.

But Delany might have no other choice if he wants to reel in Nebraska.

Another source with close ties to Big Ten officials suggested the league wants to add Nebraska and stop there – at 12 teams.

Whether it is a full hold, or merely a pause to see what happens next is unclear.

One thing I feel sure in assuming: Missouri is pretty much crapping their pants.

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Hey, a brief break from expansion babble.

Pitt’s non-con is just about finished. Shame they can’t tell everyone the details.

Pittsburgh needs to add just one more game to its non-conference schedule; then, the waiting game begins.

“For anybody who’s new to our conference, it’s something that’s eye-opening and concerning,” Pittsburgh coach Jamie Dixon said, “but being here 12 years, it’s just something that you’re used to. Patience is the best quality to have.”

Why does it take so much longer for the Big East to arrange its conference schedule?

Consider that the Big East plays 144 league games each season. None of the other five major conferences play more than 100. The Big East also has the most televised games, which throws even more wrenches into the scheduling process.

But the biggest problem may be that a handful of Big East teams share their home arenas with NBA and/or NHL franchises; some share with American Hockey League teams. The Big East has to work around those pro dates, and Odjakjian noted that the NHL usually doesn’t release its schedule until mid-July and the NBA often waits until the beginning of August.

Well, here are a few games with the dates set.

The SEC/Big East Invitational comes to Pittsburgh this year.

Pitt will play Tennessee in the fourth annual 2010 DIRECTV SEC/Big East Basketball Invitational at Pittsburgh’s brand new CONSOL Energy Center, ESPN announced on Wednesday. The game is scheduled for Saturday, December 11 and will be nationally televised on ESPN. The contest is part of a doubleheader at CONSOL Energy Center as Rutgers will play Auburn in the first game on ESPN2. Tipoff times will be announced at a later date.

So ex-RMU coach Mike Rice gets an early visit to Pittsburgh as well. Not a bad plan — even if the game itself with Rutgers and Auburn will be ugly.

The other half of the SEC/Big East Invitational will be held in Louisville — but hosted by Kentucky. Seton Hall-Arkansas and Notre Dame-Kentucky.

Meanwhile the preliminary rounds of the Coaches Vs. Cancer have Pitt hosting games on November 8 and 10.

First it is Rhode Island on the 8th. The 10th has University of Illinois-Chicago. The URI game will actually be a challenge. The Rams have been pretty good — and very good early in the year at scoring upsets.

Being an alum of a Big East school watching the Big 12 on the verge of absolute destruction is kind of like watching a bomb explode. It’s kind of cool to see the carnage, but you aren’t protected like all those assholes safely in the bunkers (Big 11, SEC, Pac-10 and ACC).

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I really can’t tell you, but this might be a better jolt than morning coffee.

An executive at a Big 12 school relayed to The World-Herald on Tuesday that he expects Nebraska to become a member of the Big Ten as early as Friday.

NU Chancellor Harvey Perlman has declined all interviews about conference realignment and expansion. He is expected to address the topic with the Board of Regents at its Friday meeting in Lincoln.

Direct confirmation from Nebraska of a conference change for the Huskers wasn’t immediately available. Sources at two other Big 12 schools told The World-Herald that their athletic directors have instructed them to be ready by week’s end for a briefing on probable Big 12 changes.

Nebraska A.D. Tom Osborne offered implicit confirmation Tuesday night that the timetable on national conference realignment has been accelerated.

On his monthly appearance on the Husker Sports Network, Osborne said:

“I think before too long — I don’t know exactly what that time frame is — we’ll be able to put this to bed,” then he jokingly added, “because I’m getting tired of it.”

That really doesn’t prove much, but everyone is getting more skittish by the day. There is definitely a sense that Nebraska is not going to bend to the Texas/Big 12 ultimatum.