An Editor’s Note on Big 12 Week at Case in Pointe
In Case and Pointe’s introduction, we explained how our efforts to begin this project grew out of the unique dynamic we created as friends living on the same floor in a college dorm. We would converse at length in the study lounge and in our group chats, oftentimes going deep into specific hot topics that had commanded our interest. We are people with diverse interests; naturally, the more compelling topics would trigger many different conversations and take us down many rabbit holes.
We’ve been trying to capture that dynamic by invoking a “chat rule,” where if a topic gained enough traction in our group chats, somebody had to write about them. Our most recent project marks the first true usage of the “chat rule.” Welcome to Big 12 Week at Case and Pointe.
The Big 12 Conference is considering adding some schools to its conference, whose membership has been in flux now for some time. My home conference, the Big Ten (Not the B1G, the Big Ten), welcomed the historical blueblood Nebraska into its ranks not too long ago. College sports are a topic that we at CiP love debating, and we’re excited to share a few of our perspectives on the Big 12 with you this week.
Too often we analyze current events without consulting history, the study of which always accurately frames our understanding of a topic. First, Brendan Johnson, a fellow born-and-raised Big Ten man (though he prefers to say B1G), reaches deep into the history of the Big 12, tracing the power dynamics and back-room deals that have resulted in the conference’s current status quo of instability. Come for the salacious details, leave with a better understanding of how ostentatious power brokers weaponize their influence in service of their favorite teams.
Nicholas Keywork, who closed out his high school years in Texas (and who only grew to love college football after we sat him down with an XBOX and NCAA 13), takes the perspective of a recently-converted Big 12 fan, and wonders if the conference may be on the verge of making yet another short-sighted and damaging decision by adding a conference championship game and shaking up the only major round robin in college football.
Finally, Nick and Kevin Mills both remind us that there are issues far more important than college football conference structure (crazy thought, right?). Nick take the BYU Honor Code to task andKevin examines the recent tidal wave of Title IX violations across the United States (which include, unfortunately, our own alma mater Michigan State), with a specific focus on Baylor, whose embarrassing failure to protect the rights of all students and student-athletes has recently made national headlines.
It is my belief that widely read media outlets ought to treat the most controversial topics in any field thoughtfully, which means that you need to run more than one piece on a topic in order to explore it fully. While we aren’t exactly at the “widely read” benchmark, and while Big 12 politics are vital problems for our nation, we regard the ongoing Big 12 expansion as quite important within the realm of sports. I hope you enjoy the work from these three outstanding writers. We will bring more features like this in the future!
