Fans fancied change
Many Texas, Texas A&M fans favored Big 12 shakeup
AUSTIN, Texas – After all the congratulations and relief about rescuing the Big 12 and those sweeping promises of big payouts, fans at Texas and Texas A&M still can’t help but feel disappointed.
Tantalized by the prospect of heading off to exotic new playgrounds in the Pac-10 and the football-crazy Southeastern Conference, Longhorns and Aggies fans are looking at more road trips through the wind-swept heartland of America.
At Texas, the decision to keep the status quo means the Longhorns are still the big dog in the Big 12, but they already were. Staying put in a Big 12 that will soon be without Nebraska and Colorado feels a bit hollow.
Aggies fans, meanwhile, have lit up Texas A&M online message boards and radio shows, angry that they purportedly missed a chance to join the most powerful football conference in the land in the SEC and get out from under Texas’ considerable shadow.
“They felt like something was just ripped away from them,” said Billy Liucci, owner and editor of the popular A&M fan site Texags.com. “It’s the most emotionally charged reaction to anything around here since I don’t know when.”