Does the Likely Collapse of the Big 12 Signal That Some BCS Schools Are Taking a Stand for Better Academics?

Read this article and see what you think.

My take: yes!

Here's why -- Nebraska didn't seem happy with the Big 12, its balance of power, or its policies. And I recall back in the day where they had a bunch of all-academic, all-league players and some academic all-Americans (one might have been all-American center Dave Rimington). The article cites that Nebraska likes the culture of the Big Ten better, and, last I checked, the Big Ten is a better academic conference than the Big 12 (despite what UT supporters will tell you about all the wonderful things going on in Austin).

So, where will those not aligned with Nebraska go? If they put football first, they should approach the SEC, which seems to put football above all else. That approach might suggest to Vanderbilt that it should bolt the SEC for the Big Ten too, where they'd have a natural (if somewhat expensive) rivalry with, among others, Northwestern.

Could you imagine Texas in the SEC? That would be something. The Pac-10 vacillates between high academic standards (Stanford and sometimes Cal and UCLA) to an absence of them. The Big Ten seems to hit the ball down the middle (or better), and you might expect Notre Dame to determine that it's time to come in from the wilderness and join the Big Ten, which would be another awesome get for that conference.

Right now, uncertainty reigns supreme, but the Cornhuskers have taken a stand -- for higher standards.