PAGE 6B
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
ONFERENCES FROM PAGE 1B
THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2012
The conference voted not to expand, which meant that the Big 12 returned from the brink of death once again. It took 20 days of arguing and back-and-forth threats, but Texas A&M got its official release to join the SEC.
But as the previous 20 months showed, long-lasting peace in the Big 12 doesn't exist.
When Missouri officially announced its move to the SEC on Nov. 5, the school's athletic department knew it was in for a long process.
MISSOURI'S MOVE
The transition to the SEC extends beyond simply playing a new schedule, but the school believed it was ready for the challenge.
"We've had numerous meetings and orientations with the SEC." Missouri senior associate athletic director Tim Hickman said. "We've poured through to their bylaws to gain an understanding of how they do things. We have been getting on top of all those types of things that will be different for us."
Those differences include anything from logos on buildings and uniforms to eliminating the student re-entry rule which is allowed in the Big 12 at football games. Just two weeks ago, Missouri released its new uniforms, marking the athletic department's rebranding after the transition to the SFC.
The non-revenue sports will encounter more logistics challenges than it did in the Big 12. While the school was a member of the Big 12, its closest conference opponent was Kansas 155 miles away. Texas' campus in Austin was the farthest Big 12 school from Missouri at 678 miles. Competing in the SEC East division, Missouri's closest division rival is Vanderbilt University at 359 miles, and the Tigers will travel as far as 858 miles to the University of Florida.
"There will be some travel differences for our Olympic-sport teams," Hickman said. "As you can imagine, there will probably be a few more flights then there were before in conference play. We'll need to make the necessary adjustments for that."
With the SEC's payback, Missouri shouldn't have trouble funding the extra flights. The SEC offers schools financial benefits that only
the Pac-12 can match. According to the business of College Sports, the SEC has an $825 million contract with CBS and a $2.25 billion deal with ESPN that both extend through 2024.
While times have never been busier around the Missouri athletic department, Hickman said that the entire staff is looking forward to the change.
"It's definitely exciting, and it's busy", Hickman said. "There's an energy about the excitement and the new opportunities for us. Even though there are a thousand details for us to try to mark off our list, we look at this as a multi-year process to get acclimated."
THE NEW KANSAS
"When Nebraska left, before everyone expected it to happen, then we had a second bye in the schedule, and it's been really hard to fill those," Price said. The fact that the Big 12 survived the last two years means that Kansas finds itself firmly in its original BCS conference. There was no chaotic dash to find a suitor in a post Big 12 scenario, and without an elite football program, that's what the university hoped for.
"They are literally afterthoughts," Dodd said of non-football sports. "The people involved in it would never say that. But it became clear to me in June of 2010, where for a few days there, it looked like Kansas, with a top-five basketball program, was going to be left out in the cold."
Conference realignment may be about football television revenue, but it affected every sport this past year.
For Kansas baseball coach Ritch Price, this past fall was an uneasy time to be in the Big 12. With so many uncertainties as to where Kansas would be next season, the simple task of putting together a non-conference schedule was nearly impossible.
If Kansas had been left out of a BCS conference, it would have created a nightmare that athletic director Sheaah Zenger hopes never becomes a reality.
With Texas Christian University and West Virginia joining the Big 12 in July, the conference finds itself looking forward, but as realignment has shown, the Big 12 can never be too comfortable.
Edited by Jeff Karr
Senior forward Aishah Sutherland received her first WNBA training camp invite and will be working with the Atlanta Dream on Sunday.
Sutherland gets invite to train with WNBA
WNBA
Sutherland, a senior from Perris, Calif., finished her career
at Kansas as the second alltime shot blocker and third best rebounder. During her senior season, she also became the 15th player in program history to amass 1,000 points and 500 rebounds in a career.
She helped Kansas reach its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2000 and sparked
a run to the Sweet 16 while averaging 13.9 points and 8.9 rebounds per game. She ranked in the top 10 of the conference in both scoring and rebounding and was chosen as an All-Big 12 Honorable Mention.
While at Kansas, Sutherland was also a part of the 2008 WNIT runner-up team as a freshman.
She is Kansas' lone graduating senior. If she is selected by the Dream, she would join former teammate Danielle McCray in the league. McCray, a 2010 graduate, plays for the Connecticut Sun.
—Kathleen Gier
MLB
Cardinals beat Cubs 5-1 Wednesday
ASSOCIATED PRESS
CHICAGO — David Freese homered and Lance Lynn threw eight strong innings to lead the St. Louis Cardinals to a 5-1 win over the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday afternoon.
Lynn (4-0) held Chicago to six hits in becoming the first four-game winner in the majors and helping the Cardinals avoid a three-game sweep.
St. Louis Cardinals' Daniel Descasso (33) crosses home plate safely on a Matt Carpenter single as Chicago Cubs catcher Steve Clevenger tries to apply the tag in the third inning during a baseball game in Chicago, on Wednesday.
Freese's two-run blast in the sixth capped a three-run, two-out rally against starter Chris Volstad. Freese added an RBI double in the eighth.
Volstad (0-3) threw six solid innings, retiring St. Louis in order during four of them. But he's still 0-8 in 15 starts since July 10, 2011.
AP PHOTO
Bryan LaHair homered to lead off the fourth for Chicago's only run. LaHair has four of Chicago's lowest seven home runs this season, the lowest total in the majors.
The Cardinals avoided being swept at Wrigley Field for the first time since July 27-30, 2006. The Cubs took the first two games of the series in their final at-bat, winning their first series of the season under new manager Dale Sveum.
Lynn threw 110 pitches, only the third time this season a Cardinals pitcher has surpassed 100. He's done it on two of those occasions, not bad for a pitcher who only became a starter
because rotation stalwart Chris Carpenter went on the disabled list with a shoulder problem. His eight innings marked the longest outing by a Cardinals pitcher this season, and he lowered his ERA to 1.33.
Freese led the Cardinals offense with two hits and threeRBIs. Carlos Beltran doubled, walked, scored two runs and stole two bases. Beltran has five steals on the season, already his most since 2009.
KEEPING THE HAWKS ROLLING SINCE 1974
campuscourtku.com
785.842.5111 • 1301 W 24th St. Lawrence, Kansas 66046 GREYSTAR
BASEBALL
Don's Auto Center Inc.
Auto Repair and Machine Shop
785.841.4833 11th & Haskell
Hamels strikes out seven to beat Arizona
PHOENIX — Cole Hamels pitched eight strong innings and also hit a two-run single Wednesday as the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 7-2.
Hamels (3-1) gave up a leadoff double to Willie Bloomquist in the first, then retired the next 18 batters.
The left-hander allowed two runs and four hits. He struck out seven, including his final three hitters.
Hamels' single capped a five-run sixth inning. The Phillies won consecutive games to salvage a 5-5 record on their now-completed road trip.
The Diamondbacks have lost seven of nine. Trevor Cahill (1-2) gave up four runs and six hits in 5 1-3 innings.
Associated Press
"WE'RE HERE to make college easier."
Well, maybe just your banking.
At Commerce Bank, we're working behind the scenes to save you some time ... and a little money, too. A KU Checking Account helps you:
- Bank online and on your phone
- Get email alerts to keep track of your account
- Use any Commerce ATM without fees
Use your KU Card to access your Commerce account. It's a whole lot easier than a pop quiz.
© 2012 COMMERCE BANCSHARES, INC.
We ask, listen and solve.
Commerce Bank
commercebank.com/kucard / 785.864.5846
*
Y