Apparently BYU's new series w/ NIU was a side step. BYU, more specifically Tom Holmoe, has learned how to do the Realignment Two-Step. Now he's taking all of us to dancing school.

BYU's new H/H with NIU was scheduled instead of an HHN with a closer school, (Northwestern, UofI). These schools have been trying to schedule BYU because they're decent names, decent teams, but don't get much ESPN air time. A Home-Home-Neutral (I imagine the neutral was slated for Soldier Field) would have been a major help to those programs. Problem is that TH didn't see it that way, instead he used it to further BYU's alignment agenda. Well, now the BIG has taken notice.

The deal with NIU is great for NIU, because the games will likely end up garnering national attention. (ESPN, anyone?) Meanwhile, the BIG has lost eyeballs in the west. They used to have a nice niche following west of the Rockies because of the Rose Bowl and the affiliation with the PAC. They even tried to get a scheduling partnership set up between the conferences, but that fell apart. The BCS basically ruined the BIG's reputation on the left coast.

What the BIG has noticed, however, is that BYU has a large following in California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, and of course, Utah. They estimate that the number of TV sets that they can add to the BTN will greatly improve conference revenue by adding BYU, to the tune of about 10-12 million per year, just for the BTN! Don't think for a moment that the Big12 hasn't figured this out... the problem with the Big 12 is Texas, but they're beginning to come around. A lot more than just a football game will be happening in Austin this September. The Big12 will NOT let the BIG get BYU without a fight.

It's happening. Don't be surprised if in the next 6-8 weeks more 1-2 different "eye opening" football series are announced.

Please be aware that my info is preliminary, I'm not authorized to give too many details. It's taken me a long, LONG, time to earn the trust of those that gave me this information, and I plan on keeping that trust.