I know there wasn't an "official" invite, but they were talking. BYU overplayed their hand. They sold the ESPN deal and independence to the fan base to keep us around. In the meantime I think it is quite evident that their rhetoric has changed from "Independence is great...we love independence and the freedom it provides...the exposure it provides...blah, blah, blah" to actually saying that independence is not a long-term solution for the program.

I agree that BYU needs a conference, but they don't have any leverage or opportunity at this point. They pretty much have to sit back and wait for the Big 12 because that is the only scenario that makes sense. Even then....it could be years before they decide to expand and there is no guarantee that BYU is first on their list. The fact that they snapped up TCU and WVU so quickly leads me to believe both those schools were not only enthusiastic about talking to the Big 12, but bent over backwards to get into the conference.

From a purely football standpoint they both played the opportunity better than BYU did.