Before the Utah game last year, the last home sellout was in 2006 (that's three years earlier BTW). For a team that's doing ALOT of winning, they're not selling out. That's what I'm saying. Fans that don't go to home games are certainly not going to road games. I still maintain that TCU likely won't get into the Big 12. I thought of another reason today: The Big 12 would be looking to fill teams in the North Division (that's the one where the teams left). TCU doesn't fill that role very well. Granted, they could go with an East/West alignment, but that doesn't really work either, as you'd likely have to break up the Texas schools and/or the Texas/Oklahoma rivalry. Again, not likely to happen.
I agree with you that TCU isn't selling out. That's a fact, and there is absolutely no disputing that. Where the debate comes into play, is when we start talking about would TCU sell out Big 12 games. And I think even you have to admit that they absolutely would sell them out.
UNLV comes to town and nobody cares. TCU has no history with them, their team sucks, there is no relation geographically, and UNLV's fans don't even bother to make the trip.
Oklahoma comes to town and that game sells out. Not only that, but Oklahoma fans make the short road trip, ESPN puts it on national tv, and a natural rivalry with great interest all over the geographic region can grow- drawing even more interest from ESPN (and other major networks).
Substitute Oklahoma for Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, and Missouri, and the result is the same. Lots of interest from fans in the region, lots of boom on the economies when tens of thousands of fans make the short road trips, lots of tickets being sold, huge tv audiences, and everyone is happy. I would expect to see several of these games in the Cowboys stadium even, every year.
As for the divisions, they could easily work that out. Put all the Texas schools (plus TCU and the other team they add to get to 12) in one division, everyone else in the other division. Say they add TCU and Louisville/Houston/SMU. Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, TCU, Baylor, and Houston (or whoever) would be one division, with Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Missouri, Kansas, Kansas State, and Iowa State making up the other division.
This is not far fetched and I actually expect it to happen if the Big 12 expands. Lots of people in the know actually expect the Big 12 to break up (which is why Nebraska left- they expect the Big 12 to break up too) so expansion may not happen for the Big 12. But if expansion does happen, TCU will probably be the #1 team they go after (assuming they don't go after schools from other big time conferences).
The only argument I am hearing against TCU is that they are such a great fit geographically, that the Big 12 wouldn't want them. That is just ridiculous. The Big 12 was going to break up if Texas A&M went to the SEC this summer. So they are obviously not worried about too many teams in the same area. And if TCU sells out when Utah comes to town, you better believe they sell out when Texas/Texas Tech/Texas A&M/Oklahoma/Oklahoma State comes to town.
I absolutely believe the Texas legislature loves this idea, as does whoever is bankrolling that 175 million dollar stadium renovation. Heck, whoever is paying for the broadcasting rights to a 12 team conference but only getting 10 teams probably loves this idea too. Even if they already have the Texas market covered, I'm sure they would rather have that huge Dallas market watching 2 games any given weekend than only watching 1. It's not like they have to play at the same time, or even the same day.
Texas could start their own network, broadcast their games on that station, and TCU could step right in and have ESPN replace Texas with TCU on their national broadcasting schedule.
There are countless reasons why TCU is a great fit. The only legitimate argument why they wouldn't work is because they are such a great fit geographically. And when you look at that argument a little more carefully, you see it's ridiculous.
