Honestly...take the Big12 hate out of the equation for this one and think...if a team was leaving your conference because they were fed up with your conference, would you put that team in one of your conference's bowl affiliations if you didn't have to? Away from other teams that are staying with your conference? Of course you wouldn't. Why does the Big12 owe Missouri any favors at this point in time?
Same with Texas A&M...and they are only jumping a team because of good business in Texas and that lower-tier bowl wants to maximize their profits. If the Big12 had a lower tier bowl tie in with a bowl in Missouri...the Natty Light Drinky Pinkel Columbia-Crap Bowl...then I would expect Missouri to receive the same treatment as Texas A&M in that situation.
I would TOTALLY travel for that bowl. :smile:
I am not at all surprised that the Big 12 would pressure its partners to exclude Mizzou. Look what happened to Nebraska last year. The league didn't do MU any favors when we were a "proud member of the Big 12"...why would they now? I suppose the B12 will still want their cut of bowl payout, though.
Even moreso this year, bowl "prestige," payouts, location, day and time, TV coverage, etc. do not matter to me at all. I just want the 8th win. Nothing more.