I know, I know, the exit of Texas and Oklahoma (by 2025, I guess) is a Big Deal Blow to the shrinking Little 12. There are millions to be lost plus prestige and maybe College Football Playoff participation. We all have problems.

Already we hear of talks between the “Big Eight” and the Pac-12. The eight (not-yet SEC bound) members of the two-century-old Big l2 (hey, started in ‘96) and the Pac-12 are talking about a scheduling alliance and a potential merger, according to The Athletic, one of the nation’s 14 Websites, give or take.

So, getting to play USC and UCLA, Arizona and ASU, Stanford and California, the Washington and Oregon schools, and Colorado and Utah from time to time isn’t so bad. A trip to the Rose Bowl is possible. Wow! Well, it’s one of the best-known fields in Pasadena and home to UCLA.

The current Big 8 should compete pretty well in football with the Western elevens--with the exception of Kansas, for sure, and maybe Kansas State.

Money aside, the Texas schools left behind plus Oklahoma State and Iowa State will continue to win games, and maybe, if the coupling with the Pac-12 fails to reach first-down status, they could find a well-respected conference to join. Now, hold your breath, some may get recognition enough to make the CFP because--still reading?--the playoff tournament will rise to, what else? The Big 12. Schedule Liberty, Marshall, Coastal Carolina and/or Cincinnati and beat one or more, and you might be in the Final Dozen! Who knows?

Here’s something else that’s been written. What? No, not by The Athletic, I wrote this: if the teams in the Big 8 are upset over losing a visit by UT or OU, then try to schedule Michigan, North Carolina, Florida or Notre Dame, and, yes, drop some of those teams you’ve been pounding all these Septembers.

Question, to which, even I don’t even know the answer: would you rather beat the never-(or not often)-in-the-Top 25 schools or work your butts off (and, yes, reap more money) and rarely pull off an upset against Alabama, Georgia, Texas A&M, Florida, LSU and Auburn and the other 10 SECs which get rowdy from time to time?

I have to say, too, football’s not the only sport on the calendar. Ask our beleaguered friend, Kansas. I think these schools will survive financially even with the loss of the Longhorns and Sooners. SMU and BYU seem to be doing okay; so are Houston, Louisville and Boise State.

Tulane and Georgia Tech are surviving, and guess what conference they left many years ago? The SEC.