Karma? Conference-switchers struggling so far

The folks at the Big 12 offices must have been smiling as they saw these results roll in:

_ Texas A&M blows a big lead to future Southeastern Conference rival Arkansas, the week after the Aggies did the same against current conference rival Oklahoma State.

_ Nebraska gets run over by Wisconsin in its first Big Ten game.

_ Colorado loses at home to Washington State in its first Pac-12 game.

The three teams that have left or are leaving the Big 12 have had their issues this season. So have TCU and Utah, the former in its final season as member of the Mountain West Conference, the latter in its first season in the Pac-12 after leaving the MWC.

Pittsburgh gave up a 17-point lead at Iowa the day news broke it was ditching the Big East for the Atlantic Coast Conference. Syracuse, which will be riding shotgun with the Panthers to the ACC, is a blown call on a PAT from a three-game losing streak since that sad Saturday for the Big East.

Some might call it karma.

In reality, of course, A&M lost to Oklahoma State and Arkansas last year, Russell Wilson’s relocation had more to do with the results in Madison than Nebraska switching leagues, and Colorado would be terrible in any conference.

Still, you might want to keep an eye on Missouri, which plays at No. 20 Kansas State on Saturday. The Tigers are weighing their options and might very well be the next team to leave the Big 12 for the SEC. Will they be struck by bad karma just for shopping?

The headline game in the Big 12, as it usually is this time of the year, is No. 3 Oklahoma vs. No. 11 Texas at the state fair in Dallas, and conference realignment provides the subplots for that matchup of unbeaten teams.

A couple weeks ago, it seemed as if both the Longhorns and Sooners would be heading to the Pac-12. That didn’t work out and now officials from both schools are trying to figure out a way to live together peacefully in the Big 12.

Longhorns and Sooners really don’t need any more reasons to dislike each other, but the soap opera that has played out in the Big 12 over the past two years has given them just that.

The picks:

THURSDAY

California (plus 24) at No. 9 Oregon

Story Continues →

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.