When it comes to realignment, Texas and Texas A&M might be going Al and Tipper on us

The Rivals site devoted to all things Texas, OrangeBloods.com, is reporting that the Pac-10 has extended invitations to Texas, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech and Colorado. Things got even more intriguing today with news of the following:

After daylong discussions regarding the possible breakup of the Big 12, a scheduled news conference was abruptly canceled, fueling speculation that the 12 schools are far from agreement.

A short time earlier, Oklahoma athletic director Joe Castiglione had indicated the member schools did not reach the unity that many had hoped these meetings would achieve. (AP)

If the reports of a newly expanded Pac-10 are to be believed, the league’s two Arizona schools would join the former Big 12 schools in one division while the remaining Pac-10 schools would make up the other.

But this jaw dropping proposition comes just one day after Chuck Carlton of the Dallas Morning News got the following quotes from Texas A&M athletic director Bill Byrne regarding his view of joining the Pac-10:

Back in the 1990s, Texas A&M was linked in reports to the Southeastern Conference. Now, some have suggested the Aggies and Texas could be an intriguing tag-team for the Pac-10 if the Big 12 implodes.

“From A&M’s perspective, we want to stay together,” Byrne said. “We’re committed to this.”

NCAA Tournament basketball trips for the women and men underscored the problems in joining a far-flung league like the Pac-10.

“We had a really tough experience in April when we had to bring our teams from Seattle and Spokane after ball games back to College Station,” Byrne said. “We got in at 6:30 in the morning. And then we expected our kids to go to class at 8 o’ clock. That’s tough. I’m really concerned about the student-athletes in this thing.” (Dallas Morning News)

After it appeared that the Big Ten wouldn’t be able to bring Texas into its fold, most realignment speculation has had Texas and Texas A&M being joined at the hip as a package deal. That’s despite the fact that Texas is an infinitely more attractive prize to other conferences than A&M is (no offense, Aggie fans, it’s just the truth).

But now there’s buzz to the contrary, with the Houston Chronicle’s Brent Zwerneman chiming in with this earlier today:

Might is an oft-used word at the annual Big 12 meetings this week. Not the synonym for strength — but another word for maybe. Take Texas A&M athletic director Bill Byrne’s reaction Wednesday when asked if the Southeastern Conference is an option for the Aggies, should the Big 12 break up.

“It might be,” Byrne said, pausing. “You know what? It might be.”

With conference realignment a hot topic across the land, Big 12 athletic directors have learned not to rule out any angle — leading to a fresh story each time Texas athletic director DeLoss Dodds is asked about everything from the Pacific 10 to the Big Ten to Timbuktu. Dodds pointed out this week that UT didn’t start the realignment hubbub.

“(But) if we need to finish it, we’ll finish it,” he said of the Longhorns’ national power (and prowess). “We’re going to be a player in whatever happens.”

Bringing us to what “might” be a result: A&M and UT competing in different conferences, should UT bolt for the Big Ten or Pac 10 and A&M for the SEC and so forth. The storied rivals have played in the same league (including the ol’ Southwest Conference) for about a century. (Houston Chronicle)

Man, Byrne is all over the place when it comes to fueling realignment rumors.  If Texas A&M’s distaste for the Pac-10 is to be believed, then seeing the two schools head for different leagues might not be as crazy a notion as it seemed a few weeks ago.

Honestly, I don’t see the big deal over Texas and A&M splitting up but remaining rivals.  Being in different leagues hasn’t stopped Georgia from playing Georgia Tech or Florida from knocking heads with Florida State.