A columnist writes that Cincinnati and Houston may be the frontrunners in the Big 12 expansion talks, plus Texas Tech’s president makes a comment about expansion.

Photo via Charles Henry @ Flickr.

Baseball

Gutierrez Finishes 4th. Congrats to Eric Gutierrez who finishes 4th in the College Home Run Derby, hitting 17 home runs on the night.

Campus Photos

New Shots of the Jones. Totally Texas Tech has some new photos of Jones AT&T with what the new seats are going to look like as there are full sections that are complete. Also included are the new addition to the Jerry Rawls College of Business, new art at the Bayer Crop Science Seed Innovation Center and the renovation of Urbanovsky Park. That’s a lot of stuff to check out, 56 total photos.

Football

Nominate a Veteran. The official site has an opportunity for you nominate veterans or active duty soldiers for the 2015 Operation Giveback Program. There’s a form to fill out there at the link.

In the Spotlight. ESPN’s Brandon Chatmon has a look at QB Patrick Mahomes and QB Davis Webb. These are specific situations where they made good and bad throws, so check it out.

Dream and Nightmare Scenarios. ESPN’s Jake Trotter has the dream and nightmare scenarios for Texas Tech’s football season. I sorta feel like I’ve read enough of these. There is a Josh Abbott mention as well as a Wes Welker mention

Ranking Players 10-6. DMN’s Tommy Magelssen has his players 10-6 including Alfredo Morales, Davis Webb, Branden Jackson, Patrick Mahomes, and Jared Kaster.

Big 12 Expansion

Nellis on Expansion. I sorta forgot about this, but new DMN writer Michael DuPont didn’t, which is Texas Tech president Duane Nellis’ comments on expansion, which was essentially that he thinks the Big 12 is fine, just fine as of this time. I found the comments to be a lot of nothing in that Nellis didn’t really say anything, which is fine because I really don’t expect him to have a public opinion as he’s the new kid on the block.

Sittler Says Houston. Frank the Tank has compiled some tweets from columnist Dave Sittler (he’s worked at the Tulsa World, the Oklahoman and in Nebraska and I think he’s on the radio now) who said that the politicians in Texas are very much pushing for Houston of all things, that Cincinnati makes the most sense because of location and that BYU’s biggest disadvantage is location. Huh.

This is just my personal reading between the lines, but it’s noteworthy to me that these quotes and sources are coming out of Oklahoma. There isn’t any obvious reason why Oklahoma itself would be pushing Houston specifically over the likes of BYU or Memphis (note that it seems that Cincinnati is still a frontrunner for a Big 12 spot) – it’s hard for me to fathom that the Sooners have a strong feeling either way outside of who can make them the most money. As a result, these aren’t quotes that seem to be pushing a specific school’s agenda, but rather a reflection of what the Big 12 overall is thinking… or more specifically, what Texas is thinking (as the Longhorns do have a very specific interest one way or another about Houston). This is critical because if Texas wants (or outside forces like politicians force them to choose) Houston, then that’s going to be a game-changer for Big 12 expansion candidacies. If a spot is effectively reserved for Houston by the powers that be, then that is going to be disheartening for schools like BYU, Memphis and Tulane. Cincinnati seems to be in good shape with the right combination of a solid athletic program in an advantageous location as a bridge between West Virginia and the rest of the Big 12.

I really like just taking this all in and it’s pretty amazing to see how things get leaked. Sittler isn’t some guy that just spouts things off to be in the limelight.