Yesterday afternoon news officially broke that ESPN had signed Paul Finebaum to a five year contract. The deal calls for 100 TV appearances a year and a simulcast of Finebaum's radio show on the upcoming SEC Network, set to debut in August of 2014.

It's a smart decision that fills up several hours of programming year-around on the upcoming SEC Network. Putting radio shows on television works pretty well already and is a cost-effective duality. ESPN pioneered the strategy in sports with multiple shows now airing daily and NBC and CBS have followed up on the decision, placing Dan Patrick and Tim Brando front and center on the NBC Sports Network and the CBS Sports Network. It would be a pretty big shocker if Fox didn't also have a radio show on television when FoxSports1 and FoxSports2 debut this August.   

But the biggest aspect of this deal is the message that the SEC is sending to the college sports universe. 

Last week Vinnie Verno went 2-3 on his picks. But this week? Well, he's back with a vengeance. While you're checking out Verno's picks, be sure to check out our new odds page on OKTC. We update the spreads all day long and give you a one-stop shop to check up on things. Wacky Vegas truth? Vanderbilt is now favored over UConn. Win and the Dores will be favored over Ole Miss as well. Could James Franklin really go 3-0 to start his Vandy coaching career? Yep.

Also, UT fans, if you're telling me you're not nervous as hell over this Cincinnati game -- UT is favored by 6 -- I know you're lying.

That game has me terrified.

But now, here comes Vinnie Verno.

Baylor University is threatening to sue the Southeastern Conference and Mike Slive personally over Texas A&M's move to the SEC. Last night the SEC formally accepted A&M's bids contingent on the release of outstanding legal claims. The Big 12 has waived all rights to sue the SEC over Texas A&M's addition and so had all member institutions. Until Baylor reversed course and now says it may sue. Why has Baylor's tune changed so quickly? For the same reason it trotted out the, "Don't Mess With Texas Football" campaign.

 Naked self interest.

See, a week ago, when the Big 12's letter was written to the SEC, Baylor believed the Big 12 was going to survive. That was before Oklahoma's public flirtations with the Pac 12 became known. Now, suddenly, Baylor is aware that if Oklahoma and its crew bolt -- potentially including Oklahoma State, Texas, and Texas Tech -- then the Big 12 is no more. That means Baylor would fall all the way down to Conference USA. And that's unacceptable to Baylor and Ken Starr.

So Baylor is willing to sue the SEC and Mike Slive for tortious interference.

With approval of Texas A&M's addition to the SEC now official and the continuing drama unfolding in the Big 12, the SEC has cast its gaze in the direction of Missouri. As OKTC was the first to report, Texas A&M initially approached the SEC to inquire about membership in the conference. The SEC, worried about a potential lawsuit for tortious interference, insisted that A&M handle its Big 12 divorce before the school would discuss further engagement. As part of the discussions the SEC also clamped down on the idea of adding any additional Big 12 schools because it did not want to be blamed for the collapse of the Big 12 conference. With Oklahoma and Oklahoma State openly flirting with the Pac 12 -- and with Texas and Texas Tech on the cusp of departure as well -- the SEC has now increased the courtship of a new Big 12 target, Missouri. 

Sources say that Missouri is attractive for many reasons. Chief among them: it opens a new market -- a primary goal of the SEC as OKTC has informed you throughout -- provides entree into St. Louis, the nation's 20th largest television market, and Kansas City, the nation's 31st, and it's an AAU school, a point that can't be lost in the conference expansion race. One of the selling points on A&M's addition to SEC presidents was that it would increase the academic prestige of the conference, becoming the SEC's third AAU school after Vanderbilt and Florida.  

Pity poor Baylor. Notch your school's biggest win in decades and your head is still on the conference realignment chopping block. So the Baylor Bears have struck back with a weak, misguided, and entirely self-serving plea: "Don't Mess With Texas Football." What Baylor's slogan really should be is, 'Don't Mess With Baylor Football." How well do you think that would have sold? Yep, not well at all. So now Baylor is encouraging fans to email the Presidents of the schools with options: Texas, Texas Tech, and Texas A&M.

It's hard not to see, by the way, the fingerprints of the University of Texas on this campaign as well. Suddenly aware that its rivals Texas A&M and Oklahoma are sick of being pushed around, A&M wants to go to the SEC and Oklahoma wants to go to the Pac12, the Longhorns are nervous. Only, you guessed it, Texas is best suited to remain the bully in the Big 12. So what does it do? Convince the littlest runt to make the argument in favor of the Big 12.

It's cute, really.

Last week CBS hired former ESPN insider writer Bruce Feldman. Bruce is a really good guy, well respected by everyone, and he didn't deserve the Mike Leach mess that fell down around him after 17 years at ESPN. In losing Feldman ESPN lost something much more important than a writer, it lost a great deal of legitimacy. Combining Feldman with the Longhorn Network fallout, it's possible this is the worst four months in the history of ESPN's college sports coverage.

Most fans are beginning to see that ESPN isn't completely impartial in its coverage of sports and that when a decision has to be made between business and editorial, business is almost always going to win out.

It's become increasingly clear that ESPN isn't giving its college writers -- and they still have some really good talent in Pat Forde and Mark Schlabach -- the freedom to go after stories as aggressively as much of the talent would like. What's more, the increasing network entanglements make it almost impossible for ESPN's college coverage to appear free of bias. And it's not just me noticing this, one of ESPN's top competitors has decided to build its online writing stable around college sports.

Thank God for college football.

The nation's longest offseason is finally over. And with the end of that offseason comes the return of the Starting 11, which we'll have up every Monday to help keep you entertained at work. I'll open up with a picture I tweeted out during the LSU-Oregon game. The Rice band decided to spell out SEC turning the S into a $. Oh, those witty Rice kids. (I'd make more jokes about you if my sister hadn't gotten her PhD there and loved all of you). The irony here, however, is overwhelming.

Yes, you could ridicule the SEC for caring about money more than academics. That's a valid criticism. But can you really do that when you're playing in front of the school that has caused realignment? If Texas wasn't so greedy -- and don't get me wrong I have nothing against greed, it's the foundational reason for our country's success -- then there would be no conference realignment. 

So making fun of the SEC for being greedy at Texas is like showing up at The Situation's roast and making fun of Ronnie's fighting ability.

Just doesn't work.

Here are 11 other observations from the week that was:

Alright well I’m here to own my LSU-Oregon prediction. All of what I said was incorrect. Lee way outplaying Thomas, LSU wore down Oregon and LSU played smarter and more composed then Oregon. I didn’t see this smackdown coming, especially after Oregon lost to Auburn. I thought the Ducks would be fired up and make some adjustments up front in order to matchup with LSU. Instead Oregon looked nervous again, turned the ball over multiple times and had 10+ flags thrown against them.

Now the only thing SEC fans are going to agree with me about is that our cheerleaders are hot. I was at least right about that, right?    

Eight observations on the game and more:  

-Going into halftime, I thought Oregon was the better team, (LSU had done nothing on offense) and would fix its mistakes and wear down LSU.

LSU had a few defensive linemen who were cramping and I thought we could use the pace to our advantage. One huge turning point in the game was the pass interference call on 3rd down in the redzone on LSU’s scoring drive to end the first half. If Oregon doesn’t commit that penalty, then LSU settles for a FG, Oregon gets the ball back with 2 minutes left and goes against a gassed LSU DL. That pass interference gave LSU another chance, they scored a TD, and Oregon ran the clock out to end the half.  

-I give up and just need to accept that the SEC is the deepest conference in the nation.

Not much more to say there. Five straight championships, and the bottom of the conference is deeper then any other conference.

ARLINGTON, TEXAS

LSU came to Texas and did what LSU does -- the fans drank heavily and the team won a big football game. Saturday morning at a downtown Dallas hotel, a bellhop threw up his arms in dismay. His luggage cart had been commandeered by LSU fans -- instead of luggage the cart was loaded down with beer, coolers, and liquor. "I don't care what they put on these things as long as they tip," he said. Twenty minutes later the bellhop was singing a different tune: "We can't move any luggage in," he said, "because the LSU fans keep bringing in more beer."

In a hotel bar my friend Shekhar, an East Coaster in town for the game who spent the previous weekend in Boston, turned to me after what seemed like the thousandth gorgeous LSU girl in a row had walked past, "There are more good looking girls in this bar than the entire city of Boston," he said.

His tone wasn't one of hyperbole. He was dead serious.

And he was dead right.

Finally football is back. It’s been a long offseason, lockout in the NFL and scandals in college but now all that is in the rear view mirror. The NFL is back next Thursday and college football kicked off last night. Tomorrow comes the big time matchup in the Cowboy Classic between Oregon and LSU. Oregon is going to beat LSU (and a side note, Boise St beats Georgia in a “neutral” site away game by 10 points) Oregon is more experienced and has better matchups but I will get into that later. Right now my job is to educate you on just how awesome Oregon is, way more awesome then most schools in the nation. We have the some of the best fans, best atmosphere at Autzen Stadium, hottest cheerleaders and best uniforms. 

A few weeks back our own Meredith Hornsby wrote a thought provoking piece on the hotness of the SEC quarterbacks.  It's a very funny column that's worth another read, but it also made me a little sad on the inside.  Why do QB's get all of the attention ALL of the time?  Why doesn't anyone care enough to rank the hotness of the most un-appreciated member of the football universe, the punter?  And why are my calves so muscular and defined?   Not all questions can be easily answered.   But I can do something for the punter's of the world.  I want to give them the attention they so deserve... well, maybe not deserve.  I mean, they are just punters after all.  But I can at least give them a brief moment in the sun.   And I won't be ranking the hotness of SEC punters.  I feel like even the punters in SEC country get adulation and respect.  Nope, I'll be looking out West for my punters... in a land where they don't live and breathe college football.  A place where families don't shoot each other after an Alabama/ LSU game.  I'm talking about the Pac 12.   So here is the hotness of Pac 12 punters ranked on the mathematical scale of 1 to Reggie Roby.  It's science.