(Image Source: WHB Radio 810)

You are watching multi-source sports analysis from Newsy.com.

BY AUSTIN FAX

ANCHOR MEGAN MURPHY

First they were. Then they weren’t. Now apparently they are again-- sort of. On Tuesday, the seemingly never-ending conference alignment carousel took another turn as the University of Missouri officially announced it was quote-‘fully exploring its options’-- whatever that means.

KSDK’s Jennifer Blome explains what’s going down in the Show-Me State.

“University of Missouri Board of Curators voted Tuesday to consider pulling the school out of the Big 12 Conference. Mizzou is reportedly upset about unequal revenue sharing and instability within the Big 12. The Southeastern Conference has been speculated as a likely destination if the Tigers decide to move.”

Mizzou would be the fourth team in the past year to bolt from the Big 12-- following Nebraska, Colorado and-- most recently-- Texas A&M. ESPN’s Andy Katz says the Big 12 has some decisions to make if it wants to move forward as a conference.

“The Big 12 needs to know whether it will add one member to move to 10 or four members to move to 12. According to sources, the top four sources, in some order, are independent BYU, a future Big East member TCU and two current Big East teams-- Louisville and West Virginia. As long as Texas and Oklahoma are involved, the Big 12 will be much more marketable to the BCS than the Big East.”

The SEC has won the previous five National Championships in college football and is considered by many to be the best athletic conference on the scene. A blogger from the Riverfront Times argues-- Mizzou and the SEC aren’t exactly a match made in heaven.

“[T]he bigger question is what an SEC membership would do to the Mizzou football program. Would it elevate the Tigers' game, or would they join the SEC just to become the perennial doormat of the conference?”

But The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Mark Bradley says it isn’t all about the gridiron. The SEC might need the Tigers more than you think.

“Missouri is  a state school in a state — heck, a region — where the SEC doesn’t have an outpost, and it would also deliver the St. Louis and the Kansas City television markets...Of greater importance: The SEC views Missouri as another vehicle in its quest to spruce up its academic image, which could use sprucing.”
 

Finally-- Sports Illustrated’s Andy Staples says-- can we stop talking about conference realignment already?

“This is not a done deal yet. [But] it should be...If a school wants to move, let it move. Let every school take the best conference deal it can get, sign some new media rights contracts and let the rest of us enjoy what's left of this football season before the world changes next year.”