As politicians do, Texas Gov. Rick Perry got everybody&#x92;s attention in the Big 12 without saying much. But his thought to a Dallas Morning News reporter on Wednesday afternoon poured gasoline on what had been 48 hours worth of message board fire regarding Texas A&M&#x92;s possible switch to the Southeastern Conference.</p><p>The entire quote:</p><p>&#x93;I&#x92;ll be real honest with you. I just read about it the same time y&#x92;all did. &#x85; As far as I know conversations are being had. That&#x92;s frankly all I know. I just refer you to the university and the decision makers over there.&#x94;</p><p>Here we are again, dealing with uncertainty about the Big 12 because a conference member may believe a better situation exists elsewhere.</p><p>Granted, there was no follow-up question, like, &#x93;Who is having those conversations?&#x94; And nobody from A&M or the SEC has said publicly that a conversation has ever taken place between the school and conference. But I don&#x92;t recall the Nebraska and Colorado moves taking place in an open forum. Back channels is where this information flows and if &#x93;being had&#x94; is what Perry says, let&#x92;s make the leap that powers in College Station have been in contact with powers in Birmingham, Ala.</p><p>We know Texas A&M is unhappy with aspects of The Longhorn Network. Others aren&#x92;t pleased, but the Aggies&#x92; more public reaction is understandable. No Big 12 school has a closer relationship to Texas, none is more impacted by decisions in Austin and at ESPN, which will carry the network. It launches Aug. 26.</p><p>A&M was joined by Big 12 football coaches Bob Stoops of Oklahoma and Missouri&#x92;s Gary Pinkel in denouncing TLN&#x92;s plan to show high school games in Texas, and the Aggies also didn&#x92;t like the plan for a second football game to be available to a school to televise.</p><p>The Big 12 put a moratorium on the prep games.</p><p>Is this enough for the Aggies to take their ball to a new conference, assuming the SEC has the gate open? If the answer is yes, then the Big 12&#8194;&#x85;</p><p>Exists as a nine-member conference.</p><p>Fox Sports, which has offered up about $1.2 billion for second-tier rights starting next year, would want it to continue.</p><p>Fox wouldn&#x92;t like losing A&M, but it&#x92;s not as though the Aggies would be taking a market with them. Cable companies in Houston would have plenty of eyeballs following Texas and the rest of the conference.</p><p>ABC/ESPN, which owns the league&#x92;s first-tier rights, would want it to continue.</p><p>Texas, which can&#x92;t bring its network to another conference and has no interest in operating as an independent, likes the Big 12 life. For those who believe in Longhorns independence, remember the program&#x92;s culture is shaped to compete for national titles in every sport, and that wouldn&#x92;t happen outside of a conference structure. Notre Dame football lives this way because most of its other sports park in the Big East.</p><p>Oklahoma, which is working on its own network and has filled a case with Big 12 football trophies, prefers the Big 12.</p><p>As for everybody else, staying in the Big 12 is a best-case scenario, assuming the SEC isn&#x92;t looking to become the first 16-team conference, and commissioner Mike Slive has said as much.</p><p>I&#x92;m often asked if the Big 12 schools around here have a backup plan if the conference unravels. I asked that of Iowa State athletic director Jamie Pollard in July.</p><p>&#x93;I&#x92;m not spending any time worrying about hypothetical situations,&#x94; he said. &#x93;We&#x92;re married (to the Big 12). I&#x92;m not talking about who else I want to be married to.&#x94;</p><p>That&#x92;s not to suggest Iowa State and everybody else in the Big 12 hasn&#x92;t considered alternative futures. Every school that sponsors Division I sports wonders about different neighborhoods or new neighbors. The conference ruptures over the last two years are too fresh not to consider options.</p><p>It&#x92;s worth pointing out that the Big East expands to nine for football beginning in 2012 and the ninth is TCU. Further expansion in the Plains could make sense, but it&#x92;s ultimately not where Kansas, Missouri, Kansas State and Iowa State want to be.</p><p>It&#x92;s also worth mentioning that if A&M leaves, the Big 12 &#x97; which has all but vowed not to grow to 12 &#x97; might be wise to think of returning to 10 and take a hard look at Brigham Young.</p><p>If the end result is an A&M departure, a valued member is lost. But the Big 12 would have many reasons, billions in fact, to continue.