I have been of the opinion since this farce of a Big XII expansion process began that the only impossible outcome is status quo. That if you’re going to force so many respected institutions of higher education to be paraded around like baccalaureate-granters-of-the-evening, you damn well better pick a couple to go to the back room with you.
The process designed by the Big XII was humiliating for every institution involved. It put the onus on “candidate” university presidents and athletic directors to make it publicly appear they were doing something to advance their cause. It’s why some schools did shameful things like this; because their fans and boards of directors asked “what are we doing to join the Big XII?