On Oct. 4, Deaton resigned as chairman of the Big 12 board of directors. And during a closed meeting in Kansas City on Oct. 21, the curators granted Deaton the power to negotiate with other conferences.

By this time, Neinas had informed his constituency that an "inside source in the SEC informs me that Slive now has the votes to admit Missouri." Yet even as the departure was just a formality, conference and business leaders continued to reach out to Missouri and express their frustration.

On Oct. 24, an anonymous Big 12 administrator told the Austin American-Statesman the conference would be better off with West Virginia than Missouri. The official said, "West Virginia has better football than Missouri, better basketball than Missouri, a better budget than Missouri and more passion among its fans than Missouri. They're better, anyway you turn 'em."

In an email, Oklahoma Athletic Director Joe Castiglione wrote to Holder, "Sad and disgusting someone would say that even out of frustration."

"Wow," Alden wrote to Holder. "I didn't know folks harbored that kind of sentiment about us."

"Pretty obvious who feels this way," [OSU Athletic Director Mike] Holder replied. "Not a sentiment shared in Stillwater."