krambman;385457 wrote:You're correct that they would have to pay if they left the conference, however, with at least 8 teams likely leaving the conference, it's far more likely that the conference will vote to disband, which means that no one will have to pay anything for leaving.
The thing I was wondering about this - I heard it takes 9 votes to disband the conference. So if eight teams leave (and obviously vote to disband, falling short of the requirement), does that mean the other 4 split all that penalty money? That is a nice parting gift, especially for Missouri for example. They haven't gotten their invite from the Big Ten, so they vote "no", grab a piece of the cash when the rest of the conference bolts, and THEN end up in the Big Ten.