The 2012-13 MU football team.
have to prove ourselves, that we belong. That’s what we’re going to work hard to do. We played in a pretty good football league ourselves, and everybody’s going to have an opinion on that, but I’d be disappointed if we were intimidated. We know how it’s going to work every week. How are Missouri and Texas A&M, which also left the Big 12 for the SEC, going to do? You have to go out and play and compete, and it’s going to be decided on the field. You have to earn that respect.”
Up for the challenge? The SEC is dominant in more than just football. Kentucky is the defending national champion in men’s basketball, Alabama is the reigning softball champion, and the conference has won three of the past four College World Series baseball titles. Be careful what you wish for. “We are leaving one great basketball league for another, so I believe the challenges will be similar,” Frank Haith, MU men’s basketball coach, says. “The SEC has won three of the last seven national titles, and you have a great mix of established and growing programs. Obviously, the league is filled with talented coaches and players.” Thankfully, Norfolk State is not in the SEC. “You’ll be playing against some of the top talent in the game night in and night out,” Haith says. “We played 18 league games last year, so that will be similar, but there will be new opportunities as well: new teams, new venues, new styles.” Jefferson City native Ehren Earleywine has built the MU softball program into one of the best in the country. He’s hardly shedding tears about leaving the Big 12 — unless they’re tears of joy. “I’m not going to miss the Big 12 at all,” Earleywine says. “Your opponents become enemies after continually battling and butting heads with them. I’m looking forward to a fresh start in the SEC and a fresh batch of coaches to gain some camaraderie with. I’m excited about it, and everyone in our program is pumped up about it.” The SEC had the most teams in the 64-team field in this year’s NCAA softball tournament. If you add MU and Texas A&M, the SEC would have had 11 teams. “There was a chance that we could have ended up in the Mountain West, the WAC, the Big 10 or the Big East, and nobody wanted any of those for our softball program,” Earleywine says. “So when we heard about the SEC, it was awesome.” n
106 | September/October 2012