Missouri on SI cover
The Missouri Tigers — at least linebacker Sean Weatherspoon, quarterback Chase Daniel and flanker Jeremy Maclin — grace the cover of Sports Illustrated’s college football preview. Two things you should know.
1. It’s a regional cover. Down South, Georgia players are on the cover, except in Florida, where the Gators get the honor. In the upper Midwest, Ohio State. Out West, USC.
I don’t know which cover gets the dominant placement throughout the rest of the country, but I can tell you that on si.com, where it shows the current magazine cover, Florida has the honors.
I guess such marketing is fine, but to me, it takes away from Sports Illustrated’s special status. Making the SI cover packs a wallop unlike anything else in sports media, even in these Internet days. Regionalizing the covers weakens that status.
2. I think it’s great that Missouri is on the cover, even in just a portion of the country. The Tigers are fourth in SI’s preseason rankings, behind Georgia, Ohio State and USC. Florida is fifth, followed by OU, Auburn, Texas Tech, LSU and Wisconsin.
The Big 12’s status will only be enhanced by Missouri getting such props. The Sooners have dominated their conference unlike any other major power, other than USC in the Pac-10. Any appearance that the Big 12 is weak outside the Sooners is bad for the Sooners and the league.
Missouri’s rising stature will help the Sooners, even if it means no more than keeping OU on its toes.
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I agree that Missouri getting attention is good for the Big 12.
Another thing that would help the Big 12’s reputation on the national scene is for the Big 12 champion to occasionally win its BCS bowl game.