Big 12 Commissioner Accuses ESPN and AAC of Collusion Bob Bowslby has accused ESPN and the AAC of conspiring together to convince three to five Big 12 teams to jump ship. If that’s true, what does it mean? Share this story Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports Big 12 conference commissioner Bob Bowlsby had an explosive press conference. Now, what the Big 12 does typically doesn’t impact the AAC, but that’s not where the college football world is right now. With a realignment panic in full swing, though, when a conference commissioner speaks there is impact. What Bowlsby said is already sending reverberations through the sport, and it directly implicated the AAC. He accused ESPN of conspiring with the AAC to steal three or five members from the Big 12. This would take the AAC to 14 or 16 teams, lead to contract re-negotiations, make the AAC a power conference, and twist the knife in a dying Big 12.