AP photo

A Nov. 17, 2004 file photo shows traffic on I-75 just north of the Monroe, Ohio, going by a six story high statue of Jesus under construction at the Solid Rock Church Nov. 17, 2004. The 62-foot-tall statue made of plastic foam and fiberglass over a steel frame was stuck by lightning and destroyed Monday June 14, 2010.

Given up for dead only days ago, the Big 12 has emerged leaner and meaner.

That's the opinion of Chuck Carlton of the Dallas Morning News. With Colorado and Nebraska gone, it appeared Texas would lead the best of the Big 12's rest to the Pac-10. Instead, the Longhorns are staying put. Derided for losing two teams, conference commissioner Dan Beebe now deserves the Nobel Peace Prize, writes Kevin Sherrington of the DMN.

Texas and other powerful outside sources helped save the Big 12, according to SI.com. It boiled down to the old guard fighting back against a newcomer - Pac-10 commissioner Larry Scott, as detailed by Yahoo's Dan Wetzel.

NCAA realignment is still dominating college sports news. Here's a look at more on that, plus the rest of today's college sports links:

NCAA REALIGNMENT