Posted by ESPN.com's Tim Griffin
It's hard to imagine another school with the largesse of Texas. The Permanent University Fund has pumped billions of dollars into the school's budget over the years. It has had the largest endowment of any school in the Big 12 since the creation of the conference.
And the school could get even richer if longtime supporter Richard Moncrief is successful in litigation over ownership of a natural-gas field in Siberia. He has announced plans for a gift to the university of up to $500 million.
That's right. As in a cool half-billion dollars.
If Moncrief Oil International, which is owned and operated by Moncrief's family, wins the case, it will donate 25 percent of the net proceeds to the university.
And if the Moncrief company wins big, it would be the university's largest gift ever. But if the company loses its claim on the mammoth Siberian oil field, the university would receive nothing, the Austin American-Statesman reported.
Moncrief is making the promise in honor of his father, longtime Texas booster and former school regent William A. "Tex" Moncrief Jr. The gift would be directed to an alternative-energy program for the school.
The school's athletic training center is already named in "Tex" Moncrief's honor. Something tells me there will be a lot more honors bestowed to them if the lawsuit is settled in favor of the Moncriefs.
Tim Griffin joined ESPN.com in February 2008. He has covered the Big 12 since its inception, among a variety of beats during a 24-year career at the San Antonio Express-News. Griffin, a Memphis State University graduate, lives in San Antonio with his wife and son.
