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Report: Maryland, Rutgers in talks with Big Ten Conference

The University of Maryland is reportedly in serious talks to join the Big Ten Conference. (Rob Carr/Getty Images)

at Byrd Stadium on November 17, 2012 in College Park, Maryland.

The University of Maryland is in advanced negotiations to join the Big Ten Conference, reports ESPN.com.

If Maryland goes to the Big Ten, Rutgers of the Big East is expected to follow suit. The addition of Maryland and Rutgers would give the Big Ten 14 members as the league gears toward negotiations on a new media rights deal when its first-tier rights expire in 2017.

Maryland would have to pay a $50 million exit fee to leave the Atlantic Coast Conference, which it has been a part of since 1953.

Maryland and Florida State were the two schools that voted against the exit fee, but both lost the vote. If Maryland leaves, the ACC would have 13 schools for college football and basketball. Reports say that each Big Ten school received a record $24.6 million in shared revenue.

Maryland recently dropped seven sports and having to pay $50 million would be hard to digest for the athletic department and campus.