Report: Big Ten Exploring Expansion, Big 12 to Follow?
Conference expansion conversations are dwindling despite SEC commissioner Greg Sankey's comments on expanding past 16 teams. Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren is still looking to add more than USC and UCLA in the near future.
According to CBS Sports, the Big Ten is "evaluating the status" of four Pac-12 teams that could be eligible to join the conference in 2024. The four schools currently being considered are Cal, Oregon, Stanford and Washington.
Earlier this month, a source told LonghornsCountry.com that the Big 12 was targeting at least four schools from the Pac-12 for further expansion and could be looking to add six if the timing was right. According to the source, the four major programs were Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado and Utah.
Oregon and Washington have been in conversations about joining the Big 12, though the two schools would prefer to join the Big Ten if offered. One of the major rifts in expanding westward for the Big Ten has been the status of Notre Dame, which would like to remain independent if it can bring in an average media revenue per year of at least $75 million.
The additions of the four programs out west would continue to boost the academic standard linked with the conference. All four schools are AAU member universities, a massive plus for programs looking to join in the coming years.
The Big 12 and Big Ten remain the two conferences looking to expand past their current 12 and 16-team status. Should the Big 12 offer programs such as Oregon State and Washington State a spot if Oregon and Washington declined, the conference would be the first to reach 18 teams. Should all four programs follow USC and UCLA, the Big Ten would become the first super conference with 20 programs.
Any move by another institution would likely mean the end of the Pac-12. The 10 remaining schools are looking for a new media rights deal to kick in in 2024. Earlier this month, it was reported that the Pac-12 and Big 12 would not look to merge due to the timing of media contracts.
LonghornsCountry.com will continue to keep you up to date with the status of Big Ten and Big 12 expansion in the coming weeks.
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