Big 12 Will Make 'Significant Push' for UConn
It seems like everyone is just waiting for Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark to make his next move. Things have been quiet on the conference realignment front except for the rumors regarding the Big 12.
Oklahoma and Texas are set to depart next summer and Yormark knows that for this league to remain one of the top conferences in the country, they must continue to expand. Reports have surfaced with interest in regard to basketball powers Gonzaga and UConn in addition to a handful of PAC 12 institutions - Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado, and Utah.
There's even been a few Group of Five schools (Memphis, San Diego State, South Florida, and UNLV) who have been linked to the Big 12 at some point. But it seems like the one school the Big 12 really wants to zero in on is UConn.
Dennis Dodd of CBS Sports recently stated in an interview on ESPN 960AM, "There will be a significant push to get UConn into the Big 12. I don't know which way that will go; they're terrible in football and have travel issues. He will have to get that past the presidents. But the fact that it's being talked about now, especially in basketball, suggests there's some support with it."
Adding UConn to the Big 12 would give West Virginia another eastern partner to go along with Cincinnati and Central Florida. But more importantly, it helps the Big 12 continue its pursuit of becoming a national conference.
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