Memphis offered $200 million to Big 12 to join conference: report

Memphis really wants to join the Big 12, but the conference doesn’t appear to be interested.

The school offered the equivalent of $200 million to the Big 12 to join the league and be embraced among the ranks of the Power Four, according to Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger.

“One of the most aggressive membership propositions in college athletics history,” the university included hundreds of millions in sponsorship commitments to the conference from the school’s existing corporate partners.

The university also offered to forego revenue distribution from the Big 12 for at least five years after joining, according to the report.

The Athletic reports that Memphis offered a clause allowing the Big 12 to remove the school from the conference before the next media deal is done if it determined the school did not bring enough value.

Memphis president Bill Hardgrave spent an estimated 14 months personally meeting with Big 12 presidents and administrators in the hopes of gaining interest in the school.

Despite the school’s efforts, the Big 12’s board is not interested in adding Memphis to its conference roster, according to Sports Illustrated’s Pat Forde.

Thus likely ends what could have been another notable college football realignment move that would have once again re-drawn the borders around the Power Four.

“The University of Memphis is aware of the recent conversations regarding our potential inclusion in the Big 12,” the school said in a statement after the report went public.

It added: “While those discussions did not ultimately move in our favor, our University and Memphis Athletics are stronger than ever, and we look forward to continuing to strengthen our position nationally.”

Memphis currently plays in the American Conference, recently re-branded from the former American Athletic Conference, but wants to be considered a Power Four caliber athletic program in the future.

This isn’t the first time Memphis and the Big 12 have been linked, as the conference vetted the school as part of its previous expansion project a couple years ago.

The league ultimately added Cincinnati, UCF, and Houston from the American, and also acquired then-independent BYU as a member.

Memphis has improved on the football field over the last two seasons, going 21-5 overall and 12-4 in conference games over that span, including two bowl victories against Big 12 opponents Iowa State and West Virginia, and upset No. 17 Tulane in 2024.

Head coach Ryan Silverfield is 41-21 overall and 23-17 in conference play in five seasons leading the Tigers football program.

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