No one knows what the next domino that falls will be in college athletics with expansion after USC and UCLA shook things up by joining the Big Ten last week. But in the days since, the talk has centered around which teams could be on the move next and how the conferences will expand in the coming years.
One program that is being talked about a lot is the University of North Carolina and rightfully so. UNC is a powerful brand that other conferences should (and will) have interest in for expansion talks.
While UNC’s football program isn’t at the prominent level as some of these other schools just yet, the basketball program is right there with anyone in the country. And that’s intriguing for conferences.
National writer Pete Thamel echoed similar thoughts last week while appearing on The Paul Finebaum Show to talk expansion. Thamel had nothing but great things to say about UNC and its brand:
“So, I think the most compelling program is perhaps when you go to the spreadsheets and pay a lot of money to the consultants. They tell you the most valuable is North Carolina. It has an unbelievable brand. It stretches across a wide swath of a highly populated state. Their football clearly hasn’t been as successful as Clemson, there’s no question. And basketball is really only–even in a league like the ACC–a 15 percent proposition,” Thamel said.
Whether we like it or not, there’s going to be talk about UNC moving on from the Atlantic Coast Conference, especially if there’s revenue involved with the move, which there is. I’m traditional and I love the ACC but right now, the conference doesn’t look as strong as the Big Ten and SEC with expansion. Plus, we could be heading for a system where it’s 4 large conferences battling it out each year.
Already there’s been rumors and reports connecting UNC to the Big Ten as well as the SEC. Nothing is concrete just yet but we are just going to have to get used to hearing the Tar Heels being connected to these conferences.
Buckle up.
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