The Big 12 has been one of the more active conferences among the Power Five this spring and the beginning of summer.
Commissioner Brett Yormark has announced a partnership with the historic Rucker Park, as well as announced a new initiative that will bring exhibitions and bowl games to Mexico. At this point, if there is a conference you could bet on to make the next move in conference realignment the Big 12 might be the safest bet.
The current feeling around the collegiate landscape is that it will be when, not if, the conference expands beyond 12. The Big 12 currently has 14 schools in the fold but Oklahoma and Texas are set to join the SEC for the 2024 calendar year.
According to a report from Pete Thamel and ESPN (article requires subscription), there is one team out east that could be a strong favorite to join the Big 12.
Sources say the Big 12 has held an in-person visit with school officials at Colorado at a neutral site. And they’ve also had an on-campus visit to Connecticut. That UConn meeting has some predicting that if Colorado does jump to the Big 12, UConn is a top choice if none of the other Four Corner schools — Arizona, Arizona State, Utah — join the Buffaloes.
The potential addition of the UConn Huskies is an interesting possibility and not exactly one that is coming out of left field. The Big 12 has been exploring adding both UConn and Gonzaga, both known for their basketball prowess. This would also get the Big 12 into a new market. The conference has won two of the last three NCAA men’s basketball championships and adding the defending champions would only increase their profile as a premier basketball conference.
Adding Colorado has been the main target it seems since the reports surfaced that the conference was targeting the Pac-12’s four corner schools. The Buffaloes left the Big 12 for the Pac-10 prior to the start of the 2012 football season. They joined Utah as the new members that made up the Pac-12. Since hiring Deion Sanders as the head coach of the football program, the Buffs have become a more enticing target.
Deion in the Big 12 would be interesting to say the very least.
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