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With conference realignment rumors popping up every which way you look over the last few days, one of the biggest questions in Big Ten circles appears to be which schools from the Big 12 will potentially be added to the Big Ten. But perhaps that’s not even the first question to be asked.
Should the Big Ten expand at all? Let’s start with that question first.
It used to be that conference expansion was all about generating more media rights revenue by moving the conference into lucrative new markets. This was the main reason the Big Ten even considered, and subsequently followed through on, adding Rutgers and Maryland to the conference.
Rutgers was sold as delivering the New York market for the Big Ten, and Maryland helped lock down the Washington D.C. and Baltimore markets for the Big Ten. At a time when the Big Ten was looking for ways to get the Big Ten Network into more homes, gaining a foothold in these markets made business sense for the Big Ten. And judging by the Big Ten revenue shares each Big Ten school has been receiving in recent years, it may be safe to say that move has paid off. Literally.
Big Ten expansion rumors are picking up leftovers from the Big 12
The move by the SEC to add Texas and Oklahoma also a serious power-play move for future media rights. Being able to see as many marquee matchups as the SEC will potentially have lining up with Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Oklahoma, Texas, Auburn, LSU, Tennessee, Texas A&M, and more is crazy. The SEC will take a king’s ransom in its next round of media rights negotiations with that kind of firepower.
But after the departure of Oklahoma and Texas, the Big 12 doesn’t have another Oklahoma or Texas there for the Big Ten’s taking (or the ACC’s or Pac-12’s). Of the remaining available options, no candidate for expansion in the remains of the Big 12 scrapheap will do much of anything to add any significant value to the Big Ten’s coffers. Sure, having Iowa-Iowa State as a conference game would be fun, and resurrecting a Penn State-West Virginia series on a regular basis would be great for Penn State and West Virginia fans. But as far as an incremental financial incentive, there may not be enough to make it worth the process.
The Big Ten is already serving healthy slices of pie to its members, and Rutgers and Maryland will soon be getting their full shares as well. Adding teams to the mix will mean more slices to divide among members. So it will be essential for the Big Ten to find expansion candidates that won’t take away from the revenue distribution on an individual level.
Simply put, expansion for the sake of expansion doesn’t make sense unless it can make financial sense for all involved. Do any of the schools remaining in the Big 12 offer that?
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