Tag: Big Ten Expansion

The top 5 Big Ten expansion candidates as Colorado leaves Pac-12 for the Big 12

With Colorado on its way to the Big 12 in 2024, here are five prime candidates for the Big Ten’s next expansion move.

Let’s be honest for a quick second. When it comes to conference realignment, the dust never really settles.

Although the Big Ten seemed content to sit on the addition of USC and UCLA coming up in 2024 without any momentum toward adding additional schools to the mix, there is no doubt the Big Ten has its eyes on the developments going down in the Pac-12.

After already losing USC and UCLA to the Big Ten, the Pac-12 now loses one of its newer members, Colorado, to the Big 12. The Buffs will return to their former conference, the Big 12, that will look totally new to them next year.

The Big 12 welcomes four new members this year: BYU, UCF, Cincinnati and Houston are joining the conference and longtime staples in the conference Oklahoma and Texas are leaving for the SEC next year.

Rumors suggest the Big 12 is looking to add one more program, potentially from the Power Five. Pac-12 schools Arizona, Arizona State and Utah have been considered among the most likely targets for the Big 12.

Even if the Big Ten wasn’t proactively seeking other new members from the West Coast, now feels like as good a time as any to reopen the conversation about the Big Ten’s next moves. There are some notable schools worth evaluating as they seek long-term stability.

Here are the top five Big Ten expansion candidates that Colorado is heading to the Big 12 and leaving the Pac-12 on the brink of a potential collapse from the power conference structure. One quick note on the omission of Texas and Oklahoma, which has always been on my personal Big Ten wish list. With those schools heading to the SEC, there is no way they change their course. Maybe the money would be better in the Big Ten, but it would not be that much of a difference than joining the SEC.

Big Ten said it had no plans for further expansion … before the Colorado news

Does the possibility of Colorado to the #Big12 mean the #B1G (and other conferences) will expand?

Wednesday began innocently and normally enough.

Big Ten media days began in Indianapolis. Some moderately interesting things were said by the coaches and players. The Northwestern hazing scandal was a constant point of focus from assembled media members. Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti addressed a wide range of subjects, including the arrival of USC and UCLA in 2024 and the need to accommodate the Trojans and Bruins.

Petitti was also asked about possible Big Ten expansion. He said the only focus among conference leaders and athletic department administrators was to smooth the path for USC and UCLA. Additional expansion was not mentioned and not viewed as a priority for the Big Ten.

That was before the huge news broke Wednesday afternoon, linking Colorado to a move to the Big 12.

If Colorado does move to the Big 12, it opens the door for the Arizona schools to leave for the Big 12 as well. If the Arizona schools leave, the Pac-12 could cease to exist.

In that case, the Big Ten might have to expand — less by choice and more as a matter of necessity. It’s going to be another wild realignment summer before we start playing football in a month.

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Power rankings: What programs are atop the Big Ten’s conference expansion wishlist?

A look at what schools could (and should) be next to join the Big Ten.

The world of conference expansion never really slows down. It just keeps plugging along. Where the Big Ten goes is likely to be the domino that creates a chain reaction throughout college football.

After all, last summer, the Big Ten created a domino effect when it raided the Pac-12 for USC and UCLA. And all the recent buzz is that the Big Ten may not be done plucking the Pac-12’s best programs.

So where could the Big Ten turn to next? There are a variety of different options in play here. Keep in mind a few things:

  • Every Big Ten school, upon entry into the conference, has been an AAU member. This matters.
  • The Big Ten is likely to add two more schools from west of the Rocky Mountains to balance the conference.
  • That doesn’t mean there won’t be any other expansion, simply that targeting the West Coast seems likely.
  • Television market size matters.
  • Football matters almost as much as television sets. Basketball is a distant third in the priorities.

Scroll down and check out where things are being projected to shake out for the Big Ten’s next big move in the conference expansion sweepstakes!

Report: Big Ten, SEC to battle for UNC, Virginia in future conference expansion

If the Big Ten were to expand again, it appears North Carolina and Virginia would be strong candidates for the league

If the Big Ten were to expand again, it appears North Carolina and Virginia would be strong candidates for the league.

The Big Ten and SEC are reportedly very interested in adding North Carolina and Virginia should either league look to continue their expansion. OutKick had the report.

Both the Big Ten and SEC are at 16 teams with recent expansion that’ll officially begin next year, but both have long been rumored to continue adding to its footprint. With the uncertainty of the ACC, it makes a lot of sense that North Carolina and Virginia would be on the move.

I personally believe both the Tar Heel and Cavaliers would make great additions to the Big Ten. They aren’t necessarily within the Midwest but would overall align with a lot of the other schools in the league in both football and basketball.

Click on the link below to read more on the potential of North Carolina and Virginia joining the Big Ten:

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CBS Sports projects every Big Ten Football team’s three protected rivals once USC, UCLA join the league. We have thoughts.

Do you like what this looks like? Where do you think things might differ? #B1G #GoBucks

Change is coming. USC and UCLA are set to join the Big Ten in 2024, and a lot goes in to what future schedules will look like. There will be travel demands, current rivalries that need to be considered and a balance of matchups and fairness.

That’s just for starters.

And while the Big Ten has not formally announced anything regarding schedules, rumors and reports indicate the league is leaning toward a 3-6-6 model. That means that each of the 16 teams will have three protected teams it plays every year, with the other 12 in an every other year rotation. That would mean each team in the Big Ten would play every other within a two-year timeline.

But that begs the question: What will the three protected teams be for all 16 teams? Obviously, deep rivalries like Ohio State and Michigan will be a part of the untouchables, but what about the rest? Believe me when I say the exercise of determining all of that isn’t as easy as it sounds.

Of all that we’ve run across on this topic, CBS Sports’ Tom Fornelli does about as good of a job of running through all considerations to identify those teams, but we have our thoughts as well (of course we do!).

Here is what Fornelli believes will be each Big Ten football team’s three protected rivals when both USC and UCLA join the fray in 2024. We go beyond that and add our thoughts, but take it all for what it’s worth until an official announcement comes from the Big Ten.

Projecting every Big Ten team’s three permanent rivals once USC, UCLA join league

If the Big Ten scraps divisions and goes to the 3-6-6 model – who should Michigan State get as its three permanent rivals?

Expansion is coming to the Big Ten in 2024 and that means we should be entering a brand new world of scheduling in Big Ten football.

The league has yet to officially announce their intentions for scheduling once USC and UCLA join the Big Ten in 2024. But it’s assumed by many that the conference will ditch the East and West Divisions and go with a new scheduling model.

Speculation has it that the Big Ten will go with the 3-6-6 model, which I’m personally all in favor of for the conference. This model would give each Big Ten team three protected permanent rivals they’ll play every year, six games against half of the rest of the Big Ten one year and six games against the remaining six teams the following season. This model essentially protects the most important annual rivalries — such as Michigan-Michigan State, Ohio State-Michigan, USC-UCLA or Wisconsin-Minnesota — and guarantees every four-year player will get to play the remaining teams once at home and once away.

The 3-6-6 model makes the most sense for the Big Ten when USC and UCLA join the conference so I’m going to take my best guess at how the permanent rivals will be distributed for each Big Ten team. Here’s a look at who I think the Spartans and every other Big Ten squad will get paired with as their three permanent rivals:

Rumor: Is the Big Ten still looking at further expansion?

Things have been awfully quiet with further conference expansion, but some sources think the Big Ten may not be done.

The college football landscape is continuously changing and the arrival of the super conferences sure seems inevitable. The Big Ten has already poached the Pac-12 for UCLA and USC, and all signs point to the Big Ten not being finished with its western expansion.

According to a recent article by Saturday Out West, a source stated they believe the Big Ten isn’t done poaching the Pac-12.

“If anyone thinks the Big Ten isn’t coming back for more, they’re not following along,” the source told Saturday Out West.

It’s hard to see a clear path for Pac-12 long-term relevancy, and it also makes sense the Big Ten would continue to add schools to make traveling a tad less harsh for its only two West Coast programs who are set to begin play in 2024.

The departure of former Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren makes this situation more intriguing and perhaps a little clunky. However, it still feels like a matter of time before we see the Big Ten add more out west. Cal, Oregon, Stanford and Washington have been rumored in the not-too-distant past.

Just when you think nothing is going on with further expansion is usually the time when talks are going on behind the scenes. Could that be the case again?

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Who CBS Sports thinks MSU football should play as its permanent rivals once USC, UCLA join Big Ten

How will USC and UCLA joining the Big Ten alter the scheduling moving forward? CBS Sports took a dive into how that could play out in 2024

How will USC and UCLA joining the Big Ten alter the scheduling moving forward? CBS Sports took a dive into how that could play out with a fun new model that should make Spartans fans happy.

With USC and UCLA joining the league in 2024, it’s widely believed the Big Ten is going to scrap divisions. If it does, the most practical scheduling option would be the 3-6-6 model. That alignment gives each school three permanent annual rivals and alternates between the other 12 schools every other year.

This model was what Tom Fornelli of CBS Sports used this week to create his projection for each team’s three permanent rivals. See who Fornelli has Michigan State playing annually once the Trojans and Bruins join the league below:

ESPN’s Paul Finebaum expects Big Ten to continue expansion – see who he thinks will join the league

ESPN’s Paul Finebaum believes the Big Ten will continue to expand and he has two schools in mind that would make the most sense

Is the Big Ten done at 16 teams or will it eventually add to the league’s footprint? ESPN analyst Paul Finebaum thinks there’s at least two more schools that will eventually join the Big Ten.

Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren recently said the Big Ten wasn’t in the business of expanding anymore — for now. He left the door open for the league potentially adding more schools, and Finebaum believes that door will remain open for two schools in particular: Washington and Oregon.

Finebaum recently spoke with our sister site Rutgers Wire about Big Ten expansion and had this to say:

“I think in time, I mean, having watched up close with the SEC with Oklahoma and Texas – these are very complicated moves. And I think you just can’t take four or five at the same time because the schedules are intricate and difficult,” Finebaum told RutgersWire in a recent interview.

“… I think Oregon and Washington are the two schools that would be the first first to go. Yeah, I still think there’s some movement left in the Big 12, so I don’t think that affects the big, the Big Ten can get who they want. I felt it for some time,”

It’s interesting hearing Finebaum’s take on the Big Ten potentially expanding, and it would make sense if the league did want to add two more West Coast schools to go with USC and UCLA, so I completely agree with Finebaum’s thoughts here.

Click on the tweet below to get the complete interview with Finebaum from Rutgers Wire:

Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan state news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Robert Bondy on Twitter @RobertBondy5.

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Report: Washington is latest school to meet with Big Ten about potential expansion

Washington is the latest school to be linked to the Big Ten in further expansion discussions

Washington is the latest school to be linked to the Big Ten in further expansion discussions.

Brett McMurphy of the Action Network reported on Wednesday that Washington has met with the Big Ten about “joining the conference.” This comes after Oregon also recently met with the league about joining the Big Ten.

Washington and Oregon have long been considered favorites to land in the Big Ten should the league look to expand past 16 teams. Other linked schools according to McMurphy includes Cal, Stanford and Notre Dame.

Click on the tweet below to read the full report from McMurphy:

Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan state news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Robert Bondy on Twitter @RobertBondy5.

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