College conference expansion is taking a break, but it isn’t going to slow down. Not anytime soon, and not as long as the ACC’s media deal remains inferior to that of the Big Ten, the SEC and the Big 12 (not to mention Notre Dame).
But it is clear after recent additions of Oregon and Washington that the Big Ten will continue to be aggressive in the college expansion and realignment landscape. This is as much about accruing assets (i.e. desirable media markets) as it is about adding fine athletic programs.
So where does the Big Ten go next in all of this? And what does the Big Ten value in conference expansion?
AAU membership (all current additions to the Big Ten are members of this prestigious academic institution)
Football, followed by basketball, drives this bus
Media markets, especially for the next television deal, are vastly important for the Big Ten to remain the most valuable conference in college sports.
So with that being said, scroll down and check out the most recent power rankings for possible expansion candidates to the Big Ten!
(Oh, and no Notre Dame on this list as they don’t seem enthralled with the idea of joining any conference quite yet)