Saturday Blitz
Fansided

Big 12 Expansion: Ranking the possible schools to be added

By Hunter Kinniburgh

Jul 18, 2016; Dallas, TX, USA; Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby speaks to the media during the Big 12 Media Days at Omni Dallas Hotel. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 18, 2016; Dallas, TX, USA; Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby speaks to the media during the Big 12 Media Days at Omni Dallas Hotel. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 10
Next
Nov 19, 2015; Orlando, FL, USA; UCF Knights quarterback Tyler Harris (8) throws a pass in the second half against the East Carolina Pirates at Bright House Networks Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Dyer-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 19, 2015; Orlando, FL, USA; UCF Knights quarterback Tyler Harris (8) throws a pass in the second half against the East Carolina Pirates at Bright House Networks Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Dyer-USA TODAY Sports /

8. University of Central Florida 

The Pros: 

The UCF Knights have a lot to offer the Big 12 in the form of the Orlando TV market. Much like USF, the Knights also have fertile recruiting ground to recruit quality players to, as the program would seem more attractive if it were affiliated with a Power 5 conference.

Central Florida – the largest school in the state in terms of undergrad enrollment – is not far removed from its 12-1 season in which it beat Baylor and won the Fiesta Bowl. In fact, since 2011 the program has won 26 games (we’ll get to the 2015 season in a second) and provided quality NFL players such as Blake Bortles.

The Knights also have a promising new head coach in former Oregon offensive coordinator, Scott Frost, who has plenty of offensive weapons to make the Knights a consistent winner in 2016.

The Cons:

After winning those 26 games since 2011, UCF went 0-12 last year. Watching a UCF game on TV not only hurt from a performance view, but also due to lack of fan support in the stands. As was a problem with South Florida, the same goes to UCF, the schools are not big enough to compete on an equal level with Florida, FSU and Miami. The TV markets in Florida could be luring for the Big 12, but I would expect them to stay away.

Next: No. 7 UConn

Home/Big 12