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SEC Football Realignment: Texas, Oklahoma changing the national landscape

By Ryan Kay

Texas football vs. Oklahoma football (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
Texas football vs. Oklahoma football (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /
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INDIANAPOLIS, IN – MARCH 12: Big Ten Commissioner Kevin Warren speaks following the cancellation of the men’s basketball tournament due to concerns over the Coronavirus (COVID-19) at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on March 12, 2020, in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN – MARCH 12: Big Ten Commissioner Kevin Warren speaks following the cancellation of the men’s basketball tournament due to concerns over the Coronavirus (COVID-19) at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on March 12, 2020, in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

Other factors can strongly influence college conference realignment

Here are the current top five ranked academic schools for the five current power college conferences. According to the U.S. News & World Report 2021 National Rankings.

Top five academically ranked schools currently in the SEC

  • No. 14 Vanderbilt
  • No. 30 Florida
  • No. 47 Georgia
  • No. 66 Texas A&M
  • No. 97 Auburn

Top five academically ranked schools currently in the Pac-12

  • No. 6 Stanford
  • No. 20 UCLA
  • No. 22 Cal
  • No. 24 USC
  • No. 58 Washington

Top five academically ranked schools currently in the Big 12

  • No. 42 Texas
  • No. 76 Baylor
  • No. 80 TCU
  • No. 118 Iowa State
  • No. 124 Kansas

Top five academically ranked schools currently in the ACC

  • No. 12 Duke
  • No. 19 Notre Dame
  • No. 26 Virginia
  • No. 28 (tie) North Carolina
  • No. 28 (tie) Wake Forest

Top five academically ranked schools currently in the Big Ten

  • No. 9 Northwestern
  • No. 24 Michigan
  • No. 42 Wisconsin
  • No. 47 Illinois
  • No. 53 Ohio State

Here are the top five designated TV/streaming market areas for schools in the five current power college conferences. According to the 2021 Nielsen DMA Rankings.

Top five Neilsen ranked schools currently in the SEC

  • No. 7 Georgia (Atlanta)
  • No. 8 Texas A&M (Houston)
  • No. 13 Florida (Tampa/St. Petersburg)
  • No. 23 Missouri (St. Louis)
  • No. 29 Vanderbilt (Nashville)

Top five Neilsen ranked schools currently in the Big Ten

  • No. 1 Rutgers (New York)
  • No. 3 Northwestern (Chicago)
  • No. 4 Penn State (Philadelphia)
  • No. 9 Maryland (Washington D.C.)
  • No. 15 Michigan (Detroit)

Top five Neilsen ranked schools currently in the Big 12

  • No. 5 TCU (Dallas-Ft. Worth)
  • No. 8 Baylor (Houston)
  • No. 34 Kansas (Kansas City)
  • No. 40 Texas (Austin)
  • No. 44 Oklahoma (Oklahoma City)

Top five Neilsen ranked schools currently in the ACC

  • No. 7 Georgia Tech (Atlanta)
  • No. 9 Virginia (Washington D.C.)
  • No. 10 Boston College (Boston)
  • No. 13 Florida State (Tampa-St. Pete)
  • No. 18 Miami (Miami-Ft. Lauderdale)

Top five Neilsen ranked schools currently in the PAC 12

  • No. 2 UCLA (Los Angeles)
  • No. 6 Stanford (San Francisco-Oak-San Jose)
  • No. 11 Arizona State (Phoenix)
  • No. 12 Washington (Seattle)
  • No. 16 Colorado (Denver)

There are many reasons for college football conference realignment but the main factors of overall money revenue, viewership to get large money tv and streaming contracts for the conference, and lastly the fit and need for an individual school to leave one conference and join another.

We will next look at what college football should look like and what it will actually look like.

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