Big Ten Football: Options for expansion to 16, 18, 20, or 24 teams
By Ryan Kay
There have been some schools rumored to possibly getting an invite to the Big Ten conference but it is highly unlikely unless the Big Ten were to expand to 24 teams and even then, it is not a guarantee that they would receive an invitation to join.
Kansas is a member of the Big 12 Conference
team. 821. . . . Jayhawks .
AAU Member: Yes
Top 30 Revenue School: No (#51)
Top 100 Academic National University: No (#121)
Top 20 tv/streaming market: No (#34)
Criteria Score Card: 1/4
There have been rumors that Kansas and the Big Ten conference have been talking about the Jayhawks joining the Big Ten. However, the facts are that Kansas is an AAU school and has a blue blood basketball program but they also have a bottom tier football program, not considered a high-end academic institution, and they would not expand the Big Ten Network into a market geographically that they are not already in. They are a lower-tier athletic revenue-producing school and the Kansas football program being what it currently is, hurts its chances of getting an invite to the Big Ten conference. The only hope would be if the Big Ten expands to 24 teams and convinces schools like Duke, Kentucky, and North Carolina to join the conference, and adding Kansas would make more sense.
Pittsburg is a member of the ACC Conference
866. . . . Panthers . . team
AAU Member: Yes
Top 30 Revenue School: No (#55)
Top 100 Academic National University: Yes (#58)
Top 20 tv/streaming market: No (#26)
Criteria Score Card: 2/4
Pitt would fit in very well in the Big Ten. The Panthers are an AAU member, top 60 academic schools, and in a city/area that is not densely populated. One problem, Penn State rather the Panther fans like it or not, dominate the state of Pennsylvania in terms of viewership and overall fans. The ACC was smart to add Pitt in 2011 as the ACC wanted to expand into the state of Pennsylvania. However, the Big Ten already has a stronghold in the state of Pennsylvania due to Penn State being a member of their conference. If Pitt was in the top 25 and not No. 55 in the power five athletic generating revenue rankings and a top-three football program in the ACC, maybe the Panthers would still get an invite to join the Big Ten. If the Big Ten were to expand to 24 teams, Pitt would get serious consideration.
Iowa State is a member of the Big 12 Conference
. team. 837. . . . Cyclones
AAU Member: Yes
Top 30 Revenue School: No (#35)
Top 100 Academic National University: No (#118)
Top 20 tv/streaming market: No (#68)
Criteria Score Card: 1/4
Many would argue that Iowa State would fit in perfectly in the Big Ten. However, worse than Pitt being overshadowed by Penn State, Iowa State is overshadowed by Iowa. Yes, Iowa State has played great football as of late and yes, they have a very passionate fan base like Texas Tech, and lastly being No. 35 in athletic generating revenue is not bad among power five conferences but the Cyclones have the same hurdles that Kansas has as well as Pitt. The state of Iowa is a densely populated state which does not help the Big Ten expanding its geographic footprint.
Okay, many may be thinking that the 16 schools that I wrote have little to no chance of getting an invite to the Big Ten Conference but they had Rutgers and Maryland join in 2014.
Let’s look at Rutgers and Maryland to see why those two schools joining the Big Ten made sense.