Pac-12 football: Ranking the league’s 10 best expansion candidates
By John Scimeca
7. North Dakota State
Considering an addition of the Bison would mean that the Pac-12 accepts that it would move beyond its traditional geographic footprint. It would be moving farther east than Montana and Wyoming.
The move might be, though, surprisingly one of the best football teams that the league could pluck from a non-power conference. The Bison have defeated the past six FBS opponents they’ve faced (all on the road) and have won three of those games by a double-digit margin. NDSU has also won nine FCS titles in the past 10 years. The Bison will likely be favored when they face the Pac-12’s Arizona this fall.
6. Gonzaga
This one is a truly unorthodox candidate for the Pac-12 to consider, especially because the recent conference realignment moves are solely predicated on football programs (sorry, Kansas Jayhawks). But there’s a compelling argument to be made for the Bulldogs in light of the marquee men’s basketball program.
The Zags have been such a national power on the basketball court — think about the new in-conference rivalries that Gonzaga would face playing against Arizona, Oregon, and others. Since 1999, Mark Few and the Bulldogs have made an incredible 11 trips to at least the Sweet 16, including twice finishing as the national runner-up.
Gonzaga hasn’t fielded a football team since 1941. That’s not a likely avenue to take, but if the university were to ever decide to take on the challenge, the Pac-12 should try to be the beneficiary at the FBS level.
5. Air Force
The U.S. Air Force Academy would give the Pac-12 an institution with a national following. Fitting within the Pac-12’s existing geographic footprint, the Falcons would provide an in-state league rival to Colorado.
The Falcons have been impressive on the football field, too. In four of the past eight seasons, Air Force has reached at least 10 wins. And, fitting a theme among several of these new expansion candidates, Air Force has done well against Pac-12 foes: they own a 6-3 record against the conference since 1998.
4. Hawai’i
The Rainbow Warriors haven’t been discussed much in earnest as a potential Pac-12 expansion target. It’s a long trip to the island group in the Pacific Ocean — but wait, isn’t it more than 2,700 miles from UCLA to New Jersey-based Rutgers, a new Big Ten Conference foe?
The Pac-12 should consider adding Hawai’i and fully embracing it. For coaches, players, recruits, and families, guess what? You get to take a trip to the Aloha State. Use it as a selling point. Mandate during league play that the road team gets a bye week afterward so that the visitors can soak it in, have some fun, and then return to the mainland.
Plus, the Rainbow Warriors aren’t completely bereft of success on the gridiron (see No. 10 UNLV, above), as they’ve produced 10-, 11-, and 12-win seasons under coaches like June Jones within the past two decades.