The Wheels of College Football Realignment Are Turning

When Oklahoma and Texas jumped to the SEC, it set off a chain reaction across college football as conferences tried to secure stability. The ACC got in on the action by stealthily prying Syracuse, Pittsburgh, Notre Dame and Louisville from the Big East.

Unlike the past, conference expansion is now driven by money rather than geographic fit. Here’s how this will play out over the next decade.

Big 12

The wheels of college football conference realignment are in motion, and the Big 12 is the first to feel the effects. This summer’s bombshell that Texas and Oklahoma would leave for the SEC next year caused a ripple effect that saw conferences race to secure stability. The Big 12 added Houston, Cincinnati and UCF from the American Athletic Conference and BYU as an independent, bringing the league up to 14 teams.

The move puts the Big 12 in the position to attract a number of Group of Five schools that are currently without a home. Brigham Young, Central Florida and Cincinnati represent the most appealing options, and a source familiar with the league’s conversations says they could receive official invitations within days.

One potential addition could be SMU, which has a large Dallas market and is reportedly interested in a new TV deal. However, the Pac-12 may have a different plan in mind. A report by Brett McMurphy suggests the conference is preparing to raid the Big 12.

A geography-based plan for college sports makes a lot of sense. It would allow teams to stay together and compete in the same area, and it also allows the major conferences to rake in enough TV revenue that they don’t have to compete with the rest of the sport for the same money. That’s the way to make college football truly sustainable.

It’s important to note that this is not a guarantee that the Big 12 will add more members in 2024. The league may be too full already if it takes in Colorado and the three schools from the American Athletic Conference. That said, the conference could certainly do more expansion if it decides it’s the best path forward for it and its current members.

Pac-10

With the additions of USC and UCLA, college football realignment has shifted significantly this year. The Pac-10 may be the next big conference to get a shakeup. However, it could be a while before it happens. The Pac-10 needs to improve its television presence and its financial situation to make it attractive to other schools.

The Pac-10 has a few options to boost its ratings and finances. One option is to expand and bring in a few more schools. This would help the conference avoid getting hit by another wave of expansion, like the one that saw Conference USA lose six members to the MAC.

Adding new schools to the conference will also make it easier to negotiate a TV deal. Media companies evaluate conferences not based on what they are now but what they will be in the future. This is why it is important to look at the whole picture when negotiating a TV deal.

If the PAC-10 is unable to secure a better television deal, it will be difficult to remain in business. There are already rumors that Colorado will leave for the BIG 12, and if that happens, it could be the beginning of the end for the conference.

Despite a recent decline in attendance, the PAC-10 still has a strong alumni base and high enrollment numbers. These factors make the conference a viable contender to join the Big Ten in the future. However, the Big Ten has some advantages over the PAC-10 in terms of television deals and geographic location.

The Big Ten currently has a deal with ESPN that lasts 14 years. This gives the conference time to work on a new contract before the Pac-10 starts looking for greener pastures. However, some schools may be reluctant to join a conference with such a long Grant of Rights agreement.

There is a possibility that the PAC-10 will add Utah and Arizona to its membership, but it’s not a sure thing. There are many other schools that may be interested in joining the conference, including San Diego State and Memphis.

SEC

The SEC is well-known throughout the country these days as a money-printing, championship-winning behemoth across college sports. With 14 schools that compete in all major sports and its own television network, the conference is a force to be reckoned with. However, the SEC looks very different from when it first began more than 80 years ago.

The conference’s inaugural members were ten schools drawn together by geographic proximity and a shared cultural values, with a deep-rooted passion for college football. They forged a bond that hasn’t yet broken. The SEC has never been stronger.

As the conference continues to expand, its membership is changing. The SEC recently lost two of its biggest programs, UCLA and USC, to the Big Ten. This has caused a ripple effect across the leagues and has pushed conferences to seek stability. The Big 12 has already started to make some changes. The conference added BYU, Cincinnati, and Houston to its ranks, bringing the total number of schools in the Big 12 to 16 in 2023. This will help the conference expand its television footprint and increase its value to TV networks.

In addition to these changes, the Big 12 also raided Colorado from the Pac-12, removing it from the Los Angeles media market. The Pac-12 has struggled with its TV rights deal, and the loss of Colorado could signal more changes to come.

While the SEC has been busy with expansion, it remains to be seen what other conferences will do. There is plenty of speculation about which teams will leave the Power Five and join other conferences, as well as what other programs will move up from FCS. In fact, the pendulum shifted a bit Thursday with the announcement that Ferris State and Grand Valley State will jump to FBS in 2023.

This has sparked speculation about whether the Mountain West will lose its flagship member, San Diego State University. The school has given the conference written notice that it is considering a move to another conference. The school is looking for a television contract that would provide it with more financial security.

Big Ten

Across college football, the Big Ten is on the verge of major change. Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany’s conference is set to welcome USC and UCLA in 2024, pushing the league to 16 teams. This expansion is likely to cause realignment reverberations around the nation.

The Big Ten has been one of the most stable conferences in college football for the past decade, but it is now facing a major shakeup that could threaten its status as a leader among Power Five conferences. The conference is reportedly considering adding Washington and Oregon to its ranks, as well as a potential move to expand to 18 or even 20 members. This would require more travel, less home games and more money for administrators, coaches and players.

But the conference also needs to protect its best rivalries, those essential matchups that draw sold-out crowds and high television ratings. This may not be easy. The Big Ten has already suffered some blows to its traditional rivalries in the wake of realignment, including the loss of Nebraska and Ohio State to the SEC. In addition, the league has added a handful of programs from outside the Power Five that don’t share any history with its current members.

Delany has been careful to avoid a repeat of the scandals that plagued his predecessor, Bill Hambright, who allowed his conference to become a battleground for greedy athletic directors and powerful television executives. But he still faces a threat from political factions that may want to interfere with the process and destabilize college sports.

One of the biggest issues facing the conference is its scheduling, which requires a large amount of travel for its members. The Big Ten has been working to remedy this issue by shifting the scheduling to reduce the number of road games and create a more balanced schedule. It has also been experimenting with new formats, such as a divisional format and a rotation of divisional games.

However, this shift has caused some fan frustration and confusion for schools that have to play more road games. In addition, the rotation of divisional games has left some fans wanting more regular-season games with teams they like. Some have even called for a return to a more traditional conference schedule, with two divisional games each year and a single Big Ten championship game.