Colorado, Arizona to Big 12?

Zstatman

Zstatman

Well-Known Member
www.azcentral.com

Arizona to Big 12? Conference expansion speculation swirls around Pac-12's Wildcats

Could the Arizona Wildcats leave the Pac-12 Conference for the Big 12 Conference? Speculation is swirling around the University of Arizona.
www.azcentral.com

There are always expansion rumors, but this one might have legs. I'm just a peon but this makes a certain amount of sense to me. The Big 12 doesn't need both Arizona schools and this would help create a real basketball powerhouse conference. Not to mention add nicely to TV markets.

What would this mean for the B1G? Who knows. If it were me though I'd be looking at Notre Dame, Washington, Stanford and Arizona St. To me, Stanford and Washington are no brainers. Big question has always been what is ND going to do but someone did point out last week that they recently got their AAU certification which the B1G likes. Also in that announcement was that Arizona St got certified as well.

I know there is a strong consensus that ASU won't be joining the B1G but I'm not so sure. ASU, as they shouldn't, makes no comments on possible expansion possibilities. But Iowa ST alum, ex ISU prof, and current ASU President, Michael Crowe, has done a great job of raising ASU as a renowned university. Metro Phoenix is once again the fastest growing metro area in the US. What causes that? job growth. It was just announced last week that ASU is going to start a medical school and get into health care research in a major way. All these things, the B1G likes.

The Pac 12 just doesn't seem to be able to get out of its own way. For 10 years they tabled expansion discussions because they couldn't agree on what to do. That led USC and UCLA to go looking for more money. I'm guessing that's what Colorado and Arizona are thinking. I guess at some point I see a Pac 12/Mountain West merger, watered down but surviving.
 
www.espn.com

How an unfinished TV deal led to an unexpectedly hectic first month for the new Big Ten commissioner

New Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti has been sprinting to finish his league's massive TV deal -- and key athletic directors and coaches aren't happy with the details.
www.espn.com www.espn.com

What is the B1G up to you might ask? I came across this recent article from ESPN. If seems new commissioner, Tony Petito, is busier than all get out. Expansion doesn't seem to be a priority right now. They only thing that might make it one is if the expansion question needs to be answered before a TV deal can be finalized.

As always, stay tuned...........
 
Assuming that the magic number for expansion is 20, then the organizational model will likely be 4 divisions of 5 teams. If so, the natural thing to do is to add 3 West Coast teams for that Division to add to USC and UCLA. Washington, Oregon, and Stanford are the most sensible, but there is an argument for ASU given the Phoenix TV market. Stanford checks too many boxes academically and it would deeply strengthen baseball and Olympic sports. It probably also increases the draw to Notre Dame.

If this comes down, then you give ND a week to accept, and if not, go get Miami. Frankly, I think Miami should be at the top of the list anyway. Top level academics, brings in the Florida market, and would add to the in season vacation opportunities for us Northern fans.
 
Other than Nike money, I'm not sold on what Oregon has to offer. Maybe if ND says no Oregon and ASU. But Miami would be OK.
 
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Maybe Nebraska could get lured back to the Big 12. But with USC and UCLA joining the B1G, UO would seem to be a natural fit. Don't know about their research and academics.
 
SmokeTownHawk said:
Maybe Nebraska could get lured back to the Big 12. But with USC and UCLA joining the B1G, UO would seem to be a natural fit. Don't know about their research and academics.
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Nebraska would unfortunately never leave the Big Ten because of the money. The Big 12 is a JV conference on its last legs even if it adds Colorado and Arizona.
 
The Big 12 is trying to become a supreme basketball conference in the football driven world of college athletics.
 
Fryowa said:
Nebraska would unfortunately never leave the Big Ten because of the money. The Big 12 is a JV conference on its last legs even if it adds Colorado and Arizona.
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Don't you think adding BYU, Cincinnati, Central Florida, Houston and possibly Colorado and Arizona plus maybe UConn and somebody else would give them some juice?
 
Fryowa said:
Nebraska would unfortunately never leave the Big Ten because of the money. The Big 12 is a JV conference on its last legs even if it adds Colorado and Arizona.
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It's the Pac 12 that it sounds like is really on it's last legs. Yeah the Big 12 will be the basement of the conferences for sure going forward. Someone would have to be.
 
Zstatman said:
Don't you think adding BYU, Cincinnati, Central Florida, Houston and possibly Colorado and Arizona plus maybe UConn and somebody else would give them some juice?
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Arizona hasn’t been ranked in the top 25 since 2015.

BYU had 2 good years and the rest has been totally ho hum. Hyper regional fan base that no one gives a shit about.

Cincinnati, CF, and Houston will always be G5 teams with extremely regional fan bases and very limited tv interest.

Colorado is the same thing and the only reason they’re getting any attention at all is because of the Deion Sanders experiment.

You can polish a proverbial turd all you want but at the end of the day you still have a lump of shit in your hands. If your conference isn’t named SEC, B1G, or for a limited time ACC, you’re an also-ran.
 
Hawkfnntn said:
It's the Pac 12 that it sounds like is really on its last legs. Yeah the Big 12 will be the basement of the conferences for sure going forward. Someone would have to be.
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I don’t mean last legs of existence, I mean last legs of legitimacy.
 
The Big 12 will never be at the level of the Big10 or SEC financially or respect wise, no matter who they poach from the Pac 12. But, they will be viable and be the next step down conference for the foreseeable future. I fear that the Pac 12 will be relegated to MAC/WAC status when the dust settles. The ACC may not be far behind if the SEC starts poaching.
 
I think in 5 years there will be 4 conferences. The Big 10 and SEC as the premier leagues with 20 teams each. The Big 12 in the 16-20 team range. They will be the next tier down. Then, whatever is left of the ACC and Pac 12 will merge into something like the Coastal Conference and try to remain viable that way.

There will be 70ish teams playing big boy football.
 
NorthKCHawk said:
The Big 12 will never be at the level of the Big10 or SEC financially or respect wise, no matter who they poach from the Pac 12. But, they will be viable and be the next step down conference for the foreseeable future. I fear that the Pac 12 will be relegated to MAC/WAC status when the dust settles. The ACC may not be far behind if the SEC starts poaching.
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Yeah where's it all going to stop is the question. The thought of just 2 mega conferences or even just 3 I'm not a fan of at all. But it's tough to predict just how wild this is all going to get.
 
NorthKCHawk said:
I think in 5 years there will be 4 conferences. The Big 10 and SEC as the premier leagues with 20 teams each. The Big 12 in the 16-20 team range. They will be the next tier down. Then, whatever is left of the ACC and Pac 12 will merge into something like the Coastal Conference and try to remain viable that way.

There will be 70ish teams playing big boy football.
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You could be right about the first part. That last sentence you wrote would sadden me. But it basically is what it is now too it'll just be that much more pronounced. The basement teams in a lot of the conferences are technically playing big boy football but they really aren't.
 
What moves Arizona and Colorado do or don't make will depend on what the PAC 12 media rights deal looks like. If they get somewhere close to what the Big 12 just negotiated, they might be able to keep all of their present teams and add a member or two (San Diego State). The negotiations have dragged on for a long time; if they fail to get a decent deal, it could be trouble for them.
 
Unless the media rights deal provides for a longish grant of rights, if you are CU and AU, there is always the chance that the Big Ten raids three of your best remaining programs and cripples the conference again. CU is never going to be hotter than it is right now with Prime there. Prime is either going to fall flat or more likely, be dominant in a couple of seasons and then move onto a better job. Colorado is a fickle fan base at best. The stands can be empty again real quick and the kids back up on the slopes smoking weed.

In my view, the Big 12 is much more stable than the Pac 12 right now. No one seems to want what is left in the Big 12, so they can build a brand as the the stable step down from the 2 big boys. The Pac12 is just sitting on top of a dam hoping it does not break.

I hate the slow drip of this all. If we are going to 4 super conferences let's just get there.
 
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