Anybody have any info or insight on how the vote is likely to be presented to the University presidents? Is there a vote on each individual school? Or is there going to be a packaged proposal for multiple schools? The last time around it was only Penn St, so that situation is not very helpful this time around.
In the end it is probably going to be decided before the official vote so it won't make much difference, but I was curious.
In essence, this is the process. Hasn't changed significantly since Michigan State was considered and offered membership in the years right after World War 2.
It starts with a periodic review, usually about once every five years, when the Big Ten staff in Chicago (NOT the Commissioner's office out in the suburbs) is asked to think about long-term problems facing the conference, opportunities it should consider, changes and improvements that might be made, etc. As part of this process, the administrations, admissions staffs, development offices, athletic depts, etc of all the BT member shcools are invited to forward their opinions, proposals, recommendations, etc.
As it did last October, the staff on the basis of this review & brainstorming can conclude that further examination of some of the concerns and prospects raised should be considered further to the possible decision to place them on the agenda for the next annual meeting of the BT presidents. One of those matters that could be placed on the agenda is expansion of the conference.
Such a recommendation is expected this summer. Normally, expansion would be a two-step process. First, the presidents will deliberate to determine whether or not they think expansion is timely, feasible, and most of all, advantageous to the BT. If that decision is affirmative, they will turn then to consideration of one or more potential candidates for membership---and that would initiate an extensive process of reviews, visits, conferences, discussions, recommendations, etc etc...probably taking up two years or more. When the staff makes its recommendation to consider expansion it may or may not include its own findings and reports on specific schools (single or plural), but the key factor to keep in mind here is that the presidents are not bound to consider staff or member school recommendations (including those of the athletic directors, coaches, etc) and if the past is prologue, they won't give them much weight.
