Inching closer to the 2024 college football season, the first of media days began with the Big 12 on Tuesday in Las Vegas, Nevada at Allegiant Stadium. Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark left many speculating on the future of the conference.
“We are exploring all options. Two years later, you could say we’re still open for business,” Yormark said, as reported by Daren Stolzfus at WESH.
Yormark didn't go beyond that, but it certainly left things pretty open-ended as to what the future of the Big 12 will look like in the coming years. Just in the past two seasons, the conference has added eight schools to their membership, although losing two in Texas and Oklahoma. Last year, it was Houston, BYU, UCF, and Cincinnati coming into the conference. This year, Colorado, Utah, Arizona, and Arizona State are welcomed in.
Those that follow college football closely know that although we've seen the largest movement in conference realignment coming into this season, it is likely nowhere close to being done. There still could be a lot more movement within the other Power Four conferences that could shake things up again. So, if the Big 12 is indeed open for business, what possible programs would make the most sense to be added? Let's take a look.
Notre Dame
There are only three independent schools left in the FBS: UConn, UMass, and Notre Dame. Last year, the Big 12 ended the 12-year run of BYU's independence, who had left the Mountain West Conference after the 2010 season.
This would be something that Yormark could hang his hat on, getting one of the last remaining big fish left on the market. Notre Dame is trying to hold on to their independence until the last possible second, but it’s getting more and more difficult with the constant conference realignment. Swaying the Fighting Irish into joining the conference would not just create bragging rights but it would also enhance the brand of Big 12 football.
Notre Dame is still one of the biggest brands in college football, although they have not won a national title since 1988. The difficult part that comes with Notre Dame is what comes with pretty much everyone on this list.
In every sport but football, Notre Dame is a conference member with the ACC. That means they are under the same deal as the rest of the members, which states the ACC owns their media rights through 2036. So, while the Big 12 would be most intrigued with the NBC side of their deal with the Irish, figuring out how to get out from under their ACC contract would be much more difficult.
Florida State
Florida State has made it painfully obvious that they are ready to rid themselves of the ACC, right down to the lawsuit. But as of yet, nothing has changed, though with ACC media days coming up, that could change soon. But who knows.
The Seminoles will likely find some sort of loophole to get out of the ACC, so that leaves them open for business as well. There aren’t many teams within the Big 12 currently that have the type of recent success or historical success like Florida State. They would likely come right in and be the biggest branded school and the centerpiece of the new conference.
Clemson
The other disgruntled ACC conference member is Clemson. The Tigers joined in on the lawsuit with Florida State in hopes of removing themselves from the ACC as well. When you’re talking about recent success, no school outside the SEC has more of that over the last decade than Clemson football, which in the grand scheme of things is what this is mostly about. Like Florida State, their football program alone gives the Big 12 an automatic boost in legitimacy and deepens that conference.
North Carolina
Rumor has it that Yormark is trying every unique strategy in hopes of building the conference up financially, including selling the naming rights of the conference. And that’s just one bold strategy that is apparently on the table. But to get the biggest and best deal, Yormark has to prove he has a profitable product, which, again, means lots of brand recognition.
North Carolina fits that bill. In 2023, the Tar Heels generated through television and social media, $582.9 million over the previous two years, which ranked best in the ACC by nearly $150 million over Clemson, per David Bradley.
The partnership with the Jordan brand and North Carolina would also be a major asset to Yormark and the Big 12, and who knows, could lead to even bigger deals across the conference. Add in the fact that they are also fairly competitive in football with the success and fandom for the basketball program, and this is a no-brainer should the ACC all but dissolve.
Follow Us
Subscribe
