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The college sports landscape is changing once again, as news broke Friday that the UConn Huskies are joining the Big-12 by 2026 at the latest. This move will include all sports played by the Huskies, except for football, according to Yahoo Sports' Ross Dellenger on X, formerly Twitter.
UConn and the Big 12 are in "serious negotiations" about the Huskies joining as an expansion member in all sports except for football by 2026 at the latest, @RossDellenger reports. pic.twitter.com/IVA2l6AhEb
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) August 23, 2024
UConn's move is the latest in a flurry of realignment decisions, as the Huskies look to get a share of an ever-growing pot of money from the biggest conferences in college sports. As NIL and other changes have forced the landscape to change, UConn and its programs will now change along with it.
UConn men's basketball program looks to conquer new conference
Fresh off another national championship win (the school's sixth overall, and second straight title in men's basketball), the timing feels right for the Huskies to take the next step. The Big 12 has grown quite a bit over the past two years, adding eight schools in addition to losing former heavyweights Texas and Oklahoma to the SEC. Yet even with those losses, the argument can definitely be made that the conference is firmly the third strongest in college athletics.
It's also pretty wide open, especially when it comes to basketball. Yes, perennial powers such as Kansas and Arizona are in the conference, but the Huskies have won the last two national championships. They are led by a coach in Dan Hurley who was courted to take over the Los Angeles Lakers earlier this year, but he decided to return to Storrs instead. Things are definitely on the upswing for the school.
Furthermore, imagine how much bigger of a coup it would be for the Big 12 leadership, including Commissioner Brett Yormark, if UConn wins a third straight national title in men's basketball. It would cement the program as one of the best in the country, if they aren't considered that already.
UConn football to stay independent for now
With the rest of the Huskies' sports programs joining the conference by 2026, the football team would still remain independent until 2031. As long as it meets certain investment thresholds for head coach Jim Mora Jr.'s squad, then the Huskies would join a very strong contingent of programs in the Big 12.
Future conference foes could include Kansas State, Utah, Colorado, UCF and Iowa State. A lot can change in seven years, especially since college sports fans have seen just how fast the landscape has changed in just the past two years. Texas and Oklahoma deciding to leave their long-time conference and join the SEC kicked off this last spurt of moves. UConn deciding the leave the Big East for the Big 12 might kick off yet another wave.
For now though, the football program will face another tough season as an independent. They slipped to 3-9 in Mora Jr.'s second season, so they are hoping to return to .500 and bowl eligibility in year three. If they want to make a mark in their future conference, then hopefully they will accomplish those goals and more in 2024.
