If superconferences are on the way, where should Big Ten look for teams
I agree with the hypothesis of this blog, which posits the college football world is headed toward four mega-conferences of 16 teams each, and asks folks to weigh in on what teams the Big Ten should pursue.
The SEC is at 14 now, the Big Ten is at 12, the Big 12 at ten (how’s that for making sense), and the Pac 12 is actually at 12. So, we’re not far from this. It’s really a question of who goes where and which half dozen or so programs which could fit in will get squeezed out.
I’m a diehard for the old days, so I still want to see Pitt, Syracuse, and West Virginia in Penn State’s conference. They’re a good fit, reignite old, regional rivalries, and would allow for logical, geographical divisions. Add these four to Ohio State, Indiana, Purdue, and–ta da–Notre Dame, and you’ll have your eastern division.
Michigan, Michigan State, Wisconsin, Northwestern, Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska–all current conference members, would go in the western division. Get Missouri from the SEC (why are they there, anyway?), and you have another solid division, with an almost guaranteed top-tier conference title game each year.
The four super-conference winners could then play in the national championship tournament. If the NCAA finally sees the error of its ways and goes to eight teams for the tourney, you could then add a rule that at least two of the four at-large teams must come from the non-tourney conferences. All four at-larges could, but at least two would have to, so the polls or some basketball-like selection committee could make the picks.
It all makes sense. So it’ll never happen.
