re: Big 12 to push with expansion?

I agree, it was in response to the poster who stated that Snyder mentioned some wanted back in. It ain't happening.

quote:

---

@GaryParrishCBS
I’ll say this about @Big12Conference expansion: FWIW, the wealthy people connected to Memphis are VERY confident.

---

Fedex is about to sponsor everything Big 12 related

BYU and Cincinatti are locks. The first two after that it is all about who UT and OU agree on.

Without knowing better I would think the two additions who make the most sense are Cincinnati and Memphis. 11.6 million people in Ohio and 6.5 million in Tennessee bring more to the table than almost 3 million in utah (byu) or 5.4 million in colorado (csu).

Both bring in passable football programs and good basketball programs. They don't equal what the conference lost in programs like Colorado, Nebraska, Missouri, and A&M - but at this point in the conference expansion game the options are more limited.

quote:

---

@dennisdoddcbs
To top it off ran into influential P5 coach (not B12) in hotel after expansion announcement: “memphis,” he said, “book it."

---

I think that it depends on if they opt for a 2 team or 4 team expansion. I personally think they should go 4.

1. BYU - Most tradition of any non P5 school out there. Large student body and fan base.
2. Cincinnati - In a football crazy city and state. Large student body. Stadium expansion recently completed
3. Colorado State - Currently building a brand new on campus stadium. Gets the BIG 12 back into the Denver market.

The 4th addition is where it gets tricky. There are few schools that have a shot, but all of the remainders also have huge risks.

Houston
Memphis
Boise St
New Mexico

BYU and Cincinnati are clearly the two best choices IMO. The other schools have little to no football history except for Houston who would be a terrible choice for the obvious reasons.

quote:

---

3. Colorado State - Currently building a brand new on campus stadium. Gets the BIG 12 back into the Denver market.

---

Colorado State makes more sense than Cincinnati strictly because of the opportunity to tap back into the Denver market. Denver is booming town (hovering in the top 20 in terms of population. Cincinnati is stagnant and overrun with Ohio State and Notre Dame fans. It's a commuter school.

Could Colorado State eventually "take over" the state in terms of fan support and interest. I would assume the majority of people that attend the university are from the state unlike CU (large California, Texas, and Florida student body). CU's administration has been deemed apathetic in terms of athletics (which is a shame considering they were once a proud, historic program not too long ago).

Think of it as Virginia Tech and the University of Virginia. That state is dominated by Hokie fans and interest. CSU along with BYU's "national" fanbase make the most sense imo.

quote:

---

ULoL (since their invitation is supposedly a done deal)

---

That took surprisingly long

quote:

---

2. Cincinnati - In a football crazy city and state. Large student body. Stadium expansion recently completed

---

Yes, but you know Ohio State has more fans, a lot more fans in Cincinnati than Cincinnati. In Cleveland, Dayton, Toledo, Youngstown, Akron no one cares about Bearcat Football. I would gather that there's more collective interest in Ohio U, Miami, Toledo, Kent, Bowling Green, and Akron than in Bearcat football and it's still dwarfed by Ohio State.

I would say that Notre Dame has as many fans in all of Ohio as Cincinnati.

If you added up the fandom of all other big ten teams in Ohio it outnumbers the Bearcats.

Adding Cincinnati is like adding Miami of Ohio.

I would gather in some years Moeller High has more interest in Cincinnati than Bearcat football.