Big 12 Lists 18 Potential Expansion Teams

August 15, 2016
10:30 am

Written by Dan Lyons at CollegeSpun.com

Big 12 expansion continues to be the hottest topic of this college football offseason, and we now know the schools that are vying for an invitation. According to ESPN’s Brett McMurphy, 18 total schools are being considered by the league, and some of the names are quite surprising.

The full list:

Air Force Falcons
Arkansas State Red Wolves
Boise State Broncos
BYU Cougars
Cincinnati Bearcats
Colorado State Rams
Connecticut Huskies
East Carolina Pirates
Houston Cougars
Memphis Tigers
Northern Illinois Huskies
New Mexico Lobos
San Diego State Aztecs
SMU Mustangs
Temple Owls
Tulane Green Wave
UCF Knights
USF Bulls

Many of these schools, like BYU, Cincinnati, Houston, and Memphis, are no surprise. A number of them have made their interest in the Big 12 extremely public and obvious. Air Force, Arkansas State, New Mexico? Those are a bit more out there.

Numerous reports have come out over the last few weeks, about which schools are favored by the most influential members of the league. According to Cincinnati.com’s Jason Williams, Oklahoma likes the Bearcats, while Texas may favor Houston.

Which of these 18 schools make the most sense for the Big 12? Which are totally unrealistic? We’ve ranked all 18 schools by their fit in the expanding power league.

18. New Mexico

The Lobos broke through for a 7-6 bowl season in 2015, their first since 2007. From 2008-2014, the program went 18-67. That’s not going to work.

17. Arkansas State

The Arkansas Razorbacks once competed in the Southwestern Conference with Baylor, TCU, Texas and Texas Tech. Could the Red Wolves slide into the Big 12 in their place? Nope, definitely not.

16. Northern Illinois

The Huskies have been one of the MAC’s best programs, but they may be too far out of the Big 12 footprint. Even after upcoming expansion, Huskie Stadium will only seat 30-35,000 fans.

15. Temple

Temple had a moment in 2015, but there’s a good chance that proves to be the high-water mark for a historically struggling program. There’s not a ton of evidence that the Owls would actually deliver Philadelphia to a league.

14. Air Force

The Falcons have been quite good under Troy Calhoun, at 67-50 since 2007. It may be tough for the service academy to consistently compete with the top of the league, though.

13. Tulane

The Green Wave were in the SEC once upon a time. A lot has changed since 1966. New Orleans is fun, but Tulane football just isn’t good enough.

12. Colorado State

Colorado State would love to fill a slot once vacated by rival Colorado. The football team has had a few strong years, but stadium size could be holding the Rams back.

11. East Carolina

The Pirates have been competitive and have a solid fan base, but they don’t seem to really be on the Big 12’s radar. It may be too big of a jump that was in Conference USA until 2013.

10. SMU

If the Big 12 adds another Texas school, Houston is far more likely than SMU. The Cougars are way ahead as a program, while SMU is undergoing a longer rebuild.

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