Big 12 Football: 3 best expansion conference expansion candidates after CU
Conference realignment has remained at the forefront of Big 12 football in the last few years. The latest headline made by the Big 12 came on July 26 when it was announced that the board of governors approved the move for the Colorado Buffaloes to join the conference. On July 27, multiple reports confirmed that Colorado is looking to join the Big 12 after its board of governors unanimously voted to make the move to leave the PAC-12.
Assuming this move goes through, adding Colorado will bring the Big 12 to 13 member schools. The Big 12 currently sits at 14 member schools heading into the 2023-24 athletic calendar year. But the Texas Longhorns and Oklahoma Sooners will leave the Big 12 for the SEC in 2024, bringing the conference back down to a dozen member schools.
The Big 12 clearly isn’t going to stop expanding with 13 schools. The Big 12 could continue expanding west, especially with the PAC-12 in turmoil.
Big 12 football expansion candidates after Colorado
After voting Colorado through this week, here’s a look at three of the best conference expansion candidates for the Big 12.
BREAKING: @ByPatForde reports Colorado is nearing a move to the Big 12, with other schools such as Arizona, Arizona State, Utah and Connecticut potentially in line to follow https://t.co/cLUzdnBpyv
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) July 26, 2023
Utah
The next logical school to add in this round of conference realignment for the Big 12 after voting Colorado through is the Utah Utes. Not only is Utah the closest school to move west for the Big 12 in its trek to poach from the PAC-12, but it also has strong geographic ties to Colorado and the BYU Cougars.
Adding Utah would hypothetically give the Big 12 its biggest rivalry in the conference (BYU-Utah) since Red River will be in the SEC starting next year. Utah-Colorado is also a decent rivalry in the major sports.
With the USC Trojans and UCLA Bruins set to leave the PAC-12 for the Big Ten in 2024, Utah is one of the strongest remaining football programs in that conference. The only two programs with a better combination of brand recognition and recent sustained success in football in the PAC-12 are the Oregon Ducks and Washington Huskies.
Utah’s football program is in a good spot for the foreseeable future as long as longtime head coach Kyle Whittingham does his thing with spectacular early evaluations, player development, and maintaining a strong culture in the locker room. Whittingham has led the Utes to the PAC-12 Championships two seasons in a row. Whittingham and the Utes are also regulars in the PAC-12 Championship Game in the last half-decade.
It feels like the most logical package deal for the Big 12 to poach another school from the PAC-12 to join with Colorado is Utah.