Pac-10 Planning Major Football Expansion?

Right now there’s a lot of talk going on behind closed doors that just might be changing college football as we know it. Just as the Big 12 was concluding their meetings, the Pac-10 is gearing up to begin theirs, but they are reportedly adding a few wrinkles and some huge propositions for the Big 12. Read more.

It’s hard to picture the Pac-10 with the Texas Longhorns in it, but it’s a real possibility. In fact, according to the article from Orangebloods.com, the Pac-10 is gearing up to extend invitations to the Big 12 to create a super conference. And it would be a super –conference indeed both in the teams invited and the money it would generate. According to the report from Orangebloods, the teams the Pac-10 are interested in include: Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, and Colorado. The Pac-10 would then be split into two divisions, with the aforementioned teams joining Arizona and Arizona State. With the new arrangement, the Pac-10 championship would be epic and the money it could generate is astronomical.

Money is the reason behind most things, and this invitation is no exception. By expanding, the Pac-10 could then create its own television network, much like the Big 10, which according to the report could generate as much as $20 million for each school. That’s a lot of change, enough to make any school reconsider their current state. With the expansion the Pac-10 would position itself nicely to dominate the major television networks across the United States.

It’s quite the proposition and it could really change the face of college football, but you really have to wonder how realistic it is that the Pac-10 will be successful in luring these teams. I mean, it sounds great, but I’d be extremely shocked if all six of these teams jumped ship. Of course, there is a lot of money at stake and the allure of having their own television network to broadcast games is not only a huge moneymaker, but an extremely huge recruiting tool for those schools. On the flipside, the Big12 is already a huge conference for producing NFL talent as it is. I’m not sure that teams like Texas and Oklahoma are going to jump at the chance to play the likes of UCLA and Arizona State.

Of course, the other conferences will likely not just stand idly by and let the Pac-10 essentially take over, Texas A&M is already considering a move to the SEC. To check out all of the buzz on this topic, click here.