File: BYU Being ‘Critically’ Talked about as Big 12 Expansion Candidate
Assign Brown/Getty Photos
The Big 12 is reportedly making an attempt into the likelihood of adding BYU to the conference after shedding both Oklahoma and Texas to the SEC beginning in 2025.
In line with Max Olson and Andy Staples of The Athletic, the Big 12 is “critically discussing” the likelihood of BYU as a replacement for one of its great departures, though the talks are “very early within the job.”
BYU has been an just in football since 2011, but it become previously a part of the Mountain West Conference, Western Athletic Conference, Skyline Conference, Mountain States Athletic Conference and Rocky Mountain Conference.
Olson and Staples popular that the Big 12 is important at work to rating likely contemporary participants since the conference is determined to tumble down to simplest eight groups when Oklahoma and Texas leave.
As a part of those efforts, Texas Tech athletic director Kirby Hocutt, Baylor athletic director Mack Rhoades, Iowa Teach president Wendy Wintersteen and Kansas chancellor Douglas Girod possess formed a spread subgroup.
Several components might possibly presumably well fabricate BYU an supreme slot within the Big 12, including the truth that it has experienced a immense deal of success in football.
The Cougars won a nationwide championship wait on in 1984, and they possess won 10 or more games in a season six instances since 2006. That integrated an 11-1 mark final season, concluding with a accept over Central Florida within the Boca Raton Bowl.
BYU has additionally conducted in a bowl sport and done with a .500 or better anecdote in 15 of the previous 16 seasons.
It become additionally popular by Olson and Staples that BYU has confirmed to be a map on television, which might possibly presumably well fabricate it a precious addition.
From 2015-19, BYU averaged 1.64 million viewers per sport in 16 games broadcast on ABC, Fox or ESPN. That wasn’t far within the wait on of the Big 12 average of 1.786 million for the duration of that identical span.
Additionally, BYU averaged 682,000 viewers in 20 games on ESPN2, ESPNU, Fox Sports 1 or Fox Sports 2, whereas Big 12 games averaged simplest 482,000 viewers on the identical channels.
It’s that you just presumably also can imagine hobby might possibly presumably well be mutual since BYU needs to be in a Power 5 conference as smartly, per Olson and Staples, though it is doubtlessly no longer any legit moves will be made within the shut to future.
On Thursday, the Pac-12 offered it become no longer pursuing expansion “at present,” which become a monumental accept for the Big 12.
Which manner the Pac-12 might possibly presumably well no longer attempt to poach any of the Big 12’s groups, plus the Pac-12 conceivably would possess been the Big 12’s predominant rival when it involves recruiting BYU.