Big Ten emerges as new contender for Stanford, Cal and SMU amidst ongoing negotiations between Big 12 and ACC: Reports
The Big Ten Conference has been one of the premier conferences in college football and looks to remain so. They're adding the USC Trojans and UCLA Bruins in 2024 and now looking to add a few more.
College football insider C.W. Lambert posted that the Big Ten is now in discussions to add the Big-12's Stanford, Cal and SMU.
"This just in... negotiations between the ACC and Big 12 became even more complicated over the weekend when the Big Ten entered the talks."
That will be interesting, as the additions of the Stanford Cardinal, California Golden Bears and SMU Mustangs would benefit the conference. That would help continue to establish a west coast hub for the league.
It also would hurt other Power Five conferences, as the Big 12 and Atlantic Coast Conference are both in the mix for the three teams.
Big Ten, Big 12, ACC or other: Where do these teams wind up?
These three teams have been some of the biggest stories of conference realignment, so if the B1G lands them, it will be interesting.
Originally, the belief was that the ACC would land the three teams after they had a change in their voting. Then, the Big 12 swooped in and entered the conversation, and now the Big Ten has done the same thing.
It would cause a major shift in the powers of college football. Stanford, Cal and SMU were prepared to join the ACC with little to no conference money. and now they potentially have their pick. The only way they can mess it up is if they try to join the Pac-12, as they're in a dream situation.
The B1G will likely be the landing point of the three teams. It seems like the ACC is not going to do so because if they were, it would have happened already. With the Big 12, they have expanded into the west coast already and have that hub. Stanford, SMU and Cal do not change their fate. However, it helps the Big Ten establish west coast residency with UCLA and USC not being alone out west.
That could create a hub for the conference, not only for college football and basketball but for all collegiate sports. These three teams are not going to ask for much money if they were ready to join the ACC. That is truly the best outcome for both sides.