The Big 12 is taking a hard look at adding basketball powers Gonzaga and the University of Connecticut to become the unequivocally top basketball conference in college basketball. The landscape of the Big 12 would basically envelop the entire country with the addition of the 2023 National Champion Huskies on the east and a perineal Top Ten program Gonzaga on the west side of the US. Will this happen in the immediate future? My guess is yes, and the conference will replace Oklahoma and Texas with the two basketball powers, with UConn becoming not only a basketball participant in the league but another football program looking for an upgrade in that sport. With Gonzaga, it will participate in all sports but football and the Zags do not participate in that sport.
Also look for the addition of the Colorado Buffalos, the Utah Utes, the Arizona Wildcats and the Arizona State Sun Devils as full conference members with their football programs adding to a league of 17 programs for that sport. The conference would field 18 schools for basketball. Look for a division in football as of this model.
Big 12 East: West Virginia, UConn, Central Florida, Cincinnati,
Big 12 West: Utah, Arizona, Arizona State, BYU
Big 12 South: Houston, Baylor, TCU, Texas Tech
Big 12: Central: Kansas State, Kansas, Iowa State, Oklahoma State, Colorado
For basketball, the Conference would add Gonzaga to the Big 12 West.
