A Radical Idea for The Big 12, Washington State and Oregon State

Despite their respective success and standing in the Top 25, I can’t imagine this being an enjoyable time for Oregon State and/or Washington State faithful. And why would it be?

Each spent decades in what came to be known as the Pac-12 Conference. Each boast meaningful contributions to college football sports: Oregon State as winner of the historic 1943 Rose Bowl and home to basketball coaching icon Ralph Miller; Washington State as winner in the first Rose Bowl once it became an annual tradition and with routinely competitive teams.

Yet, despite their contributions, both face uncertain futures. But shhhhh. Don’t complain if a TV personality makes jokes at the expense of your instability, lest you incur the wrath of thin-skinned Professional Tank Top Wearer Pat McAfee!

Conference realignment and the generally toxic atmosphere of college football discourse emanating from national media — perhaps most accurately reflected in how bad Gameday has become — really are souring what could and should be memorable seasons for Oregon State and Washington State.

But there’s a simple solution — one that could benefit the Beavers and the Cougars, as well as fortifying the Big 12 Conference.

Initial sentiment seemed to suggest that Big 12 brass was content with its expansion over the summer, picking up Arizona, Arizona State and Utah after Colorado went on a proverbial bank run that left George Kliavkoff looking more like George Bailey.

You’re thinking of this place all wrong! The TV money’s not here. It’s Apple’s house, right next to Fox’s and Scripps’ house!

The thing about conference realignment everyone should realize after the last 13 years — maybe longer — is common belief rarely seems to reflect back-room machinations.

With the SEC expanding to 16 members and the Big Ten inflating to 18, swelling from Atlantic-to-Pacific with its additions of USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington, the Big 12 should think bigger: Why not 20?

I realize I have advocated in this space for smaller conference affiliations, not bigger. But I’m also not blind to the way things are headed so might as well embrace it.

So here’s the idea:

The Big 12 adds Oregon State and Washington State, continuing the league’s westward expansion. That pushes the conference’s membership to 18:

• Arizona

• Arizona State

• Baylor

• BYU

• Cincinnati

• Colorado

• Houston

• Iowa State

• Kansas

• Kansas State

• Oklahoma State

• Oregon State

• TCU

• Texas Tech

• UCF

• Utah

• Washington State

• West Virginia

Of course, that leaves the league in two more. There are programs beyond the autonomy five that could be worth an invite: Boise State’s thrived on the gridiron for more than two decades and been consistently strong on the hardwood for about a decade.

Fresno State basketball has mostly existed in obscurity, save the hype…

…and the mayhem of the Jerry Tarkanian era.

Fresno State football often delivers, often.

Colorado State boasts an impressive football history with Sonny Lubick’s outstanding teams of the late ‘90s and early ‘00s, and Rams basketball is on the upswing. CSU also has a new football stadium, a reflection of the university’s commitment to the program.

Likewise, San Diego State’s Snapdragon Stadium is a terrific new venue with tons of upside potential for a program with a high ceiling — a ceiling reflected in Aztecs basketball advancing to the 2023 Final Four.

But if the conference doesn’t want to be labeled as a Group of Five conference with an autonomy-conference veneer, perhaps it can look to Cal and Stanford.

Yes, Cal and Stanford agreed to join the Atlantic Coast Conference. But let’s just marinate on how asinine that sentence truly is for a moment. If the Golden Bears and Cardinal must join a league with members in far-flung locales like Florida, they should at least have some company West of the Rio Grande.

So with any combination of the two above-listed programs, the Big 12 reaches 20 team. First order of business with its new membership: Drop 12. Rebrand.

Look, the Big Ten remaining “the Big Ten” when it added Penn State was a mistake. Continuing to use the title with Nebraska making 12, Maryland and Rutgers joining for 13 and 14, and the Westerns giving it 18 is downright embarrassing.

But the Big Ten has a historic brand it’s committed to in maintaining the title. The Big 12 is a Frankenstein’s Monster from the late ‘90s with little ties to its Big 8 legacy.

Drop the numerical signifier, and do away with “Big” while you’re at it. It will always feel like an off-brand attempt to trick consumers into thinking it’s the Big Ten.

As for a specific name, I don’t have an idea for that — but I do know how to handle the unwieldy nature of hosting so many teams.

Twenty members requires a 10/10 split. My suggestion is a division with:

• Baylor

• Cincinnati

• Houston

• Iowa State

• Kansas

• Kansas State

• Oklahoma State

• TCU

• UCF

• West Virginia

Call this the Heartland Division or something comparable that invokes a feel for the region it represents…well, and Orlando. That’s in the heart of Florida, at least.

Now, your other division is:

• Arizona

• Arizona State

• BYU

• Cal/Colorado State/Boise State/Fresno State/San Diego State

• Colorado

• Oregon State

• Stanford/Colorado State/Boise State/Fresno State/San Diego State

• Texas Tech

• Utah

• Washington State

Given these are all Western programs, a name that similarly invokes the region it represents is ideal. My suggestion: The Pacific-10.

Unique branding for each division emphasizes the individuality of each side. I’m workshopping an idea:

Then, to further play up the individuality, each division plays each other — a nine-game round-robin — during the regular season. This new conference then has a Championship Game completely unique in college football, akin to the World Series in the days before interleague play.