Sunday, January 31, 2010

Big Ten to Add Rutgers, Pitt, and Syracuse

In an effort to reduce mounting budget deficits, the Big Ten is planning to expand its membership by adding Rutgers, Pitt, also Syracuse.
All three of those schools currently belong to the Big East Conference,however a switch to the Big Ten would increase their academic prestige; on the flip side, by adding Rutgers and Syracuse, the Big Ten would finally have inroads into the nations largest television market, New York. This is a major setback for the remaining members of the Big East which is already under fire by the College Football Association for barely fielding competitive football teams. Big Ten expansion could have a ripple effect on the other conferences like the Pac Ten and Big 12. In order to keep pace, those conferences will be force to increase their membership as well. For example, the Pac Ten would have to consider swiping the University of Colorado from the Big 12. Unlike the Southeastern Conference, the Big 10, Big 12, and the Pac 10 belong to the prestiges University Association requiring schools to have viable research graduate programs to enhance their academic reputations.