Boise State among schools to make pitch to Big 12

The Big 12, which almost a month ago announced it would explore the possibility of expansion, appears to be gaining focus regarding the process.

ESPN’s Brett McMurphy reported Friday morning that 17 schools will make a pitch via video conference to Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby regarding possible expansion. McMurphy relays that the general lean at this time is that the conference won’t expand to 14 teams.

The list of interested schools, obviously, is long.

A decision on expansion could come by October, the report said. Last month, Bowlsby and Oklahoma president David Boren said Bowlsby would be in touch with the schools that initially contacted the Big 12. More likely, he wrote, the Power Five conference will add two schools – becoming an actual Big 12 again – or perhaps not expand at all. The conference is now deciding whether to add two (or potentially four) more teams to the mix, or stay put at ten.

Maybe the Big 12 has been watching a little bit too much of “The Bachelor” lately.

Memphis, BYU, Cincinnati and Houston have emerged as top candidates to join the more lucrative Power 5 league, but South Florida, Central Florida, UConn, Colorado State and Boise State also are campaigning. “The idea of them playing (in the Big 12) in 2017 is probably not realistic”.