With the Big 12 seemingly like a more stable conference after the Pac-12 decided not to expand they are now going to try to add a few more teams to their league. As of this moment they are at nine teams and possibly eight depending if Missouri does indeed go to the SEC.
Oklahoma president Dan Boren feels that Big 12 commissioner Dan Bebee should be relieved of his duties and according to John E. Hoover of the Tulsa World if Bebbe is removed from being the commissioner then Oklahoma would re-commit itself to the Big 12 (we have heard that before) and then look for candidates to add to the Big 12:
The source also said if Beebe was removed (it is believed Boren has enough votes to make that happen), Boren would agree to a 10-team Big 12 that included BYU, TCU or Air Force, or a 12-team league that included all three.
Air Force has been linked to the Big 12 during this realignment process also Air Force has been linked to the Big East. As odd as it sounds, leagues could be in a bidding war for Air Force. The Falcons do not have much of a pull in Colorado for television ratings so I have to believe that Air Force would be the last option for the Big 12 regardless of how many teams they have.
BYU has also been seen as an eventually landing in the Big 12 once they have their fun being a football independent, but now that time frame may be moved to Saturday. There are multiple reports saying that once Oklahoma renews their allegiance to the Big 12 then BYU could be the leagues newest full-fledged member as early as Saturday.
Now for TCU, as mentioned prior they need to decide if heading to the Big East is the best choice for them. Now that the Big 12 has interest in TCU it might be a wise choice to stick to a league that has less travel plus it would put them back with old Southwest Conference rivals Texas, Texas Tech and Baylor. However, since expansion is more about what a schools market brings to the table above all else, including football. TCU brings very little as the Dallas/Fort Worth area is more of a Texas and Oklahoma town than a TCU town.
Even with the limited market share that TCU brings to the Big 12, if the league gets back to 12 teams a conference title game would bring in more money even if TCU's addition does not with a new television deal.
However, there are some that do not TCU in the league, and it seems to be coming from Texas. If Texas truly does not want to go the independent route and save the Big 12 I find that hard to believe they would not want to add a quality team in TCU. TCU poses no real threat in recruiting Texas and the Dallas/Fort Worth area is owned by Texas and Oklahoma, so I don't see why Texas or whoever makes those decisions would not want TCU in the Big 12. Also, there is a voting process and there is no way one team can block another from entering.
If I were TCU the Big 12 might be the better option since they seem more stable than the Big East, at this time.
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