RE: If the SEC did expand again and did so from the Big 12 who should we take and why?
If the core of the ACC is against accepting the top programs of the Big 12 for fear of losing control of their conference, and since football drives the economic bus for the conferences then perhaps ESPN should consider doing the following:
SEC:
North: Duke, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia
East: Alabama, Auburn, Florida Georgia, Mississippi State, Vanderbilt
West: Arkansas, Louisiana State, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M
ACC:
North: Boston College, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, West Virginia, Virginia Tech
East: Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Miami, N.C. State, Wake Forest
West: Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Texas, Texas Tech
or
SEC:
North: Duke, Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia
East: Auburn, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Vanderbilt
South: Alabama, Baylor, Louisiana State, Mississippi, Mississippi State
West: Arkansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, Missouri, Texas A&M
ACC:
North: Boston College, Connecticut, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Syracuse
East: Iowa State, Louisville, N.C. State, Virginia Tech, West Virginia
South: Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Miami, Wake Forest
West: Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, T.C.U., Texas Tech
Either way football becomes King in the new ACC and their market saturation and dominance can finally be established. And the SEC improves their basketball profile where Duke, North Carolina, and Virginia are still kings with Kentucky with great content games with Missouri and Florida, and the baseball programs of those schools step into an elite baseball conference all while the SEC improves markets and academics.
The resulting two conferences would have natural rivalries across the board. A win win for the conferences and ESPN.
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