Why is Colorodo State getting so much attention and have so many fans online arguing for them? In my mind they aren't even in the top 10 candidates yet people seem to think they have a shot. If they are being completely considered seriously then we have zero shot at all, because it shows a complete disconnect where the B12 officials are mentally from where they need to be to see our value.
I think Kansas and Kansas State especially would support Colorado State. We have lots of fans in the western part of the state that miss going to our games and would like a nice little road trip to see us play again. I like the idea of New Mexico as well even though they don't get a lot of mention.
Having said that I don't think either will make it into the Big 12 even though most schools currently in the league would support those adds for one reason or another. What I'm hoping happens is that the Big 12 just adds two schools and those schools be Cincinnati and Uconn.
To me these two adds would make a lot of sense. For one it would give WVU back some rivalry games from their Big East days. It would also help the conference imo with unity. If you know anything about the Big 12 you know that divisional alignment is likely to be a sticking point. The Texas and Oklahoma schools all want to be in the same division. If you add schools like Houston or BYU it gets really dicey and there will likely create friction between conference members.
OSU will be pissed if they get bumped to the North division because a school like BYU or Houston is added. Likewise, so would OU or any of the Texas schools. If Cincinnati and Uconn is added this is their best chance for harmony within the conference. It just makes too much sense imo for the North division to be 3 old Big East schools along with 3 old Big 8 schools. There is a better chance for actual rivalry in that division because there is history. If we added a Houston and BYU and place them in the north division it's just not appealing for a school like KU. We lose all games with OU and UT and replace them with schools we have no history with, add no help for recruiting and add too much travel. Yes I realize that Uconn is very far away, but if Kansas is forced to travel it would be much better for us to go East than West. It would be better for our brand to be playing in the East for exposure than in Utah or Houston where we already have exposure. One more bonus is that it helps schools that have been struggling get better in football.
Also, I think it is very likely that KU, KSU, ISU etc haven't forgotten about the last go around of realignment where the Big East was willing to take us in are all in your corner along with WVU. It wouldn't surprise me to see the Texas/Oklahoma school allowing you guys to get in as a compromise to allowing them to stay in the old South division. Doing this allows every member in the conference something positive in expansion. Adding other schools doesn't necessarily become a win win situation for everyone. Sorry for the long post...