Copying and pasting.
Here's stuff I posted a while ago that I had to dig up. It goes to show we've been on the B1G's radar for a while (over 2 years).
http://espn.go.com/blog/bigten/post/_/id/33548/tranghese-big-ten-could-be-big-winner
"Tranghese also discussed whether the Big Ten would pursue Rutgers and Connecticut.
'I don't think so. ... Before the Big Ten took Nebraska, knowing Jim Delany as well as I do ... Jim did a lot of work. He did a lot of analysis, and I believe that Rutgers was looked at, and Pittsburgh was looked at, and Syracuse was looked at, and Connecticut was looked at. And a lot of schools were looked at. And I think the Big Ten came to the conclusion that the addition of any one of those schools wasn't going to deliver them the New York market. ... So that's why I think that ultimately led them to Nebraska. Now they sit there and they ask themselves the same question: Can they get the New York market with Rutgers or Connecticut? You can do it with Notre Dame.'"
(Adding UConn and Rutgers [and UMD and UVA] can force ND to go to the B1G if these conferences ever go to 18.)
http://www.cleveland.com/livingston/index.ssf/2010/01/if_the_big_ten_does_expand_it.html
"CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Big Ten, with 11 members, is seriously considering expanding, either to 12 or to an even Bigger 14.
Expansion by one member is a plan driven by television markets. It should focus on Connecticut, and I have reason to believe that is exactly what is happening at Big Ten headquarters in Chicago."
http://www.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/6270202/21083956
"Rating the Big Ten expansion candidates", written by Chris Dodd. We're #2 behind Notre Dame.
As far as our football program goes, we do have a top 50 football program when it comes to viewership. I can dig out some Texas grad's numbers if desired.