Oklahoma State football: Imagining the Cowboys in the Big Ten

There is no shortage of conference realignment scenarios to contemplate for the future of Oklahoma State football and the rest of its athletic program following the rumors of Texas’ and OU’s departure from the Big 12.

It’s no great leap of the imagination to see the Cowboys as part of the Big Ten. If this were to happen, OSU would become the southern-most point for the league, and the addition of the Pokes would probably also include at least one, if not three, additional Big 12 schools. The league currently has 14 members and would certainly look to expand if the SEC grew to 16 schools.

The Big Ten Conference adding Oklahoma State football and the rest of its athletic program could be a win-win for both parties involved.

Iowa State is the closest fit geographically to the Big Ten, nestled between Iowa City (the Hawkeyes) and Lincoln, Neb. (the Cornhuskers). Kansas brings a marque men’s basketball program, and Kansas State would make the numbers even.

For the Cyclones, the Jayhawks, the Wildcats, and the Cowboys, jumping to the Big Ten would likely mean frequent meetings with schools like Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and perhaps Northwestern or Illinois. These nine schools would comprise the western half of the Big Ten’s 18 schools.

From an on-field football standpoint, the Cowboys would be battling with the Badgers and the Hawkeyes for the right to represent the West Division against a team like Ohio State, Michigan, or Penn State in a Big Ten title game. All bets are off for men’s basketball in this imagined 18-team setup, which could rival the ACC in terms of depth and top-line quality as the best basketball conference in the country.

From the Big Ten’s perspective, the commonly discussed “geographic footprint” gets expanded to include the Kansas City, Wichita, Tulsa, and Oklahoma City media markets. More importantly in terms of high school recruits, it gets the league closer to the state of Texas.

This is what a newly imagined Big Ten could look like after adding four old Big 12 (and Big 8 members) in Iowa State, Kansas State, Kansas, and Oklahoma State:

Big Ten Conference

(New Big 12 additions are underlined)

West Division: Oklahoma State, Kansas, Kansas State, Nebraska, Iowa, Iowa State, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois

East Division: Northwestern, Indiana, Purdue, Ohio State, Michigan, Michigan State, Penn State, Rutgers, Maryland

Here’s a map of the idea:

One question would be of who gets placed in the West — Northwestern or Illinois. If OSU fans want another crack at former coach Brad Underwood and the Fighting Illini, you’d argue for Illinois, although Northwestern’s Evanston, Ill. location just outside of Chicago might merit its inclusion in the West instead.

There’s been mention of the academics of some current Big 12 schools that may preclude them from inclusion into the Big Ten. That seems of little importance of these new schools could add athletic accomplishments to a conference that already stretches from the Great Plains to the Great Lakes and the East Coast.