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How Tennessee football is affected by USC, UCLA to Big Ten

By Caleb Calhoun

The Tennessee Volunteer waves a Power T flag during the Vol Walk ahead of a game against Pittsburgh at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, Sept. 11, 2021.Kns Tennessee Pittsburgh Football
The Tennessee Volunteer waves a Power T flag during the Vol Walk ahead of a game against Pittsburgh at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, Sept. 11, 2021.Kns Tennessee Pittsburgh Football /
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Tennessee Herd Coach Josh Heupel at the 2021 Music City Bowl NCAA college football game at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn. on Thursday, Dec. 30, 2021.Kns Tennessee Purdue
Tennessee Herd Coach Josh Heupel at the 2021 Music City Bowl NCAA college football game at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn. on Thursday, Dec. 30, 2021.Kns Tennessee Purdue /

3. No new recruiting threats from Power Five expansion

When the Big 12 made the move to add the Cincinnati Bearcats last year, Tennessee football was dealt a slight recruiting blow by another team near Knoxville joining a Power Five conference. Things could even get worse, though, if the Memphis Tigers join one, which they dodged a bullet by not having that happen.

Well, that bullet is no longer relevant. There are two scenarios that could play out, and neither involve putting a Group of Five team near the Vols in another premiere league. The first is, as many expect, a Pac-12 Big 12 alliance. The Pac-12 is back to 10 teams, and the Big 12 actually has 12, so you could see a 22-team league.

If that happens, they wouldn’t add any new schools. In fact, they might even subtract schools. You could see the elite teams from each of those leagues forming their own conference, and the lesser conference, even if it expands, wouldn’t really be important anymore.

That leads to the next point. If they don’t form an alliance, the Pac-12 and Big 12 are now in a war. Both will be trying to lure the best teams from the other conference to be able to compete. There’s a chance the losing league adds Group of Five schools like Memphis, but again, it’ll be basically a Group of Five conference by that point.

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