Nebraska coach Bo Pelini, a former Ohio State player, can celebrate a bit of a homecoming with the conference switch.
Nebraska will join the Big Ten, the Chicago Tribune is reporting. The Nebraska board of regents has added a discussion about the school's conference alignment to the agenda for a meeting on Friday.
Bo PeliniThe move would bring the Big Ten to 12 schools, as possibilities continue to swirl about other potential members from Notre Dame to Missouri to Rutgers to several other schools.
Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany said over the weekend that Big Ten expansion could happen in stages, so this could be it, for now. Or this could be a first step in an expansion that swells to 14 or 16 teams.
Orangebloods.com, which covers Texas athletics and has been at the front on expansion stories, is reporting that the move by Nebraska will likely spell the end of the Big 12, as Texas leads a pack of five other schools to join the Pac-10.
Nebraska would bring a great football tradition and large fanbase to the Big Ten, which is seeking to add money through increased television revenue, among several other goals. The Cornhuskers are coached by former Ohio State safety Bo Pelini and would quickly provide an intriguing rivalry for the Buckeyes as well as Iowa and other schools on the west edge of the Big Ten.
Even if the Big Ten expansion stops at 12 for now, this move would allow the conference to start a football championship game, which could be another moneymaker for the conference.
Now it's time to see whether Notre Dame takes this opportunity to join the Big Ten or continues to hold on to its independence.