Big 12 Basketball: Top 5 candidates to join league in potential realignment

4. SMU

Nearly three decades ago, SMU was still a member of the Southwest Conference before it dissolved in 1996. In that league, they were conference mates with the four Texas schools now in the Big 12. A reunion would make great sense geographically, plus their athletics programs do have a great history, even when you account for the football program’s Death Penalty.

Recent history has not been kind to SMU’s football program, while the basketball program has been up and down this past decade. Football coach Sonny Dykes just led the Mustangs to their first 10-win season in 35 years, while legendary basketball coach Larry Brown built some recent success for the basketball program. Obviously, the Big 12 offers a legitimate step up in both sports from the AAC, but it’s a jump and adjustment this program can make.

The biggest reason SMU would work in the Big 12 is the geography and the former rivalries with the Texas schools. They could certainly become a contender in football if Dykes continues building this program. SMU would have an immediate rival in TCU and would expand the conference’s ever-growing footprint in Texas. This is the kind of move that would probably require a 12th member added from some other source, perhaps the AAC as well.