Might we see a Big Ten Super Conference?

I must admit when I heard the rumors about Texas joining the Big Ten I thought, I had a better chance of my wife letting me go on a Golf Weekend with Tiger Woods.

But this expansion is not only about TV revenue. It is about billions in federal R&D money that may also be a driving force for Texas expansion.

Does anybody know what the CIC is? It is the Committee on Institutional Cooperation.

Here is their directive.

CIC Strategic Directions

Framework – 2007-2010

No other higher education consortium can match the CIC’s record for sustained,

voluntary, deep levels of collaboration across a group of premier research universities.

Collaboration among the member universities is a powerful tool that allows the institutions

to build and sustain networks of scholars, enhance teaching and learning opportunities,

create efficiencies in administrative processes, accelerate the adoption of best practices

in a wide range of areas, and aggregate resources as common goods. While the record of

CIC leadership and innovation is unparalleled, there is still much more our universities can

accomplish by working together. It is our intent to advance our position as the preeminent

research university consortium in the United States.

Mission

To advance academic excellence through collaboration across our member universities.

Vision

To be the national model for effective, voluntary collaboration among top tier research

universities.

Strategic Priorities for 2007-2010

Advance issues of high impact

Strengthen identity

Maximize organizational effectiveness •

Who is in the CIC?

Headquartered in the Midwest, the Committee on Institutional Cooperation (CIC) is a consortium of the Big Ten universities plus the University of Chicago. For half a century, these 12 world-class research institutions have advanced their academic missions, generated unique opportunities for students and faculty, and served the common good by sharing expertise, leveraging campus resources, and collaborating on innovative programs. Governed and funded by the Provosts of the member universities, CIC mandates are coordinated by a staff from its Champaign, Illinois headquarters.

CIC Member Universities:

• University of Chicago
• University of Illinois
• Indiana University
• University of Iowa
• University of Michigan
• Michigan State University
• University of Minnesota
• Northwestern University
• Ohio State University
• Pennsylvania State University
• Purdue University
• University of Wisconsin-Madison

What have they accomplished?

Together, CIC universities:

Have a 50-year history of

collaboration among peer

research universities

Enroll 300,000 undergraduates

and 76,000 graduate students

Employ 33,000 faculty and

142,000 staff

Produce 14.5% of PhDs

granted in the US each year

(25% in agriculture, 20% in

engineering & computer

science)

Engage in $6 billion in funded

research each year ($3.2 from

federal sources)

Reach out to the 66 million

citizens living in the 8-state

region

3.2 billion dollars from federal sources, while representing only 8 States. Now add Texas, Texas A&M, Missouri, Kansas, and Nebraska.

Now you're looking at 12 States represented, all by leading research institutes. But more importantly you now have gone from 16 Senators to 24 Senators who will support the new CIC.

This expansion is more complex then I ever had thought. But what it does show is that the Big Ten is going to be an attractive destination for whoever decides to join. (Not to mention the easier schedule)

This is why we get comments like this from Nebraska's Tom Osborne.

“We haven’t entered into any formal talks with anybody right now. We’re focusing on the Big 12. But I don’t think that means if somebody wanted to pick up the phone and call us, that we’d hang up on them. You listen. But we don’t have any plans to do anything different at this point."
- Nebraska athletic director Tom Osborne, via Husker Extra (Lincoln Journal Star)

The former Representative of Nebraska knows the ramifications of the University joining the CIC.

But if the billions in R&D money wasn't enough, look at the success of the league in terms of revenue from football alone.

ESPN's Outside The Lines reported this.

Big Ten: $242 million ($22 million per school)

SEC: $205 million ($17.08 million per school)

Big 12: $78 million ($6.5 million per school)

ACC: $67 million ($5.58 million per school)

Pac-10: $58 million ($5.8 million per school)

Big East: $13 million for football/$20 million for basketball ($2.8 million per football school)

Even though The Big Ten Network is filled with Barbosol and Rotel commercials, it is a Cash Cow, giving more then 10 million dollars a year per team, in football alone. If the Network was to add T.V. markets such as Dallas, Houston, St. Louis, and Kansas City, the sky is the limit.

But the football money is just the cherry on top, compared to the available billions in research money for the prospective institutions.

In my opinion, the next couple of months are going to be very interesting. Look for the PAC 10 to make the first move. If Colorado moves out west, it could lead to an exodus from The Big Twelve, which is a poorly run conference to say the least. I still can't believe it will happen, but the more I read about it, the more possible it sounds.

Click here for an excellent article from a Texan.