The
University of Texas also approached and entered into discussions with the Big Ten in the 1990s. UT was keen to upgrade its academic profile and depart the SWC and desperate to seek affiliation with the Pac 10.
"Texas wanted desperately the academic patina that the Pac 10 yielded," recalls UT President Robert Berdahl,
[12] who went on to serve as chancellor at Pac-10 member California-Berkeley. "To be associated with UCLA, Stanford and Cal in academics was very desirable."
Still, expansion in the Pac-10 depended on unanimous approval of the member schools. And Stanford, which had long battled UT in athletics as well as academics
[13], objected. For UT, the way west never materialized.
UT next approached the Big Ten. Having added Penn State in 1990, the Big Ten was now made of universities that, in the view of UT officials, matched UT's profile ? large state schools with strong academic reputations. Berdahl liked the fact that all 11 conference members belonged to the American Association of Universities.
Yet, distance remained a disadvantage. Iowa, the closest Big Ten school to Austin, was 856 miles away.
But after adding Penn State in 1990, Big Ten officials had put a four-year moratorium on expansion. Although admitting interest, Big Ten bosses ultimately rejected UT's overtures.
Around 1993, it was also explored by the league to add
Kansas, Missouri, and Rutgers, or other potential schools to create a 14-team league with two divisions.
[14] These talks died when the
Big 8 Conference merged with former
Southwest Conference members to create the
Big 12.
Other possible universities that have gained favor for any possible expansion for the 12th spot in the conference include:
