Big 12 reportedly ‘not interested’ in adding Memphis despite $250 million offer
Memphis has failed to buy its way into the Big 12, according to multiple reports. (Image Credit: University of Memphis)
The Big 12 reportedly dealt Memphis yet another swift rejection to join its ranks Monday. And this may be the most emphatic of them all.
The league is “not interested” in adding Memphis despite the school offering up to $250 million for an invite, according to On3’s Brett McMurphy.
This comes nearly four years after the Big 12 passed on Memphis to instead acquire former American comrades Houston, UCF and Cincinnati in September 2021. Memphis also made a failed push for a Big 12 invitation in 2016.
Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger reports that Big 12 presidents met Monday to discuss Memphis’ offer, which ultimately doesn’t have the “necessary support” to garner an invite. Front Office Sports’ Amanda Christovich adds that Memphis’ proposal “didn’t reach a vote.”
The school’s proposal featured hundreds of millions of dollars in sponsorship commitments from corporate partners. Memphis also offered to not take any conference revenue for at least five years.
University president Bill Hardgrave has spent at least 14 months visiting with presidents and top athletic administrators on Big 12 campuses in an effort to join the league, according to Dellenger, whose reporting described Memphis’ offer as a “no-risk concept.”
Memphis wouldn’t have taken any revenue throughout the final five years of the Big 12’s new media rights deal with ESPN and FOX. It also would added more than $150 million in sponsorships over those five years, and even subjected itself to expulsion in 2030-31 if the league deemed it invaluable.
“The University of Memphis is aware of the recent conversations regarding our potential inclusion in the Big 12. While those discussions did not ultimately move in our favor, our University and Memphis Athletics are stronger than ever, and we look forward to continuing to strengthen our position nationally,” a Memphis spokesperson told Bluff City Media.
Memphis—thanks to a reported “massive gift” from FedEx—is expected to distribute the full $20.5 million cap in revenue sharing to its athletes next year. Pac-12 officials have expressed significant interest in Memphis, and even gave the school an invite last September (which Memphis rejected). Memphis officials have also had discussions with Big East leaders to add its basketball program to the league.
The school’s lofty proposal to the Big 12, even in failure, signifies its great desire to remain relevant in conference realignment, and ultimately advance its athletic department beyond the ever-barren American Conference.
“I’m worried about trying to get us into a Power Four conference,” Memphis athletic director Ed Scott told reporters on June 20. “That is our first goal unequivocally, and has always been our goal.”