The Memphis Tigers are looking for a lifeline to a power conference. As college sports have reorganized in conference realignment over the last few years, Memphis has remained stuck in the American Athletic Conference, which has quickly become a mid-major league. The Tigers are desperate to get out, and they’re willing to offer hundreds of millions to do it.
Memphis’ desperate Big 12 membership proposal still got shot down
Memphis tried to buy its way into the Big 12. It isn’t going so well.
Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images
Ricky O'Donnell has covered basketball at all levels for more than a decade at SB Nation. He’s currently the Associate Director of Programming.
The Big 12 received a proposal from Memphis that offered $200 million from university partners, according to reporting by Ross Dellenger of Yahoo! Sports. Memphis’ proposal also says the school won’t take any revenue from the league for the first five years, and also includes an option where the conference can expel them in after 2031 if it decides the Tigers aren’t “adding value.”
Memphis is putting huge money on the table to get into the Big 12, but the conference is still keeping them locked out. At least 12 of the 16 school presidents in the conference need to vote yes to let Memphis into the league, and right now, the Tigers don’t have the votes.
Memphis tried to get into the Big 12 when the conference added Cincinnati, UCF, Houston and BYU a couple years ago. It rejected them then, and it seems like it’s going to reject them again now.
The Big 12 also rejected UConn and Gonzaga in recent years. Memphis’ current offer would put significantly more money on the table for the Big 12, and it still doesn’t seem like enough.
Dellenger reports that Memphis is framing this as a “no risk” proposal. Long-time university sponsors FedEx and Lowe’s would reportedly put up most of the money.
Memphis is showing its desperation with this offer, and it still won’t be good enough. The Tigers have built a really good football program with back-to-back 10-win seasons entering 2025. The men’s basketball team, coached by Penny Hardaway, has made the NCAA tournament in three of the last four years, but has yet to advance past the first weekend.
Memphis fans love their Tigers. The university wants a seat at the big kids table, but so far, the Big 12 is still keeping them away.
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