Re: Official NEW Expansion Thread: Demise of the ACC?
B1G trying to expand the map? You better believe it, that's the entire purpose of expansion for them. Not to get off into politics here on the football board, but demagrophy is indeed destiny, and the traditional geographic footprint of the B1G continues to fall further and further behind the southern and western portions of the US in both population growth and economic development.
How big of a difference does it make in the next three to five years? Not much. But in the long run, over the next 40 or 50 years, the B1G faces an existential choice: Expand the map or fade away. In the face of that choice, the response of that is obvious, and it does not involve doubling down on the upper midwestern roots of B1G tradition. And if that involves outliers like Atlanta, College Park, and others, or taking a flyer on a longshot to capture a fraction of the NYC market, then so be it.
And frankly, I tend to believe that the withering away of the Rust Belt has already had a substantial impact on the B1G. Compare how many national championships the B1G produced from the 1920's to the 1960's, and not just with the success of Michigan and Ohio State, but back when programs like Minnesota, Illinois, and Michigan State were legitimate national powerhouses. And then compare that to how many national championships they have produced since 1967 on. Literally, the state of Alabama has produced as many national titles in the past 36 months as the B1G has in the past 45 years.