There were rumors about a Big Ten / Pac-12 merger...

[Buckeye_Democrat]

3. Yes, and that's why I suspect (or hope) it will be...

... more like a merger of the two conferences, with them continuing to be mostly separated geographically by conference divisions -- within which most of their competitions will be played.

If it's instead too weird, and the familiarity of tradition is lost, such an expansion might lower TV viewership overall. The Big Ten wants more revenue from an expanded "TV market" (with LA currently ranked #2 in the country in that regard), but they should be careful to not damage the CONTENT of that TV entertainment too much.

And it just might work out that the student-athletes from other sports won't have to endure so much ridiculous traveling for the conference competitions, if it's done right.

Grants for scientific research is another consideration, and it's supposedly why the Big Ten prefers AAU members to become a part of their academic alliance.

Big Ten Academic Alliance:
https://btaa.org/about