Big 12 talks expansion, source says, as commish touts 'plan' - ESPN

Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark said Friday that the conference has «a plan» when it comes to expansion, and while league leaders are satisfied with their current membership, they continue to explore «all options and considerations at this point in time.»

A source who participated in the meetings this week told ESPN there were no major votes on membership, but there were discussions about scenarios.

Yormark, who addressed reporters via videoconference after the Big 12 spring meetings in West Virginia, was asked specifically about the possibility of Gonzaga or another school joining the conference as a basketball-only member.

«We do see the upside in basketball moving forward for all the right reasons,» Yormark said without mentioning any specific schools. «We think it's undervalued, and if there's a chance for us to double down as the No. 1 basketball conference in America, but football is the driver and we all know that.

»As we think about the future and ways to create value," he added, «there is always that option to decouple basketball from football to see if there's further value we can create for the conference.»

A source told ESPN that UConn and Gonzaga were «certainly talked about» in the meetings, which were held at the posh Greenbrier Resort, but the presidents and chancellors are in a holding pattern until the Pac-12 announces its television deal.

The Big 12 is adding four members — BYU, Houston, Cincinnati and UCF — in time for the college football season.

Texas Tech president Lawrence Schovanec, who joined the videoconference with Yormark, said the Big 12's current presidents and chancellors have certain priorities they are weighing as expansion discussions continue.

«Our institutions share the same high