Is a 20-Team Big Ten Closer Than We Think?

Newly hired Maryland athletic director Jim Smith raised eyebrows this week with a bold projection about the future of the Big Ten.

In an interview with Inside Maryland Sports Radio, Smith was asked how many teams he believes will be in the Big Ten by the end of the decade. Without hesitation, Smith responded, “Twenty.” The comment quickly made the rounds in national realignment conversations, but it didn’t take long for the speculation to be tempered by more seasoned voices.

On3’s Brett McMurphy, one of the most plugged-in reporters in college football, made it clear that while further expansion is certainly on the table, no decisions have been made. “With all of my experience and high-level sources, I can say definitively with 100 percent certainty that the Big Ten doesn’t know who it will add,” McMurphy said.

Smith, who took over as athletic director in May, brings a nontraditional background and a unique vision to Maryland’s athletic department. While his response may have been more speculative than strategic, it still adds fuel to the ongoing realignment narrative as conferences continue to position themselves for long-term media rights stability. Maryland, of course, joined the Big Ten in 2014 after leaving the ACC, and the school’s leadership has remained supportive of the move from both financial and competitive standpoints. Smith’s comments reflect that buy-in and the belief that Maryland can grow into one of the league’s top athletic brands.

The other major takeaway from McMurphy’s interview came when the topic of Notre Dame surfaced.

According to McMurphy, the Fighting Irish have no plans to join a conference anytime soon and remain committed to football independence. That piece of information takes one of the biggest potential dominoes off the board for now, which only adds to the uncertainty surrounding who the Big Ten might target next.

As the landscape of college football continues to evolve, the Big Ten’s next move remains a question with no clear answer. For now, any talk of a 20-team super league is just that—talk.