CANADIAN Big Ten Expansion

[ukrainehawk]

My first choices for conference expansion would be Notre Dame and one Canadian University. While certain competition modifications would have to be accommodated, three Canadian Universities might make excellent Big Ten partners. All are in Ontario, so reside easily within our footprint. All are ranked in the Top Ten academic universities in the nation. All have similarly-sized student bodies. All have won at least one modern National Championship. All have averaged a Top Ten National Football Ranking over the last three years.

The chart below indicates the Name of the Uni, the Location, the year the football program was established, the National Academic Rank, the average National Football Rank over the last three years, the number of students, and the number of modern National Football Championships.

I had the pleasure of spending the 2015 football season in Canada, and came away very impressed at the exponential growth and improvement. Will be interested to read your opinions.

McMaster University Hamilton, Ontario (1901) 4th 8th 31,265 1 Modern Natty

Ottawa University Ottawa, Ontario (1881) 8th 7th 42,5872 2 Modern Natties

Western University London, Ontario (1929) 10th 7th 26,386 7 Modern Natties 2021: Undefeated

UToronto, (1877) with 61,690 students, has fallen on hard times in football, winning only three games in the last three Seasons - though they are the #1 ranked Academic University in the land and have won two modern National Championships. Maybe someday.

 

[grayhair81]

My first choices for conference expansion would be Notre Dame and one Canadian University. While certain competition modifications would have to be accommodated, three Canadian Universities might make excellent Big Ten partners. All are in Ontario, so reside easily within our footprint. All are ranked in the Top Ten academic universities in the nation. All have similarly-sized student bodies. All have won at least one modern National Championship. All have averaged a Top Ten National Football Ranking over the last three years.

The chart below indicates the Name of the Uni, the Location, the year the football program was established, the National Academic Rank, the average National Football Rank over the last three years, the number of students, and the number of modern National Football Championships.

I had the pleasure of spending the 2015 football season in Canada, and came away very impressed at the exponential growth and improvement. Will be interested to read your opinions.

McMaster University Hamilton, Ontario (1901) 4th 8th 31,265 1 Modern Natty

Ottawa University Ottawa, Ontario (1881) 8th 7th 42,5872 2 Modern Natties

Western University London, Ontario (1929) 10th 7th 26,386 7 Modern Natties 2021: Undefeated

UToronto, (1877) with 61,690 students, has fallen on hard times in football, winning only three games in the last three Seasons - though they are the #1 ranked Academic University in the land and have won two modern National Championships. Maybe someday.

Any of the three mentioned would bring more to the B1G than Moo U.

 

[wilson reborn]

Would love to see a Canadian school in the Big Ten, if they could be competitive in football and bball, and bring the academic standard. Not aware of a Canadian school that could pull all those things off.

 

[fezzador]

Carleton College? They usually kick SEC teams’ asses in college basketball exhibitions. Crushed both Ken****y and Alabama in recent years.

 

[Herky T Hawk]

Assuming the NCAA is still a thing, they’d have to change their rules to allow a Canadian school. But I made a case several years ago that Toronto was the right university to go to for expansion. Big student body, big research money, highly ranked academics, big market with a lot of TV sets, and it is closer to most conference schools than Nebraska is. They’d basically have the entire country rooting for them in college sports too.

They could use the SkyDome(whatever it is called now) for football games as it seats over 50k until they make a decision to build their own stadium.

 

[vgshwk]

the bad part is you would have to hear oh Canada.

 

[hawkeyebob62]

Would love to see a Canadian school in the Big Ten, if they could be competitive in football and bball, and bring the academic standard. Not aware of a Canadian school that could pull all those things off.

A Canadian B1G team is all about bringing B1G dominance in hockey. Adding a curling team would help most B1G schools, I imagine!

 

[hawkeyebob62]

the bad part is you would have to hear oh Canada.

We could all kneel, though, so there's that.

 

[wilson reborn]

A Canadian B1G team is all about bringing B1G dominance in hockey. Adding a curling team would help most B1G schools, I imagine!

And let’s not forget about Lacrosse!

 

[ukrainehawk]

Assuming the NCAA is still a thing, they’d have to change their rules to allow a Canadian school. But I made a case several years ago that Toronto was the right university to go to for expansion. Big student body, big research money, highly ranked academics, big market with a lot of TV sets, and it is closer to most conference schools than Nebraska is. They’d basically have the entire country rooting for them in college sports too.

They could use the SkyDome(whatever it is called now) for football games as it seats over 50k until they make a decision to build their own stadium.

My first thought too- but 0 and 8 last year... BTW the Argos have a lovely new stadium-

 

[loper]

University of Eh!

 

[leiserom]

Simon Fraser in Western Canada is actually in NCAA in D2. But the rest of the schools in Canadian Interuniversity Sport are non scholarship. The reason Simon Fraser is in NCAA is because of geography

 

[BigDelHawk]

Toronto is an AAU member.

 

[ukrainehawk]

Toronto is an AAU member.

Yes, AAU member Toronto has always been at the top of my wish list, too- but although they have won two National Vanier Cup championships - 28 and 56 years ago - and four Grey Cups more than a century ago (Sounds a little like Nebraska) - they have really crashed in football, and have not qualified for the playoffs since 2000, while enduring eight winless seasons over those last 21 years. And though they enroll more than 61,000 students, the current Varsity Blues Field has only 5,000 seats. The Toronto Argonauts BMO stadium across town, on the other hand, has 25,000 - and is being expanded to 46K for the 2026 Soccer World Cup, so it's possible. One last thing. Their official school cheer, performed on YouTube just last year, includes the words, "Ripperty, Rapperty, Ripperty, Rapperty Ree." We might have to bring out the Raccoon coats and Yellow chrysanthemums for Good Old UT.

 

[J-Prof]

U of Toronto and McGill (Montreal) are AAU members. I think any Canadian university that joined a conference like the BigTen would see a huge uptick in their athletic fortunes.
This thread points to a big challenge - there are minimum standards for stadium size to be FBS.

 

[mstp1992]

U of Toronto and McGill (Montreal) are AAU members. I think any Canadian university that joined a conference like the BigTen would see a huge uptick in their athletic fortunes.
This thread points to a big challenge - there are minimum standards for stadium size to be FBS.

McGill and U of Toronto would great 😀.

 

[Frosty7130]

There's not a Canadian team that would be competitive in FCS, let alone the Big Ten.

 

[mstp1992]

There's not a Canadian team that would be competitive in FCS, let alone the Big Ten.

Obviously, but they do pass the academic muster like U of Chicago, MIT, …

 

[Auger]

You put 1 Canadian University into the B1G and they will get all the best Canadian Football, and Basketball prospects. Even Toronto would become good at football again. Good enough to probably finish last in the B1G East but still the best Canadian Football team nonetheless.

 

[JerseyCityHawki]

There's not a Canadian team that would be competitive in FCS, let alone the Big Ten.

Well said thank you

 

[hawkfeever]

Why not go to one in Europe then. Let’s just have a team in Dublin and London. or one in the Isle of Tonga.

 

[squeezebox]

Obviously, but they do pass the academic muster like U of Chicago, MIT, …

I'm not sure they do. The Canadian research funding system is quite a bit smaller and more diverse than the American system.

 

[bowlhawk]

My first choices for conference expansion would be Notre Dame and one Canadian University. While certain competition modifications would have to be accommodated, three Canadian Universities might make excellent Big Ten partners. All are in Ontario, so reside easily within our footprint. All are ranked in the Top Ten academic universities in the nation. All have similarly-sized student bodies. All have won at least one modern National Championship. All have averaged a Top Ten National Football Ranking over the last three years.

The chart below indicates the Name of the Uni, the Location, the year the football program was established, the National Academic Rank, the average National Football Rank over the last three years, the number of students, and the number of modern National Football Championships.

I had the pleasure of spending the 2015 football season in Canada, and came away very impressed at the exponential growth and improvement. Will be interested to read your opinions.

McMaster University Hamilton, Ontario (1901) 4th 8th 31,265 1 Modern Natty

Ottawa University Ottawa, Ontario (1881) 8th 7th 42,5872 2 Modern Natties

Western University London, Ontario (1929) 10th 7th 26,386 7 Modern Natties 2021: Undefeated

UToronto, (1877) with 61,690 students, has fallen on hard times in football, winning only three games in the last three Seasons - though they are the #1 ranked Academic University in the land and have won two modern National Championships. Maybe someday.

Does anyone know if Canada carries the B1G network? I would assume a huge uptick if one of the universities were added. Canada has a population of over 37 million, nearly the size of California. Would guess this would be potentially huge long term bet on the B1G.

 

[ichawk24]

Terrible idea.

 

[NevadaHawk]

McGill and U of Toronto would great 😀.

James T. Kirk, retired from the star ship Enterprise attended McGill University. William Shatner did go to school there.






















actually true. William

 

[IamHawkeye]

Carleton College? They usually kick SEC teams’ asses in college basketball exhibitions. Crushed both Ken****y and Alabama in recent years.

this a joke or are there 2 Carleton colleges.

 

[ukrainehawk]

James T. Kirk, retired from the star ship Enterprise attended McGill University. William Shatner did go to school there.






















actually true. William

I didn't include McGill of Montreal the first time, because I was trying to stay in the Midwestern footprint of Ontario. But Montreal is really just next door. McGill has much to recommend it, as an AAU member - it played in one of the very first games of American football on North American soil in 1874 against Harvard, is nestled in a very beautiful, arbor-like Big Ten setting, has a student body of 40,000, a stadium capacity of 23,400, and has won a modern national championship [1987], been to the finals three other times (plus seven natties prior to the Vanier Cup). Like Toronto, it has fallen on hard football times - their last winning season was in 2002, with 5 winless seasons in the interim. But Auger and BowlHawk both made some strong points above, that would apply equally to McGill and Toronto. I think it bears further research and consideration.