Five universities Texas Tech fans would love to kick out of the Big 12
Cincinnati brings nothing of value to the Big 12
Cincinnati is a strange fit in the Big 12. Actually, it would be more accurate to suggest that Cincinnati is no fit at all in the conference. Therefore, it wouldn't make any Red Raider sad to see them tossed out into the cold.
It always felt like the Bearcats were added to throw West Virginia a bone. With Cincy in the league, WVU has a regional "rival" to play and the Mountaineers don't feel as isolated from the rest of the league. But that was not a good enough reason to bring Cincinnati on board. After all, why would West Virginia's wants or needs carry any weight in a conference they have only been a part of for a little over a decade?
Spare us the selling point of Cincinnati being in a larger TV market, as well. It's only the No. 34 market in the country so let's not act like it is New York, Chicago, or Los Angeles.
What's more, Cincinnati isn't the biggest draw in its own market. Ohio State dwarfs Cincinnati in fan interest across Ohio and even in Cincinnati itself. What's more, shools such as Nortre Dame and Louisville also likely draw greater ratings in Cincinnati than the Bearcats do.
Cincinnati is only a member of the Big 12 because of fortunate timing. In 2021, just as the Big 12 was scrambling following the shocking announcement in July of that year that Texas and OU were headed to the SEC, the Bearcats ran through the lowly AAC and were given an invitation to the College Football Playoff.
That led to an artificial inflation of their national relevance thus making them attractive enough to earn a Big 12 invite. Now, though, the coach who engineered that run, Luke Fickell is at Wisconsin and Cincy is already one of the worst major-conference football programs in the country. It is a school that brings nothing to the table in terms of interest yet it gets a full share of the Big 12 pie. Tech fans would rather send Cincy packing and take a larger share of the league's revenue instead.