Overview

• On3’s Brett McMurphy says North Carolina and Virginia are the most attractive options for future expansion and will be highly contested by the SEC and Big Ten.
• No formal agreements have been announced, and talk of supposed handshake deals remains unverified despite circulating claims.
• The interest follows recent growth by both power leagues, with the Big Ten now at 18 teams after adding USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington, and the SEC at 16 after adding Texas and Oklahoma.
• McMurphy has previously reported Big Ten expansion plans around 2030, with Maryland AD James E. Smith envisioning a path to a 20-team conference.
• UNC’s profile has risen with Bill Belichick as head coach, while a now-deleted social post by his partner drew a DMCA warning from an attorney, raising potential access and credentialing concerns.