Big 12 can add dynastic basketball school immediately but waiting until 2031 for football

The Big 12 is planning to add UConn to its ranks pending a vote from the conference's 16 members, with Dan Hurley's Huskies being an immediate addition but Jim Mora's, or whoever it'll be by then, football program coming in 2031 after being properly prepared for Power 4 competition.

Hurley has brought UConn back-to-back March Madness Tournament Championships. He was such a highly coveted coaching asset that the Los Angeles Lakers looked to make him the highest-paid pro coach. Hurley stuck with UConn, immediately boosting the Huskies' value in the college sports world.

Evidently, the Big 12, which is aiming to rise the ranks and bring on private equity to compete with the "Power 2" of the SEC and Big Ten, sees that value.

Whether or not the addition of college basketball's best team right now means high-priced programs like FSU and Clemson -- both rumored to be on the way to the Big 12 before the August 15 deadline came and went with both still ACC members indefinitely -- would want to join too.

Big 12 becoming premier conference for basketball

UConn was the crown jewel of conference realignment in hoops, even more so than UNC, and the Big 12 swooped in and brought the Huskies home. That's a massive domino that could attract a basketball-centric school like Duke, which likely would be a Big 12 football team immediately.

With Kansas being a blue-blood, OK State, Kansas State, and Iowa State having long been churning NBA-caliber talent, and Houston joining the conference in 2023, the Big 12 was already becoming the top hoops conference.

UConn is the cherry on top. No conference can compete with this firepower.

Brett Yormark is ambitious, but his vision has resulted in a meteoric rise for his conference. It's hard not to be excited for his next move in conference realignment.