Pac-12 Expansion Rejected: Will Big Ten Target Texas and Notre Dame?

Texas, Texas Tech, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State won't be joining the Pac-12 after all.

The Salt Lake Tribune reported Tuesday night that the Pac-12 has, at least for the moment,  abandoned its expansion plans.

So how will all of this affect the Big Ten?

Just a week ago we mentioned Texas and Notre Dame were near a deal to join the Big Ten—and there have yet to be any recent news or developments to crush the rumor.

Sure, Notre Dame and the ACC have reportedly been talking. Teams and conferences alike, will play just about any card to influence a decision.  A new one is the rust belt's minimal population loss which has been going on since the steel industry dried up in Pittsburgh, and the auto industry crumbled in Detroit.

Just take a walk though Madison, Columbus, Chicago and even the Detroit suburbs—the Midwest is as vibrant as ever.

Please, I don't see Notre Dame moving to North Carolina any time soon.

Should the college football world seriously head toward 16-member super conferences, the Big Ten might have trouble filling the last few spots.

Pittsburgh and Syracuse, two Eastern schools the Big Ten has considered, are moving to the ACC. Missouri, always considered the odds-on favorite to join the Big Ten, is going to the SEC, which is also adding Texas A&M.

West Virginia, who was just shunned by the SEC, has never been on the Big Ten's radar.

Before the Pac-12's decision, many thought the Big East and the Big-12 would be forced to merge.

Now, there are other schools out there for the taking: Cincinnati, Louisville and Iowa State—and the Oklahoma and Kansas schools might be available as well.

Even if they could, how excited would the Big Ten be to land any of these programs?

So what if the Big Ten lands Texas and Notre Dame, then stays at 14? Or would the conference suffer if it sticks with 12? 

Maybe, when all of this is said and done, the Pac-12 is the one who got it right.