The game of college football is simply not what it once was. With the transfer portal, NIL, playoff expansion and conference realignment becoming major factors in the sport, we have entered a new era, whether we like it or not.
Michigan State and the rest of the Big Ten will be joined by four new teams this fall — USC, Washington, Oregon and UCLA. The moves will redefine the Big Ten and Pac-12 conferences as we know it, and that begs the question: How much further could this all go?
Billy Bender of the Sporting News recently wrote an article outlining what a potential "super league model" could look like. Bender went in depth as to what qualifications a program would need to have to be included in this league.
The following five factors were considered: revenue, winning percentage over the last 10 years, national championships in the BCS era (starting in 1998), NFL Draft picks and academic progress rate.
Michigan State made the 40-team list, coming in at No. 27 with a score of 46.5.
UCLA, Nebraska, Illinois, Purdue and Indiana did not make the list. Michigan State was the second-to-last Big Ten program to make the list, with Northwestern coming in at No. 32. Ohio State was the highest-ranked Big Ten team at No. 2, Michigan was next at No. 4, then Wisconsin at No. 8, Washington tied for No. 10, Penn State at No. 13, Oregon at No. 16, Iowa at No. 20, USC at No. 22, Minnesota at No. 26 and then Michigan State and Northwestern.
The Spartans ranked 12th in revenue, were tied for 27th in academic progress rate and were ranked 35th in NFL Draft picks.
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AIDAN CHAMPION
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