Former Nebraska athletic director wanted the Cornhuskers back in the Big 12
Nebraska back in the Big 12? The possibility apparently was explored by a former Cornhuskers athletic director.
Bill Moos, who oversaw Nebraska athletics from 2017-2021, said in his memoir, “Crab Creek Chronicles,” that he had breakfast with then-Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby near the league office in Dallas to discuss a Nebraska return to the conference it left after 2011 to join the Big Ten.
The meeting time wasn’t specific, but it likely happened in the late 2010s, when the Big 12 featured 10 teams including Texas and Oklahoma.
Why consider a return? Moos said fans wanted shorter trips to games.
“Following their team after it joined the Big Ten meant fans had to travel long distances, which proved to be both time-consuming and costly,” Moos wrote. “This was conveyed to me on several occasions and not just by farmers, ranchers and small-town merchants but also by top-notch professionals, affluent business owners, and even a couple of members of the university’s board of regents.”
Bowlsby was receptive to the idea, Moos wrote.
“Bob, who many believed saved the Big 12, was extremely positive about the possibility of Nebraska returning to the conference. He even thought a full television share could be possible upon joining. When he said having another school coming with us would be ideal, I mentioned Colorado, which had left for the Pac-12 ten years earlier, might be someone to consider.
“’It would be like getting the old band back together,’ I quipped.”
Colorado did return to the Big 12. The Buffaloes joined Nebraska in leaving the league in 2010. Colorado rejoined the Big 12 in 2024.
Nebraska remained in the more lucrative Big Ten. According to USA Today, schools distributed $63 million to each of its 12 longstanding schools, including the Cornhuskers, in 2024. The Big 12 distributed $38-42 million per school that year.
Moos wrote that Ted Carter, who was Nebraska’s president from 2020-2023, also was optimistic about the idea.
“When I described the conversation I had with Bob Bowlsby, Ted gave me the indication that he was more than interested, and in fact, used the word ‘motivated’ regarding taking a serious look at it. The conversation ended with him telling me to continue my research, but to keep everything strictly between the two of us, which, of course, I did.”
