Giger: On crazy, historic day in college sports, USC, UCLA join Big Ten

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Wow! That was fast. Like, warp speed fast. It took about five hours total between news breaking of USC and UCLA being interested in joining the Big Ten, to that actually happening later Thursday.

Now, college sports have changed drastically in the blink of an eye.

The Big Ten will now span all the way from Rutgers in the East, to Los Angeles in the West, with a bunch of other cities in between. This was the next step in the movement toward superconferences -- the first being Texas and Oklahoma moving to the SEC -- and now everyone will be wondering exactly what will happen to the rest of college football.

What we know for now is that USC and UCLA will join the Big Ten in 2024.

Why?

C'mon. We all know the reason.

Money.

The other major reason is, well, also about money. But we'll call it self preservation -- meaning, powerhouse programs that may have been worried about their own financial futures just made a move to ensure they will remain elite when it comes to the finances of college football.

The Big Ten is currently negotiating its TV rights package, which was said to be in the neighborhood of $1 billion a year. Spread out over 14 teams, that would have come to $71 million apiece.

You've got to figure that adding the LA market will substantially increase the Big Ten's bargaining power, bringing that total figure to way above $1 billion. Spread out over 16 teams, you'd have to think the TV deal could push all the league schools closer to the $80 million or even $90 million range, if not immediately, then eventually.

Pac-12 schools were operating under a TV deal that was paying each program about $41 million a year.

So yeah, this will be a gigantic financial windfall that will offer USC and UCLA a lot more security.

From ESPN's story Thursday:

A source told ESPN that the exploration of finances and what it would take to make the move has been going on for weeks. While finances are playing a big role in the move, competitiveness, brand and the overall landscape of the future of the sport have played a bigger role.

"USC and UCLA have to make the decisions to position them best for the long term," a source familiar with the move told ESPN. "The future is so uncertain we need to be operating from a position of strength."

OK, so this greatly helps USC and UCLA. But what does all this offer the Big Ten?

More money and security, first and foremost. Big Ten schools will never have to worry about having a front-row seat at the college football table, which was already true before this and is especially so now.

Also, every league school probably would love to have the opportunity to play USC, especially, and UCLA to a slightly lesser degree. The Trojans have long been one of the most prominent programs and draws in the country.

We'll have to wait and see how the logistics of all this play out. The Big Ten is expected to do away with divisions starting next year, so when you add in the two LA schools, it will be very interesting to see how scheduling is done.

Penn State is in a good position here, as always, because of its own massive name brand. The Nittany Lions are always a major TV draw, so you'd have to figure the Big Ten would try and make sure Penn State would get its share of marquee matchups with USC and UCLA in the coming years.

The bottom line is this is a seismic shift in college sports history, something that will shake up everything we know about conferences and loyalties and financial considerations.

It also figures to be something that could cripple the Pac-12, and perhaps college football in the West, which, let's face it, has had major issues for a while now.

Here are statements from various Penn State officials about the move:

Football coach James Franklin: "This is another big step in the ever-changing college football landscape and we embrace the change. USC and UCLA are two institutions with a long-standing tradition of academic and athletic success. They will only strengthen our already very strong Big Ten Conference."

AD Patrick Kraft: "Penn State University is a proud member of the Big Ten Conference, and we welcome the addition of two world-class universities to our family. USC and UCLA are both synonymous with academic and athletics success and will be tremendous additions to our conference."

Penn State President Neeli Bendapudi: "This is a thrilling evening for the Big Ten Conference. We welcome USC and UCLA with open arms as like-minded institutions that are as committed to high GPAs and graduation rates as they are to on-field excellence. It was an easy decision that will build upon our conference’s rich heritage."

Basketball coach Micah Shrewsberry: "The Big Ten has long been home to universities that compete at the highest level in both athletics and academics. UCLA and USC are not only two institutions whose values align with Big Ten, but whose basketball traditions will be great additions to bolster the Big Ten as the nation’s premiere basketball conference."

Women's basketball coach Carolyn Kieger: "The Big Ten is a terrific conference in both academics and athletics. The two new institutions, UCLA and USC, fit that mold exactly. These two schools bring historical success and tradition in women’s basketball. I’m very excited for the future of our league."

Women's soccer coach Erica Dambach: "On behalf of the Penn State Women’s Soccer staff and our student-athletes, we are excited to welcome UCLA and USC to the Big Ten Conference. Both institutions have strong reputations in academics and athletics, and we could not be more thrilled for them to join our league. From a women’s soccer standpoint, these are two of the top programs nationally and will only help to solidify the Big Ten as THE premier conference in the country."

ORIGINAL STORY

Some bombshell college football news broke this afternoon with a report that USC and UCLA are considering leaving the Pac-12 and joining the Big Ten, possibly as early as 2024.

This. Would. Be. Massive! A total game changer for all of college football, with regards to conference alignment, TV rights money and playoff implications.

The initial report came from veteran college football reporter Jon Wilner:

Other national college football reporters have confirmed the Wilner report, including Pete Thamel from Sports Illustrated and Bruce Feldman from FOX.

UPDATE: Thamel is now reporting that all of this is essentially a done deal, which adds to the wow factor of how quickly things might start moving now that the initial report is out.

If we are indeed to take this news as a given, it will send shockwaves throughout college football.

When will the Big Ten announce this?

What will happen to the Pac-12?

How would the scheduling component be affected, such as how often would Penn State play USC and UCLA?

Thamel offered up the following additional information shortly after the release of the news broke..

While none of this movement is guaranteed to happen, of course, the fact that negotiations apparently have been going on for a while would indicate that there is indeed a good possibility the moves could take place.

And if they do?

The Big Ten already is expected to move away from the division format, now allowed by new rules, and that could come as early as next year. The ACC announced this week that it is moving away from divisions.

With no divisions or worries about balance in the league, the Big Ten could easily add USC and UCLA into the 14-team league and form a 16-team superconference that spans from coast to coast.

The value of adding the Los Angeles TV market would be enormous for the Big Ten with regards to its TV rights deal. The league already is in negotiations for a new deal that would be worth more than $1 billion per season, according to reports, and that number could be substantially higher if and when USC and UCLA join the league.

We hope to have more details on this major news later in the evening.