As the conference realignment carousel spins ever faster, Memphis fans have once again been left feeling frustrated. The Tigers are currently in their third dalliance with the Big XII and hoping that the third time is the charm. On Thursday, in the wake of the Big XII’s most recent addition of Colorado, Brett McMurphy of the Action Network posted a Tweet that gave hope to Memphis fans that it might finally be their turn.
When it comes to conference realignment, the latest trend is to add teams based on TV market rather than traditional college football norms like attendance, geographic fit, and on-field performance. So how does Memphis stack up against these other Group of 5 teams being linked to a possible Big XII move? Well, as it turns out, they stack up quite well.
(Note: all numbers used in this article cover the entirety of the College Football Playoff Era which runs from 2014 to present)
| Team | Viewers per Game | Number of national TV games |
| Memphis | 1,150,406 | 64 games |
| San Diego State | 749,132 | 38 games |
| UConn | 611,097 | 31 games |
| UNLV | 349,688 | 16 games |
Of the four teams specifically mentioned by McMurphy as potential Group of 5 teams that the Big XII would look to add, Memphis is far and away the one that the most people tune in to see. It certainly helps that during the CFP Era the Tigers have posted a 78-38 record with three division titles, two conference titles, a NY6 appearance, and nine straight bowl appearances (though the Hawaii Bowl in 2021 was canceled after the Tigers were selected). The Tigers average viewership is 38% higher than San Diego State’s, 47% higher than UConn’s and a whopping 70% higher than UNLV’s.
In fact, Memphis is one of the best remaining Group of 5 teams in all of college football in terms of average TV viewership:
| Team | Viewers per Game | Number of national TV games |
| Army | 3,480,333 | 27 games |
| Navy | 2,402,694 | 49 games |
| Memphis | 1,150,406 | 64 games |
| UAB | 1,038,300 | 10 games |
| Boise State | 969,718 | 78 games |
Memphis may not be tops on this table, but the #3 most watched team in the whole of the Group of 5 should be a big selling point for the school. It does bear mentioning that the likelihood of a service academy joining the Power 5 is practically nonexistent. It’s also worth noting that all five of these schools happen to have higher average TV viewership than the other three Group of 5 teams mentioned by McMurphy.
And while Memphis may be lower than the five teams that were just added by the Big XII, the gap isn’t nearly as wide as some might think:
| Team | Viewers per Game | Number of national TV games |
| Cincinnati | 1,583,125 | 64 games |
| Colorado | 1,508,800 | 45 games |
| BYU | 1,223,071 | 84 games |
| UCF | 1,196,066 | 76 games |
| Houston | 1,181,090 | 67 games |
| Memphis | 1,150,406 | 64 games |
The numbers for UCF and Houston are nearly identical to those of Memphis. In fact, there are just three percentage points separating the Knights and the Tigers. Also interesting is the fact that despite having been in the Power 5 for the whole of the CFP Era, Colorado’s average viewership is only 23% higher than Memphis.
One final tidbit is that, despite being in the Group of 5 Memphis has better average TV ratings that two teams that have been in the Power 5 during the whole CFP Era, one of whom is actually in the Big XII:
| Team | Viewers per Game | Number of national TV games |
| Memphis | 1,150,406 | 64 games |
| Rutgers | 1,084,881 | 42 games |
| Kansas | 766,937 | 63 games |
Of the four potential Group of 5 additions to the Big XII that Brett McMurphy mentioned, only Memphis can say that have better viewership than a team already in the Big XII.
There is plenty for Memphis to use for making a case to be in the Big XII. The upcoming renovations to Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium are certainly a big deal. The geographic fit, while not nearly as important as other aspects, certainly doesn’t hurt. There’s also the Big XII tie-in with the AutoZone Liberty Bowl game every year. The on-field performance for the Tigers may have dropped off the last three years but the prior six years showed that they are more than capable of putting a great product on the field that can compete at a high level. But in the day and age of chasing media markets and TV deals, the biggest drum the University of Memphis should be banging is their TV viewership numbers being among the best in the Group of 5.