football or college athletics in general. They may only care about the short-term (i.e. get as money money as you can before the bubble pops). If that is the case, then it is less likely they see the benefit of mutual support. If the Big Ten and SEC do end up expanding to 20+ or even 30+ members, then how that beneficial to the long-term health of a collegiate sport or college athletics in general?

At some point a large conference stops feeling like a conference and starts to feel more like a confederation. The Southern Conference had that feel in the early 1900s when it had 20+ members. The ECAC definitely had that feel when it had representation from all 3 NCAA division levels. You might even say the Big East started to exhibit some of the early signs when it expanded to 19 or 20 members before breaking apart. If the Big Ten and SEC do end up going down this road, then I will be curious to see why they think things will be different for them instead of history repeating itself.