U.C.L.A. and Southern California on Thursday appeared ready to jump from the Pac-12 Conference to the Big Ten in the coming years, a move that would trigger another seismic remaking of the competitive and economic landscapes of college sports.
The maneuvering came as the Big Ten, whose membership currently includes 14 universities in a predominantly Midwestern footprint running from Nebraska to New Jersey, closed in on a new television contract that was expected to be among the richest in college sports history. The Big Ten expected to receive formal applications from the California universities as soon as Thursday, with a vote of university presidents and chancellors likely to follow soon after.