I wrote a thread for Power Ranking Pac-12 schools as Big Ten expansion candidates. So I'll do the same for the ACC. These are the schools I'd rather have. For now I'll pretend the GOR can be broken or it's 2037 (can you imagine me in 2037?)

1. Notre Dame - I'm including them in the ACC as they are a member in all sports but football and I don't think I have to explain why they're #1.

2. North Carolina - In Schmolik World, football isn't everything! UNC has been rumored to be a Big 10 expansion candidate way back in the early 2010's. When the Big 10 added Maryland, rumor was they were eyeing ACC territory, especially Virginia and North Carolina and a move towards the Southeast where population is growing. North Carolina is one of the best academic public schools in the country and gives the Big Ten access to the flagship university in a populous state. Hopefully their men's basketball team keeps it going under Hubert Davis. If they are as good under Davis as they were under Roy Williams and Dean Smith, they will definitely stay #1 on my list. Virginia would help in the DC market but the Big Ten already has coverage there with Maryland. Of course Duke also has basketball but their future post Coach K is also uncertain and the Schmolik Rule is public > private. Once UNC becomes fair game, the Big Ten and SEC will both want Carolina. The Big Ten clearly has the better academic reputation and North Carolina seems to be a school that would think that is important. But Texas chose the SEC over the Big Ten so why wouldn't Carolina? The Big Ten needs to beat the SEC and show UNC they want the Tar Heels more than the SEC does. If the Big Ten gets North Carolina, they will own the state instead of the SEC. To me that puts them ahead of other ACC schools that aren't the top schools in their state.

3. Virginia - North Carolina and Virginia are very similar and probably the best pair for the Big Ten to expand to IMO, close to Maryland and Penn State geographically, large state populations, similar academic profiles, great men's basketball schools (Virginia has the best chance at staying good because Tony Bennett will be there for the near future).

4. Florida State - Not AAU but a coup for the Big Ten if they can get them, getting a piece of Florida as opposed to the SEC having both Florida and Florida State in their back pockets. FSU's football is down now but if they ever got good they're one of the best gold mines the Big Ten could have.

5. Clemson - I'm guessing Dabo Swinney will still be coaching at Clemson in 2037 although the NFL could always call and I'm pretty sure Alabama will after Nick Saban retires and considering Dabo's an Alabama alum that's going to be pretty hard for him to pass up (in addition to the eight figure salary, yes I said eight). If Clemson is competing for national championships in football, of course I want them in the Big Ten. If they're 7-5 every year, they're another Nebraska. Even worse, they wouldn't even own their state like Nebraska does. Football success comes and goes faster than population or academic ranking does and South Carolina isn't North Carolina, Virginia, or Florida.

6. Georgia Tech - The Atlanta market is big and Georgia Tech is a great academic school. Georgia Tech has a good relationship with North Carolina and Virginia and if they help get UNC and UVa, I would gladly sign off on them. The Yellow Jackets did win the ACC Tournament in men's basketball last year although they did win a game by forfeit. They don't have the current standing or history in either football or men's basketball that Florida State/Clemson or North Carolina/Virginia have though.

7. Pittsburgh - Obviously I want Penn State and Pittsburgh in the same conference. But they don't expand the Big Ten (although a presence in Pittsburgh isn't insignificant). They are an AAU member and in the latest USN&WR rankings are ahead of Penn State (#58 vs. #63). Certainly Pittsburgh would be a better fit in a more northern Big Ten than a more southern ACC.

8. Duke - If Duke's men's basketball stays at a high level, they will skyrocket up the list. North Carolina and Virginia might want Duke to come along and I'd be willing to take them to get UNC/UVa. The academic presidents would certainly have no issue with Duke.

9. Miami - Also gets the Big Ten into Florida. If the Big Ten can't get FSU, Miami would be an alternative. Miami once chose a more northern Big East over the ACC and SEC so I would put the odds of getting the Hurricanes to the Big Ten better than the Seminoles. But they are a private school and I'm not sure it would help the Big Ten recruit Florida in football much better.

10. Syracuse - The Big Ten isn't in the state of New York. This will help although Syracuse is again a private school. Like Duke and North Carolina, Syracuse will inevitably go through a transition in men's basketball after Jim Boeheim retires and ACC Syracuse hasn't been as good as Big East Syracuse (although Syracuse did make the Sweet 16 this year and the Final Four as an ACC member in 2016). And while Syracuse football isn't too good there is some history there (Donovan McNabb, a great 1987 team that went 11-0 in the regular season and tied the 1988 Sugar Bowl. Like Pittsburgh, they might have suffered in the ACC and might be better suited for a more northern Big Ten and the chance to play Penn State again.

11. Boston College - This is just a market grab. Boston College hasn't made the men's NCAA Tournament since 2009 and they're a private school. Their football team has qualified for four bowls in a row between 2016 and 2019 if that means anything (the bowl games were Detroit, New York, Dallas, and Birmingham).

12. Virginia Tech - The fit with the Big Ten isn't as good as Virginia. If the Big Ten adds both I can see it, especially if it keeps the SEC out of Virginia. But I'd rather UVa. Virginia will almost certainly be the better academic school the rest of our lives. Virginia Tech will likely be the better football school but if Virginia hires the right coach and/or Virginia Tech hires the wrong one that could change. Virginia beat Virginia Tech in 2019 and won the ACC Coastal Division.

13. NC State - Same as Virginia Tech, if you can get UNC and/or Duke, what's the point other than to keep the SEC out of North Carolina? And NC State isn't significantly better than North Carolina in football, last year UNC played in the Orange Bowl.

14. Louisville - When your USN&WR ranking is below Mississippi, next!

15. Wake Forest - Maybe if Tim Duncan was still there.

You'll need the SEC's assistance to break up and divide the ACC schools. That means B1G will have to compromise, say take schools without AAU status, especially if the end game is ND.