Iowa St. and Pitt add a rival for Iowa and Penn St. respectively but they do nothing in terms of tv markets (and tv is going to be 3/4ths of the equation).
West Virginia is another market which doesn’t have much to offer.
Nebraska, at least, has a national football fan base much the way Notre Dame does although their basketball program isn’t much.
Rutgers only makes sense as an entry way to the NY-Philly tv markets but, otherwise, they’d be a fish out of water in the Big 10. Syracuse might make more sense there.
Missouri has two good tv markets, are competitive in football and basketball, already has a rivalry with Illinois and has enough educational prestige to satisfy the snoot-nosed regents. If Notre Dame won’t budge, Missouri gives them the best option.
West Virginia is slavishly followed by the entire state, so they offer in breadth what they don’t offer in a large metro area.
Pitt, of course, is a large metro area, so they are not a bad deal in terms of TV market.
I agree regarding Missouri.
Virginia Tech doesn’t have either a metro area or a statewide following, but they do have a dynamite program. Cincy is in a America’s 24th largest metro area, but their facilities are beautiful, traditional, and woefully small.