The college conference expansion and realignment speculation just won’t stop.
Neither will the chatter surrounding the potential exodus of some Pac-12 teams for the Big 12.
ESPN’s Pete Thamel shared some interesting insights into the state of the Pac-12 in a recent story, writing that “Colorado and Arizona are the odds-on candidates to jump first to the Big 12, which remains open for business. After all, there’s only so much nobility sticking on a ship that nearly everyone thinks will sink in 60 months.”
But those schools could have company leaving the Pac-12 for the Big 12.
“According to sources, there has been at least minimal contact between the Big 12 and the Four Corner schools — Arizona, Arizona State, Utah and Colorado,” Thamel wrote. “That contact has emerged to varying degrees and via various methods, depending on the school. But there’s a bottom-line pragmatism to the conversation. ‘You can’t blame anyone for looking for options and what’s out there,’ an industry source said.”
More:Pac-12 expansion, realignment: Media rights speculation includes prediction for conference
Speculation about the potential demise has run rampant as the conference reportedly struggles to find a new media rights deal to its liking with USC and UCLA’s impending move to the Big Ten.
“The league has reached a point where schools looking around and engaging with other conferences has gone from an option to an expectation,” Thamel wrote in his story.
He added: “At some point, knowing it doesn’t make fiscal sense for Oregon and Washington to be long-term committed, do other Pac-12 schools seek to chart their own course.”
As for Colorado and Arizona potentially bolting for the Big 12 first, Thamel wrote: “Colorado has Big 12 roots, a football coach who resonates in the Dallas Metroplex in Deion Sanders and a football product America is curious about for the first time in a generation. Don’t underestimate Arizona’s basketball-first mindset — the Big 12 is the country’s undisputed top league. And there are also years of administrative animus toward the Pac-12 dating back to former commissioner Larry Scott’s tenure. Former Arizona athletic director Greg Byrne first-guessed Scott’s missteps that set the league off course nearly a decade ago.”
More:Big 12 expansion, realignment speculation: Conference ‘prepared’ to add Pac-12 teams
Thamel isn’t the only one speculating about the future of the conference amid reports that conference members could be interested in joining the Big 12.
Bryan Clinton wrote: “We’ve been seeing reports about the Pac-12’s situation for months, and despite the best efforts of Pac-12 apologists, it’s not hard to see that this has been coming for some time. Whether it’s in the next month, or a few years down the road, the Pac-12 looks to be slowly, but surely, headed to an inevitable doom thanks to the many errors of its last two commissioners.”
247Sports: ‘Public courtship’ of Pac-12 schools could begin at Big 12 Tournament
Tim Fitzgerald wrote: “It finally feels as if the never-ending search by the Pac-12 Conference to find a competitive media rights deal is nearing the point where conference members are done waiting. If so, this week’s Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City could begin a more public courtship of interested Pac-12 schools and the Big 12, with the movement of two schools possibly coming soon. Who knows, though? The Pac-12 keeps delaying its media rights negotiations because once it is announced, it’s likely the conference will buckle.”
More:Pac-12 expansion, realignment speculation: ‘Impending sense of doom’ over media deal
OutKick: Pac-12 in ‘huge trouble’ amid college expansion talk
David Hookstead wrote: “I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. The west coast conference seemingly remains in huge trouble based on the evidence in front of us. George Kliavkoff, for the sake of his job, better figure it out soon. Otherwise, things could rapidly fall apart.”
Deseret.com: Why Pac-12 schools are talking to the Big 12 again
Dick Harmon wrote: “This current business climate is not what it was nine months ago when the Pac-12 began negotiations for a media partner. An early hope that the Pac-12 would sign a deal for more than the Big 12’s reported $31 million appears more and more unreachable the longer this exercise creeps along.”
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Pistols Firing: Pac-12 schools would be ‘boon’ for the Big 12
Kyle Boone wrote: “Getting the Four Corners Schools would be a boon to the business of the Big 12 but also a possible death knell for a competitor in the Pac-12 to boot. There are also ongoing talks with Gonzaga, though The Athletic said Yormark wants clarity on the Pac-12 schools before progressing on those talks. All signs point to further expansion either way in the Big 12, which should only strengthen its standing in the marketplace.”
Pete Mundo wrote: “I have never openly rooted for the demise of a conference and never will. But the Pac-12’s survival is at stake now and I’m not sure everyone in that world gets it. While the school presidents seem to be looking for a good academic fit, the athletic directors have to be worrying about whether they can make payroll in 16 months when the Pac-12’s current TV deal expires. I’m not talking about NIL. I’m talking about employees. We’re getting to the point where people’s jobs might be at stake, rank-and-file athletic department employees who just want to work.”
More:Big 12 realignment, expansion: Pac-12 school additions would alter look of conference
Reach Jeremy Cluff at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @Jeremy_Cluff.
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