Colorado to B12 - is this the end of the Pac12?
- Thread starter SoCal_Knight
- Start date
I agree with you that MWC will get the bulk of the Pac12 teams.
B10
Oregon
Washington
B12
Arizona
ASU
Utah
MWC
WSU
OSU
Cal
Stanford
B10
Oregon
Washington
B12
Arizona
ASU
Utah
MWC
WSU
OSU
Cal
Stanford
There is no way that Cal and Stanford end up in the MWC. They probably end up in the BIG with UW and OU as a half share package deal. Failing that, they would park their Olympic sports in the Big West and go Indy for football. That at least puts them in a conference with other UC AAU schools.
I think this is a better fit for Colorado. I never thought they fit in with the PAC12 culturally.
I'd like to see Cal and Stanford in the B10 but not sure they move the needle for their revenue generating sports for B10 media rights and don't think the B10 would be even able to support half share + I think there will be resistance from UCLA and USC cuz they want to own the state of CA for recruiting
That might be right. But scheduling games would be easier for UCLA/USC if there are more Pacific Coast teams -- if there aren't more, then UCLA and USC's teams have to travel at least two time zones for almost every road game or competition/meet, including Olympic sports.
There are major cultural shifts happening at some of these schools too. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Stanford, Cal or even NW take a step back from big time football.
1947 was the first Rose Bowl played under an agreement between the Big Nine (as they then were) and the Pacific Coast Conference (the forerunner of today's Pac-12). The bowl was already being played (except during World War I and World War II) between the PCC champion and a team from the East (e.g. Notre Dame and Alabama). This persisted until the BCS era arrived in 1998.
It's funny that you say that. A dozen years ago when Colorado bolted from the B12 (largely to escape from Texas, who was a difficult conference-mate), people said that they would be a better cultural fit in the Pac12 than in a conference with 2 Kansas schools, 2 Oklahoma schools, ISU, TT, and Baylor. I really think that they are still a better cultural fit in the Pac 12 and that this move back to the B12 is purely financial and that the Pac 12's terrible leadership that has brought that about.
I live in Tucson, where the big question right now is "what will the UofA do? The wait for a Pac12 media deal has been excruciatingly long, with no end in sight. Few people here seem to want the UofA to leave the Pac12. The school has more alumni in CA than in any state outside of AZ so a California presence is highly desirable.
Having first-hand experience and knowledge, CU is a fit for both conferences. CU has many Big 12 (Big 8/Big 7) traits but has a lot of Pac 12 habits too. There was a push back in the 70s to get CU to the Pac 10 ahead of Arizona and Arizona State.
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I have a question.
Could U of A leave the conference and have ASU hung out to dry or be forced to join the Mountain West ?
What I mean is it feasible politically within the state ?
If this piece is right, it is indeed conceivable that U of A could leave the conference but that ASU would not. But that is not the first choice. https://arizonasports.com/story/3529478/fallout-asu-arizona-in-pac-12-realignment/
I doubt that the UofA would leave without ASU. They have a real rivalry. I would think that the B12 would want both of them, especially since ASU is in a market with more than 4 million people. While there doesn't seem to be anything explicitly political preventing one from leaving without the other, I do believe that it would be quite unpopular. But my sense has been that fans of USC and UCLA are not really happy with their schools' moves to the B1G.
When USC and UCLA left , it was the end of the Pac 12. Losing your biggest brands in the LA area is a killer.
Now let’s pick off UNC / UVA etc in due time while SEC gets Clemson / FSU and destroy the conference that I will glee over irs demise - the ACC.
Now let’s pick off UNC / UVA etc in due time while SEC gets Clemson / FSU and destroy the conference that I will glee over irs demise - the ACC.
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PAC (you pick a number) has zero leverage at this point in negotiating a media deal.
Yup, the ACC destroyed the Big East and now only the PAC 12’s incredible ineptitude is saving the ACC from being the dumbest conference in realignment.
Kudos to the Big 12, who rose to the occasion after suffering the loss of Texas and Oklahoma, after Texas held them for ransom for many years. They looked to be dead a couple of years ago. Very well played.
Picking up BYU , Cincy , Houston , UCF and Colorado is well played after losing Texas and OU ?
You've expressed very well the issue facing the Pac-12. It has lost the equivalent of Texas and OU -- does it accept a number of lesser institutions to stay alive? But it doesn't, there's no hope for it.
Let's not forget that ESPN was directing teams from the Big East to the ACC after the Big East rejected their media rights deal, which essentially was the end of the BE. This is a quote from Pete Thamel from the NY Times.
DeFilippo’s (BC's AD) comments give credence to the popular theory that ESPN encouraged Pittsburgh and Syracuse’s exit from the Big East in the wake of the Big East’s turning down ESPN’s billion dollar television deal in May during an exclusive negotiating window. ESPN has a billion dollar deal with the A.C.C., making that move either savvy business or collusion, depending on one’s perspective.
The ACC and ESPN both denied the claims of DeFilippo, who obviously said way too much… but keep in mind this is the same network that also told us “Bruce has resumed his assignments.” Is it too hard to believe ESPN is instructing conferences on which team to poach? Is it too hard to believe ESPN is in on all these realignment meetings and discussions? Is it too hard to believe ESPN and the networks are moving the chess pieces of realignment around the board…
No. However, after losing Texas and Oklahoma, they added teams to become the 3rd best conference, when they could have lost teams to the PAC 12 and ACC. The PAC 12 and ACC stood idle and fell behind the Big 12. Given the cards they were dealt, and relative to the passive Pac12 and ACC…well played.
Losing Texas and OU after losing Texas A&M, Missouri, Nebraska, and Colorado originally. They did the best they could but all they've really done is add Big East/AAC programs plus BYU while losing 3, maybe 3.5 legendary programs.