Report: Arizona, Big-12 move now up in the air as Pac-12 attempts late rally

Alex Weberby:Alex Weber•08/04/23

Friday morning has already featured a slew of new developments on the conference realignment front, with the Pac-12 making a surge to keep the teams that are rumored to be looking to leave. On Thursday, the Big 12 announced they approved the addition of Arizona to the conference if the school ultimately does want to move. And it seemed likely they would, until Friday morning, when some skepticism over a migration to the Big 12 was shared by college football reporter Ross Dellenger.

He reported that Arizona still has not made up its mind and a final decision will come down to Arizona’s Board of Regents. Here was that report, which he tweeted:

“Despite Arizona’s deep interest with the Big 12 and the league’s acceptance of such, the Arizona Board of Regents controls the decision — for both Arizona and ASU.” Dellenger also added that the Wildcats would like to stay in the same conference as Arizona State, whether they’re in the Big 12 or the Pac-12. However, per Dellenger: “ASU is more reluctant to make the leap — a key discussion point at last night’s regents meeting.”

He continued: “As Yahoo Sports reported earlier this week, the belief is that the Board wishes for both schools to compete in the same conference, staying together as a pair. Will Arizona go alone? The status of a potential move is unclear but may be resolved Friday morning on the Pac-12 call.”

So, Arizona was pushing for a move to the Big 12 and even got their bid accepted by the conference, however they want to stay partnered up with rival ASU, who is less willing to leave the Pac-12 at the moment. Meanwhile, the decisions to leave for both schools are controlled by the same entity: the Arizona Board of Regents.

Then there’s Oregon, who was a hot name in the Big Ten expansion talks but now looks likely to remain in the Pac-12, according to the following report from ESPN’s Pete Thamel:

“Oregon are expected to stay in the Pac-12, barring an eleventh hour change. That could have the power to keep the league together, as Arizona has not finalized its deal with the Big 12.”

To recap:

  • Oregon was courted by the Big Ten, but will likely stay in Pac-12
  • Arizona had a bid accepted to Big 12 but is now waiting to see what ASU wants to do
  • ASU not in a hurry to leave, which could help keep Arizona in the Pac-12
  • And Colorado has already left for the Big 12

This carousel just never stops spinning.