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Pac-12 Forms Alumni Council to Promote Football

Three former Huskies are named to 24-person committee to elevate the sport.
Dan Raley|
Pac-12 Forms Alumni Council to Promote Football
Pac-12 Forms Alumni Council to Promote Football

Huddle up.

When taking on his new job this past summer, Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff stressed that a conference priority would be to elevate its football fortunes.

On Monday, the league took another step toward that goal by forming a Pac-12 Football Alumni Council that consists of former players and coaches brought together to strategize and promote the sport. 

Twenty-four people compose the council, including three from Washington, which ties it with California and Stanford for the most representatives — former Huskies Lincoln Kennedy, Brock Huard and Dana Hall are involved.

An offensive tackle, quarterback and cornerback.

Two broadcasters and a high school coach.

All highly decorated UW players and eventual NFL combatants. 

“It is such a privilege to be a part of an alumni council that understands the challenges ahead for college athletics and college football in particular,” said Huard, current college and NFL broadcaster for FOX and host of College Sports Today on SiriusXM radio, in a statement. “But more importantly, this group seeks to maximize the massive opportunities in front of the Pac-12 and its incredible institutions.”

Others named to the council are Arizona's Scooby Wright and Brandon Sanders; Arizona State's Eric Allen; Cal's Justin Forsett, Shane Vereen and Alex Mack; Colorado's Chad Brown and Mike Pritchard; Oregon's Mike Belotti and Tyrell Crosby; Oregon State's Steven Jackson and Brandin Cooks; Stanford's Toby Gerhart, Zach Ertz and Toi Cook; UCLA's Johnathan Franklin and Marcedes Lewis; USC's Derrick Deese and Tim McDonald; Utah's Steve Smith, and Washington State's Jack Thompson.

This group, which can expand over time, will look for ways to drive interest and attendance in Pac-12 football, improve scheduling, elevate the football brands for all schools, support recruiting efforts and maximize College Football Playoff selections for the conference. 

Former NFL player Merton Hanks, now Pac-12 senior associate commissioner for football operations, heads up the group, which gathered for the first time for the Pac-12 football championship game in Las Vegas. The alumni council intends to meet several times per year around marquee league events.

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Dan Raley
DAN RALEY

Dan Raley has worked for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, as well as for MSN.com and Boeing, the latter as a global aerospace writer. His sportswriting career spans four decades and he's covered University of Washington football and basketball during much of that time. In a working capacity, he's been to the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals, the MLB playoffs, the Masters, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and countless Final Fours and bowl games.

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