Big 12 Expansion Rumors Heating Up
The PAC 12 is in a world of trouble and could be on the verge of folding. UCLA and USC are set to join the Big Ten next year and on top of that, they are still searching for a new media rights deal. The longer that process takes, the more willing other schools will be to jump ship as well. The PAC 12's current deal with ESPN and FOX is set to expire at the end of the 2023-23 athletic calendar.
According to Andrew Marchant of the New York Post, there is one network heavily pursuing the PAC but also one school that could look to leave the league.
“The Pac-12’s media rights agreement won’t be completed until late spring or early summer, according to The Athletic college football writers Stewart Mandel and Max Olsen,” Marchand writes. “They said The CW is now in play. We will add this to the conversation around potential defections from Pac-12 to the Big 12: Watch Colorado.”
Colorado makes sense for a number of reasons. They've been in the Big 12 before, they have an athletic department that is committed to investing big money in its programs, and oh yeah, Deion Sanders is the head football coach there.
Last month, Stewart Mandel and Max Olson of The Athletic, reported that the Big 12 has had contact with Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado, and Utah - all members of the PAC 12. The report also stated that they are in "deep discussions" with Gonzaga, who has become one of the best men's basketball programs in the country.
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