College football expansion: Colorado, Big 12 have been talking for months, momentum builds for realignment

Things could be getting serious between Colorado and the Big 12 as the college football expansion process appears to be picking up again

Author:
James Parks
Publish date:
May 30, 2023 1:54 PM EDT

The college football expansion and conference realignment process appears to be picking up again as Colorado and the Big 12 have been engaged in "substantive" talks about the school potentially joining that conference in the future, according to a report from CBS college football insider Dennis Dodd.

"Colorado and the Big 12 have met face-to-face while involved in consistent talks over a period of several months," the report noted. "It was made clear that a move to the Big 12 would not be made without the support of football coach Deion Sanders."

This report follows another by The Oklahoman in recent days that claimed Colorado was looking into the possibility of joining the Big 12 "soon," amid the efforts by the Pac-12 to procure a new media contract for its members in the near future.

What Colorado has said

Colorado athletic director Rick George responded to the first report by saying that the school remains a committed member of the Pac-12 and CU chancellor Phil DiStefano echoed those sentiments in his own remarks concerning realignment rumors.

But both also appeared to indicate that the school would leave its options open and "do what is right for Colorado," and that their commitment appeared to depend on what kind of media deal the Pac-12 can get for member schools.

Now, with no official information on that front, and reports from insiders that ESPN has backed out of being a primary media partner with the conference, there is some concern that the league is in danger of losing members if it can't get the right deal, especially after losing landmark brands USC and UCLA to the Big Ten starting in 2024.

Colorado knows the league

Colorado was a member of the Big 12 from 1996 to 2010, with seven of those years resulting in winning seasons.

Before then, CU was a member of the Big Eight dating back to 1948, playing its best football in the late 1980s under Bill McCartney and winning the college football national championship in the 1990 season.

The school has just one winning campaign since joining the Pac-12, when the Buffaloes went 10-4 in 2016.

And now the school is in the spotlight once again after hiring Deion Sanders to lead the football program, selling out its spring game, and all its season tickets for the first time in almost 30 years.

Big 12 wants to expand

The Big 12 has been public in its attempt to expand to the West Coast and increase its exposure in the Pacific media markets.

Reports connected the Big 12's interest to the two Arizona schools in addition to Utah and Colorado.

Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff took public issue with the Big 12's incursion into its territory, accusing that league of "trying to destabilize our remaining conference."

And if things don't trend in the right direction soon, the Big 12 could be in position to do just that.

(CBS)

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