College football realignment: Pac-12 school addresses expansion rumor
The Pac-12 yet to announce a new media deal and there is continued speculation about the next phase of college football conference realignment and how it might affect the league, especially with the Big 12 looking to expand further and rumors that it's looking at some current Pac-12 schools to do so. But listening to Utah athletic director Mark Harlan, it sounds like his school is happy where it is.
"I think our words and actions speak for themselves," Harlan said. "We are a proud member of this conference and look forward to its future success."
Utah has been floated as a possible candidate to leave the conference and join the Big 12, which has been open about its expansion plans, but insiders have not considered it to be a favorite to actually make a jump.
That honor has gone to Colorado, which has been the subject of several rumors of interest going in both directions, with sources saying that school reps have met with Big 12 officials informally.
Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff reiterated Utah's confidence as he faced questions about the stability of the league in the face of expansion rumors.
"It's not a concern," he said at the start of Media Day.
"We'll get our media rights deal done. We'll announce the deal. I think the realignment that's going on in college athletics will come to an end for this cycle. The truth is we've got bigger fish to fry. There are incredible opportunities and also challenges in front of college athletics, and I need to be able to work with all of my colleagues in Division I. We'll move past all the bitter squabbling of the last year, and we'll work together to make college athletics better."
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