by Jed Katz
According to officials, the Pac-12 Conference is set to add four new schools to revive itself. The conference, now nicknamed the ‘Pac-2’ due to only having Washington State and Oregon State as of right now, is set to add Boise State, Fresno State, San Diego State, and Colorado State, moving the four schools from the Mountain West Conference starting in 2026.
The move was unexpected, as it was thought that the Pac-12 would eventually die out, with Oregon State and Washington State expected to move out. Now, the conference is attempting to usher in a new era, as it was kicked from the Power 5 conferences to the Power 4 (ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, SEC).
With the conference landscape shifting, triggered by serious movement over the past year or so between the Power 5 conferences, the movement will likely continue with non-power conferences, starting with the Mountain West. Now that the Pac-12 is beginning to bring in schools, the realignment could go one of three ways:
The first is a domino effect. The Pac-12 could continue to poach Mountain West schools, which could lead to the Mountain West taking schools from even smaller conferences, and so on. The moves would eventually continue until the most minor conference died out, with no schools to poach.
The second is the Pac-12 and Mountain West taking schools from different conferences to spread the wealth and keep conferences alive. Colleges monitored for movement to either would be North Dakota State, South Dakota State, Memphis, and Tulane, while Mountain West schools like Utah State and UNLV should also be watched for movement to the Pac-12. This would be the best option for the fans, as all conferences stay alive, and the brand recognition of the Pac-12 stays intact.
The third option is that either the Pac-12 or Mountain West eventually dies. This is the least likely scenario, but the Pac-12 could certainly take all of the Mountain West’s schools and kill the conference altogether, or the Pac-12 realignment doesn’t work out and the six schools eventually leave. Again, it isn’t peculiar, as both have the leverage to add other schools, but it’s possible.
The constant shift of schools and realignment of conferences add to the chaoticness of the business era in college athletics. With NIL bringing a record number of athletes to the transfer portal, schools are moving to other conferences for added recognition and money, which makes it all the more poetic.
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