Last week, we were brought the shocking news that UCLA and USC are planning on joining the Big Ten conference as early as 2024.
That came after the news that Oklahoma and Texas would be leaving the Big-12, and joining the SEC by 2025.
Needless to say, the Pac-12 and Big-12 have both been stripped of two of their top athletic programs.
With that being said, it appears a number of teams from the PAC-12 are looking to join the Big-12, and that includes Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado, and Utah.
According to Fan Nation, the schools are going to discuss merging with the conference, as they would be new additions along with Cincinnati, UCF, Houston, and BYU.
Arizona and Arizona State are the oldest two schools left in the Pac-12 at the moment, as they joined the conference in 1978.
Utah and Colorado have been in the conference since 2011, and Colorado was previously in the Big-12 beforehand.
It’s been a wild few months for college football, and it appears we may be heading towards two or three mega-conferences in college sports at some point, and I guess time will only tell when that may be.
With the loss of UCLA and USC, and the Big-12’s loss of Texas and Oklahoma, Arizona, ASU, Colorado, and Utah had to make a move to keep credibility in their athletic success, and it appears it may be their best option at this point.
So what does this mean for Oregon and Stanford? They’ve arguably been the best football program in the conference for the past 10 years or so. Stanford has been up there too.
UCLA And USC To Join The Big Ten As Early As 2024
Last football season, we learned that Texas and Oklahoma would be leaving the Big-12, and joining the SEC as soon as 2024.
With that being said, there are now two other power five schools that are looking to switch conferences, and it’s no other than UCLA and USC.
According to CBS, the two schools are exploring the idea of leaving the Pac-12, and joining the Big Ten as early as the 2024 season.
Although nothing is a done deal, the Big Ten has been reportedly trying to expand their conference, in an effort to “change the college sports landscape.”
An inside source told CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander:
“Everything is on the table.”
This would indeed change the landscape of the Big Ten, as USC and UCLA would be the first ever schools from the west coast to play in the conference..
This move would expand the Big Ten to 16 teams, which would be equivalent to the SEC with the addition of Texas and Oklahoma. And although this would strengthen the Big Ten, it would be a massive blow to the Pac-12, considering the two schools have arguably the best athletics in the conference.
Needless to say, if this deal follows through, it would cause yet another massive shakeup in conferences.
And ummm… RIP to the ACC, Big 12 & Pac-12…
