Pac-12 & Mountain West Do Not Extend Deal

[Jetskies]

scheduling opportunity for us? I would love to explore a relationship with OR St + WA St, as we are effectively in the same boat now, with this announcement. Without the Mountain West alliance, they join us in the independent ranks.

 

[ScottVib]

They're going to reform the Pac-12 as a best of the rest conference.. just a matter of which teams from the MWC & AAC they grab.

 

[CONN78SEJ]

They're going to reform the Pac-12 as a best of the rest conference.. just a matter of which teams from the MWC & AAC they grab.

Maybe they sniff around some other independents?

 

[Jetskies]

personally i don't see 6 more teams joining those 2 schools to keep the conference alive.
I read that NCAA gives them 2 years to reach the 8-team minimum.

as i understood it, the only keeping it alive is the $265 Million piggy bank left behind by the legacy conference members. Hell of a runway for the 2 schools, but what do they really have to offer otherwise?

I would love to see the Pac-12 rise from the ashes but I also would have loved to see UConn beat Maryland lol.
If anyone has interesting theories on how Pac-12 makes it to the future, i would love to hear it.

I really really think UConn (football) needs to get on the phone and figure something out to work together with these 2 programs; they may feel like they're still P5 programs and give us the cold shoulder but you have to try, i would think.

 

[LoyalFanCT]

Could the PAC 2 merge with the MAC?

 

[dvegas]

I really really think UConn (football) needs to get on the phone and figure something out to work together with these 2 programs; they may give us the cold shoulder but you have to try, i would think.

Mora has family ties in Oregon (his brother lives in Bend). No reason why they can't figure out a home and home, although not exactly a fertile ground for recruiting to the Northeast, nor are there lots of alums out that way. Washington State is in the middle of nowhere, not interested

 

[WrenchFan69]

Maybe they sniff around some other independents?

UConn for football, Gonzaga for everything else would be an arrangement I'd be plenty happy with. If it would require a men's and/or women's basketball schedule agreement, toss in a game a year too. And we can play Oregon St in baseball.

 

[WrenchFan69]

Assuming Calford isn't coming back, I would have thought a pure merger with MWC (taking the PAC branding) would probably be the solution? But assuming they can pick and choose, something like this might not suck:

Washington St

Oregon St

SDSU

Boise St

UNLV

Utah State

Gonzaga (no football)

St Mary's (no football)

Hawaii (football only)

UConn (football only)

Keeps the geography (outside UConn, obviously) tightly packed, hits many states and major markets. Utah St could be swapped for Fresno St or Nevada easily enough. Toss in San Francisco as a solid NorCal basketball brand if needed.

Only 7 conference football games so UConn wouldn't get completely destroyed by travel.

MWC lives on as another 8-team conference or can add from the countless Texas schools, Tulsa, New Mexico St, maybe they can convince some schools from FCS in the SDSU/NDSU realm to jump.

 

[ZooCougar]

personally i don't see 6 more teams joining those 2 schools to keep the conference alive.
I read that NCAA gives them 2 years to reach the 8-team minimum.

as i understood it, the only keeping it alive is the $265 Million piggy bank left behind by the legacy conference members. Hell of a runway for the 2 schools, but what do they really have to offer otherwise?

I would love to see the Pac-12 rise from the ashes but I also would have loved to see UConn beat Maryland lol.
If anyone has interesting theories on how Pac-12 makes it to the future, i would love to hear it.

I really really think UConn (football) needs to get on the phone and figure something out to work together with these 2 programs; they may feel like they're still P5 programs and give us the cold shoulder but you have to try, i would think.

I suspect that if they didn’t have an idea about at least 6 teams then they would have renewed.

 

[Jetskies]

Mora has family ties in Oregon (his brother lives in Bend). No reason why they can't figure out a home and home, although not exactly a fertile ground for recruiting to the Northeast, nor are there lots of alums out that way. Washington State is in the middle of nowhere, not interested

fair points. my perspective on this is that it doesn't matter where the opponent is, but rather is it a quality-enough program who is also not impossibly talented, such that it's a body-bag game. I believe that these 2 programs fit the bill. They're barely P4 at this point, and their brand cache will fall, the longer they linger outside of a P4 conference (not P5 because even a renewed Pac12 will be a G5 with a shiny nameplate, at best - their stock will still fall)

they are still legacy power programs with respectable football quality, who a "hypothetically" good UConn team has a chance against. 8/31/24's UConn team would have no chance against either of them.

 

[Jetskies]

I suspect that if they didn’t have an idea about at least 6 teams then they would have renewed.

eh.

that suspicion assumes the 2 sides were on equal footing during the talks. I find it hardddd to imagine that a zombie conference of 2 teams with a ticking NCAA-compliance-time-bomb, had any leverage or higher-ground against a complete and satisfied, quality G5 conference commish & staff.

I've said it before, MW is the best G5 conference - quality teams/brands, sensible geography, mostly competitive games top-to-bottom. Any one of those teams is IMO within striking distance of a Big 12 invite, and some are there already (Boise St, SDSU). They know this about themselves and are being careful about keeping that fraternity together and surviving realignment as a unit. wherever one goes, they all go.

ORST / WAST 's star is fading fast, and will accelerate the longer they are not in one of the remaining P4 conferences (pac12 2.0 doesn't count, it would be a glorified G5).

IMO Mountain West has the power and decided the value wasn't there.

 

[ZooCougar]

eh.

that suspicion assumes the 2 sides were on equal footing during the talks. I find it hardddd to imagine that a zombie conference of 2 teams with a ticking NCAA-compliance-time-bomb, had any leverage or higher-ground against a complete and satisfied, quality G5 conference commish & staff.

I've said it before, MW is the best G5 conference - quality teams/brands, sensible geography, mostly competitive games top-to-bottom. Any one of those teams is IMO within striking distance of a Big 12 invite, and some are there already (Boise St, SDSU). They know this about themselves and are being careful about keeping that fraternity together and surviving realignment as a unit. wherever one goes, they all go.

ORST / WAST 's star is fading fast, and will accelerate the longer they are not in one of the remaining P4 conferences (pac12 2.0 doesn't count, it would be a glorified G5).

IMO Mountain West has the power and decided the value wasn't there.

I think you are wrong. The MWC isn’t solid. There plenty of fissures.

 

[Jetskies]

I think you are wrong. The MWC isn’t solid. There plenty of fissures.

fair - my claims on the level of the MW are 100% debatable. That said, i don't think the negotiation was on an even level. regardless of the MW's qualitiy, only one of the parties in that talk was in a position of strength. I do not believe that party was the pac-2.

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

Suspect UConn would prefer away games in areas recruiting is focused and limiting cross county treks. Same same for OSU and Wazzu.

However, if the price was right or OSU or Wazzu agreed to home-and-aways, our Huskies have available away ‘25, ‘26 and ‘27 spots. Least likely in ‘26 given UConn’s existing away game with Wyoming. Alternatively, perhaps game trading opportunities may exist with other schools.

2025 UConn Football Schedule | FBSchedules.com

View the 2025 UConn Football Schedule at FBSchedules.com. The Huskies football schedule includes opponents, date, time, and TV.

fbschedules.com

 

[Vowelguy]

eh.

that suspicion assumes the 2 sides were on equal footing during the talks. I find it hardddd to imagine that a zombie conference of 2 teams with a ticking NCAA-compliance-time-bomb, had any leverage or higher-ground against a complete and satisfied, quality G5 conference commish & staff.

I've said it before, MW is the best G5 conference - quality teams/brands, sensible geography, mostly competitive games top-to-bottom. Any one of those teams is IMO within striking distance of a Big 12 invite, and some are there already (Boise St, SDSU). They know this about themselves and are being careful about keeping that fraternity together and surviving realignment as a unit. wherever one goes, they all go.

ORST / WAST 's star is fading fast, and will accelerate the longer they are not in one of the remaining P4 conferences (pac12 2.0 doesn't count, it would be a glorified G5).

IMO Mountain West has the power and decided the value wasn't there.

OrSt/WaSt are easily more valuable than most of the MW.

Schools always want a chance to dump the dead weight and make a stronger conference.

I see the Pac 2.0 as adding Boise, SDSU, ColSt, , Memphis, Tulane, UTSA, and 3 of these: SJST/Fresno/Nevada/UNLV/UtahSt, leaving New Mexico, Wyoming, and Hawaii behind.

 

[Purple Stein]

Could the PAC 2 merge with the MAC?

The PacMac? Some Tuesday night Pacmaction?

 

[ZooCougar]

eh.

that suspicion assumes the 2 sides were on equal footing during the talks. I find it hardddd to imagine that a zombie conference of 2 teams with a ticking NCAA-compliance-time-bomb, had any leverage or higher-ground against a complete and satisfied, quality G5 conference commish & staff.

I've said it before, MW is the best G5 conference - quality teams/brands, sensible geography, mostly competitive games top-to-bottom. Any one of those teams is IMO within striking distance of a Big 12 invite, and some are there already (Boise St, SDSU). They know this about themselves and are being careful about keeping that fraternity together and surviving realignment as a unit. wherever one goes, they all go.

ORST / WAST 's star is fading fast, and will accelerate the longer they are not in one of the remaining P4 conferences (pac12 2.0 doesn't count, it would be a glorified G5).

IMO Mountain West has the power and decided the value wasn't there.

I think you are wrong. The MWC isn’t solid. There plenty of fissures.

I told you.

 

[Jetskies]

I told you.

bummer! I was selfishly hoping for a weakened Or St / WA St, for an opportunity for us.
if they figure out the 8 teams, there goes the idea.

UConn gets kicked again in the nuts!

 

[cellocgg]

bummer! I was selfishly hoping for a weakened Or St / WA St, for an opportunity for us.
if they figure out the 8 teams, there goes the idea.

UConn gets kicked again in the nuts!

I think this new Pac12 just helps UConn get into the ACC/B12

 

[uconnyankee]

They're going to reform the Pac-12 as a best of the rest conference.. just a matter of which teams from the MWC & AAC they grab.

Good call

 

[uconnyankee]

bummer! I was selfishly hoping for a weakened Or St / WA St, for an opportunity for us.
if they figure out the 8 teams, there goes the idea.

UConn gets kicked again in the nuts!

This might have 2nd and 3rd wave ripple effects. Unless Cal and Stanford decide to leave ACC don’t see how this effects UConn.

And, I don’t see how Cal and Stanford leave AcC anytime soon. Maybe a landing if ACC blows up.
If they did join, it would mean the league has 4 former P4 members.,,

Will all come down to money. Always does. Unless it’s UConn. In that case it’s fb.

 

[ZooCougar]

bummer! I was selfishly hoping for a weakened Or St / WA St, for an opportunity for us.
if they figure out the 8 teams, there goes the idea.

UConn gets kicked again in the nuts!

Once this happened I knew something was going down.

 

[ZooCougar]

This might have 2nd and 3rd wave ripple effects. Unless Cal and Stanford decide to leave ACC don’t see how this effects UConn.

And, I don’t see how Cal and Stanford leave AcC anytime soon. Maybe a landing if ACC blows up.
If they did join, it would mean the league has 4 former P4 members.,,

Will all come down to money. Always does. Unless it’s UConn. In that case it’s fb.

The knock on effect is that the AAC is going to get proactive and maybe try to snag some MWC schools.

Literally when this is all said and done Utah State, New Mexico and Wyoming might be walking hat in hand to the CUSA offices.

 

[B12]

The knock on effect is that the AAC is going to get proactive and maybe try to snag some MWC schools.

Literally when this is all said and done Utah State, New Mexico and Wyoming might be walking hat in hand to the CUSA offices.

Wyoming will go Big Sky if the MW falls apart.

Big Sky has a lot of schools who are well ahead of programs like those in the MAC who have 5-10k people at games. Montana gets 30k. Wyoming has similar fan support to UConn in FB.


It's really dumb for schools like CSU to try to be the bottom of the P-4/5. Schools like Boise have no business trying to compete as beyond FB they are more D-2 than "power". Sad to see yet another conference ruined.

 

[nwhoopfan]

Schools like Boise have no business trying to compete as beyond FB they are more D-2 than "power".

They've had reasonable success in both men's and women's hoops in the Mountain West. Not even close to being a D2 level program.