Pac-12 forces USC and UCLA are in discussions to leave the Big Ten conference as early as the 2024 athletic season, CBS Sports sources said Matt Norlander. Although the move is not yet final and is still in the research stages, it seems that the Big Ten are looking to make a significant acquisition that will change the landscape of sports in college.
“It’s all on the table,” said a source in Norlander’s Pac-12.
Big Ten presidents and athletic directors met Wednesday night to discuss adding USC and UCLA to the league, according to The Athletic.
The USC and UCLA transition to the Big Ten would be similar to the one that rocked college sports last summer when Texas and Oklahoma chose to leave the Big 12 for the SEC, a move that must take place before the 2025 season.
This marked the beginning of a readjustment in which the Big 12, American and other conferences saw teams come in and out of membership. A similar situation is likely to arise here if USC and UCLA formalize their intentions to leave Pac-12. This move would also be a stunning discrepancy in the direction of UCLA and Cal, partners in the University of California system.
With the acquisition of the Trojans and Bruins, the Big Ten will be transformed from a conference largely in the Midwest into one that extends to the West Coast. This would be a significant change in the college sports landscape at the Power Five level, which is largely localized with teams belonging primarily to leagues in their geographical area.
USC and UCLA will lead the Big Ten to a total of 16 teams, the same number as the SEC, after Texas and Oklahoma join them. ACC has 14 teams, while the Big 12 will settle at 12 with BYU, Cincinnati, Houston and UCF in the fold after UT and OU.
This acquisition will be a significant coup for Big Ten’s fourth commissioner Kevin Warren, the first head of Power Five to cancel the 2020 season amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The news comes less than a year after Big Ten and Pac-12 – along with ACC – announced a strategic alliance following the addition of the Texas and Oklahoma SEC. This alliance has been light-hearted from the outset, and the Pac-12’s Big Ten poaching only further undermines the idea that the leagues will work together to combat the SEC’s growing power in college sports.
As the Pac-12 media rights deal expires in 2024, and the Big Ten are in the midst of negotiations for a new media rights deal, which could begin as early as next season and reportedly exceed $ 1 billion a year, the moment is natural for such discussions. The expiration of this Pac-12 deal should leave USC and UCLA with little financial burden if they eventually choose to go to the Big Ten.
John Wilner of San Jose Mercury-News announced for the first time that USC and UCLA plan to leave Pac-12 for the Big Ten.
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