Five Thoughts on a Possible Big 12-Pac-12 Merger
After reports broke out that Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby and Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff were meeting to discuss the possibility of a Big 12-Pac-12 merger, my head started to spin.
My mind started wondering what that could look like in the future and the possibilities are nearly endless when you think about it. Would there be two divisions or four? What would they look like? So many questions that need to be answered but while we wait for those answers, I thought it would be a fun idea to give my five thoughts for a possible Big 12/Pac-12 merger.
1. Why The Big 12 SHOULD do it
Let’s face it, without Oklahoma and Texas, this conference would struggle to survive. We already know how much money the rest of the conference will lose without those two schools and if the Big 12 doesn’t hold up on its own, a merge out west doesn’t appear to be such a bad idea. It would guarantee schools to remain in a power conference and would be the premier conference for nearly half the map of the United States. Plus, the money should be on par with what these Big 12 schools currently make if they can find a way to blend it together. The big reason I would be for this is that this would act as a safety net for all eight teams in the Big 12 that are left.
2. Why the Big 12 SHOULD NOT do it
Over the last few years, the Pac-12 has been behind the Big 12 conference in nearly all sports. The Big 12 is simply superior to the conference out west so why join them even when Texas and Oklahoma leave? If the remaining eight teams hold their ground and if Bob Bowlsby can add two or more teams, maybe the Big 12 can survive. If the Big 12 can do that then they don’t need to merge with anybody.
3. What about West Virginia?
As weird of a fit it would be for Big 12 teams, how could West Virginia be in the same conference as a school on the west coast? Geographically, it would be a nightmare to do for the Mountaineers. While the ACC still seems like the most logical landing spot for West Virginia, I am not so sure the ACC is ready to take other schools just yet. As bad as it may sound, maybe it is best for West Virginia to do their own thing and separate from the Big 12 unless they want to remain with the other eight schools no matter where they end up at.
4. What would the merge look like?
If the Big 12 goes through with this, is this conference just known as the Pac-20 now or what? I am not sure how this works out and what happens to Bob Bowlsby? Does he still have a job if these two conferences merge? Also, I mentioned West Virginia but if I were in charge, I would let WVU walk and maybe add a Boise State or BYU to replace them for financial and location reasons. Lastly, if the Pac-12 goes to 20 teams, how would that work out? Would there be four pods of five schools or two divisions of ten teams? There would be many questions that would need to be answered.
5. Destinations
I don’t know about you but think about the possible road trip or vacations you could plan. Sure, you can still drive to Fort Worth, Manhattan or even Ames, but how about going out west? Imagine hitting the West Coast for a weekend and soaking up the sun on a beach before the game. Maybe you head to Arizona and enjoy the scenery or hit up Colorado like you did in the old days when they were in the Big 12. If this deal goes down, I guess I would be a Pac-12 man now? I am not sure but what I am sure of is that I would be looking forward to going to some games out west and you should be too.
