Utah and Arizona State are unanimously voted into the Big 12 to bring the number of leagues to 16…and effectively kill Pac-12 – which only has FOUR schools left

Arizona State and Utah voted unanimously into the Big 12 to raise the conference total to 16 teams, with only four universities left in the exhausting Pac-12.

Both schools were introduced along with Arizona, which joined on Thursday. The additions will take effect from the academic year 2024-2025.

“We are pleased to welcome Arizona, Arizona State and Utah to the Big 12,” Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark said in a statement Friday. “The conference will feature three premier institutions, both academic and athletic, and the entire Big 12 looks forward to working with their presidents, athletic directors, student-athletes and administrators.”

Both Utah and Arizona State were approved after applying for membership earlier this year and ahead of this week’s vote, according to ESPN. Applying for membership is a necessary first step for schools to get permission to switch leagues.

The shift in hierarchy in US college sports comes after two schools in the Pac-12 — Oregon and Washington — left for the Big Ten.

Arizona and Arizona State will keep their rivalry alive in the Big 12 as the 2024-25 season begins

A person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press that the Ducks and Huskies will receive about $30 million a year for the first six years of the conference, with annual escalators and the ability to draw on future payments.

After this year, the Pac-12 now has only four members: Stanford, California, Oregon State, and Washington State.

The Big Ten’s latest grab from the Rose Bowl partner conference comes just over a year after it landed the University of Southern California and UCLA. The moves give the sprawling Big Ten 18 member schools, including four on the West Coast.

As a result, The Big Ten has become the largest conference in major college sports, spanning 15 states from New Jersey to Washington.

“The Big Ten is a thriving conference with strong athletic and academic traditions, and we are excited and confident to compete at the highest level nationally,” said Washington President Ana Mari Cauce.

Colorado will also join the Big 12 in 2024.

Pac-12 Commission. George Kilavkoff will have to recruit new schools to keep the competition alive

It all left behind the legendary Conference of Champions that is over a century old and on the brink of extinction.

Pac-12 leaders met early Friday to determine whether the remaining schools, including Oregon and Washington at the time, would accept the potential media rights deal with Apple presented by Commissioner George Kilavkoff earlier this week.

“Today’s news is incredibly disappointing to student-athletes, fans, alumni and staff of the Pac-12 who cherish the more than 100-year history, tradition and rivalry of the Conference of Champions,” said a statement from the leaders of the Pac-12. the conference.

“We remain focused on securing the best possible future for each of our member universities,” it added.

Other Pac-12 schools like Stanford and Cal could also soon be part of the Big Ten’s future expansion plans. Yahoo Sports reported earlier this week.