It appears the Big 12 has decided it doesn’t need the Pac-12 nearly as much as the Pac-12 needs it.
After two weeks of talks about a partnership between the two conferences, the Big 12 told the Pac-12 it is no longer interested in exploring some sort of merger, according to Pete Thamel. And, according to Thamel, the Big 12 has continued to monitor the potential of adding Arizona, Arizona State, Utah and Colorado from the Pac-12.
The Pac-12 reportedly laid out three plans of uniting with the Big 12, according to Thamel.
- Pooling rights
- A scheduling concept
- Fully combining the leagues
Of those, Thamel reports the Big 12 was most interested in a full-scale merger, but after thinking it over, the Big 12 decided against it.