How Utah ended up in the Big 12, and what the future looks like in its new conference

Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham speaks during the Big 12 football media days in Las Vegas, Tuesday, July 9, 2024. | Lucas Peltier, Associated Press

It’s officially official.

As of Aug. 2, Utah is a member of the Big 12 Conference.

Despite getting a taste of their new conference last month during football media days in Las Vegas, the Utes didn’t officially become members of the Big 12 until Friday, one day after the Pac-12 Conference’s grant of rights expired.

After the collapse of the Pac-12, Utah’s first Power Five conference home, the Utes start a new journey in the Big 12 this month.

Here’s how the Utes got here, and what’s in store for them in their new conference home.

How the Pac-12 collapsed

More than a decade ago, it was Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott on the offensive, trying to expand into a 16-team superconference and effectively kill the Big 12 Conference in the process.

Scott’s plan was to invite Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Colorado to the current 10-team conference. Colorado accepted, concerned that the Big 12 might collapse, but when the other schools decided to stay in the Big 12, the Buffaloes needed a geographic partner.

Utah had been on the Pac-12′s radar during expansion, with athletic director Chris Hill staying in contact with Scott throughout the process, and once it was clear that the other five schools were staying in the Big 12, the Utes got the call, moving from the Mountain West Conference to the Pac-12.

After significant football success in the Mountain West Conference, including undefeated seasons in 2004 and 2008 where they crashed the BCS, Utah finally got a seat at the table.

Utah’s addition to the Pac-12 in 2011 was the pronouncement that the Utes had finally arrived in the college football world.

The effects, for both the athletic program and…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/utah-ended-big-12-future-030005922.html

Author : Deseret News

Publish date : 2024-08-02 03:00:05

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