After the announcement that UCLA and USC will be moving on to the Big Ten, the first thoughts in many Arizona Wildcat fans’ minds revolved around the future of their beloved program.
With the impending dissolution of the Pac-12, it makes a lot of sense for Arizona to join the Big 12 conference in a four-team package that includes Arizona, Arizona State, Utah and Colorado.
For the Big 12 it’s easy, as it gets the Phoenix, Denver and Salt Lake City markets while also acquiring a top-15 football program in Utah and a top-10 basketball program in Arizona.
There are multiple aspects as to why this move would enhance Arizona’s athletic standing.
First, the move allows Arizona to ditch a sinking ship.
The Pac-12 conference is on borrowed time as the departure of the LA schools plummeted the new projected conference TV deal’s annual revenue from $500 million to $300 million.
Without the LA schools, it’s hard very hard to see the conference surviving.
A move to Big 12 also allows for Arizona to get out of the joke that is the Pac-12 conference and its marketing and deal-making structure.
It’s no secret that ex-conference commissioner Larry Scott was bad at his job and was enabled by a large number of school presidents who don’t have a particular rooting sports interest.
But does the leadership of new commissioner George Kliavkoff inspire much confidence? This is a man who got scooped by Twitter that his conference was about to lose its two most important entities.
That can’t happen.
It’s hard to envision that the two most marketable remaining schools in the conference, Oregon and Washington, want to be tethered to Oregon State, Washington State, California and Colorado.
Due to the gravitas of both schools, it’s hard to include Oregon and Washington in any conference merger, which means Arizona needs to look out for Arizona.
Now looking at possible conference destinations:
It’s difficult to envision the Big 10 or SEC as logical destinations, given the Big 10’s professed interest in football and academics, and does anyone really want to see a potential SEC football schedule where Arizona could conceivably play Georgia, Alabama, LSU, Auburn, Texas A&M, Oklahoma and Texas in one season?
There have been multiple rumors about a possible merger with the ACC, much of which is intriguing, but the travel logistics and lack of a natural fit are both issues. But a major conference merger that includes schools Clemson, North Carolina, Duke, Florida State, Arizona and Utah among others has staying power.
But from a logistical, monetary and competition perspective the most logical choice is Arizona, ASU, Colorado and Utah joining the Big 12.
Assuming the Big 12 takes in the two Arizona and mountain schools, it would provide a certain amount of stability and expand natural geographic ties.
Football competition would be serviceable, and with programs like Baylor, Oklahoma State and Utah, winning the conference would still likely result in a college football playoff berth and the possibility of getting multiple teams in the championship hunt.
The Big 12 wouldn’t be the SEC, but it would be good enough.
It’s understood that football is about four times more profitable than basketball is, but with the addition of Arizona, the Big 12 would have the potential to be the best basketball conference in the nation.
Kansas, Baylor and Arizona is a trio that rivals any other basketball hierarchy in the country.
Houston, Texas Tech and West Virginia are solid anchors at that second level.
And, let’s be honest, how cool would it be to watch a Tuesday night primetime showdown between Arizona and Kansas in Phog Allen Fieldhouse, as opposed to a 9 p.m. tipoff against UCLA buried on Pac-12 Network?
The Pac-12 Conference is finished as a long-standing entity. The sooner Arizona finds a new conference home, the better for the school and its fans.
Follow Mike Luke on twitter @ironmikeluke
