Moving Day: Arizona Athletics Officially joins the Big XII

In yet another blow to traditionalist fans, the woeful mismanagement of the Pac-12 has seen Arizona Athletics, trade the Pacific for the rest of the country joining Colorado in joining the Big XII beginning in 2024-25.

Welp, the inevitable happened, in what is likely going to be the death knell to the Pac-12 as a power five conference as we have come to know it. The Arizona Board of Regents, and University of Arizona leadership have officially made the decision to move on from the Pac-12 Conference after 45 years and head for the heartland of America by joining the Big XII Conference.

Despite giving the Pac-12 Conference every conceivable opportunity to bring a reasonable media rights deal to the table for them to sign, and multiple reports of a deal being “close” President Robert Robbins and Athletic Director Dave Heeke have finally pulled the plug on the status quo and opted for the stability and full pro-rata share of revenue in their move to the Big XII.

In doing so, Arizona Athletics has traded the Pacific Coast and turned their eyes to Disney World, Texas, and the Country Roads of West Virginia (What’s Up Kerr Kriisa!).

How We Got Here?

The simple answer is a year plus of inaction from the Pac-12’s negotiating team in which it appeared they jumped the line to open negotiations before the Big XII. The more complicated answer is a multi-faceted situation, where linear media has started to crash, and sports media companies opting for more streamlined approaches that rendered the Pac-12 a secondary concern following the departure of the LA market.

It doesn’t help that arguably the largest player in ESPN has seen drastic cuts as its owner, The Walt Disney Company, has opted to make some fairly large cuts in an effort to shed billions of dollars in total that was spent over the entirety of the company as a whole.

We’ve also seen Fox make cuts as well, which as the main partner of the Pac-12, has in turn made what could have been expected as the dynamic completely shifted as George Kliavkoff and company tried the failed strategy of holding out and going from first one to the negotiating table, to the last one at the table with companies seemingly comfortable in their college sports portfolio for their linear products that still bring the most eyeballs and ratings.

What’s Next?

Well, for someone like me who currently resides in Florida, it provides the opportunity to see and support Arizona student-athletes with greater ease and ability.

From a competition standpoint, every single conference basketball matchup becomes appointment television, as the additions of a blueblood in Kansas, recent champions Baylor (both men’s and women’s), and strong sides like TCU, West Virginia, Kansas State, Houston, and Oklahoma State, we have now found a deeper and potentially more rigorous conference schedule year in and year out. Might that be why Tommy Lloyd scheduled so difficult this season?

For football, this could turn into a move that could benefit the Wildcats, in that football is markedly easier in the Big XII compared to basketball. While TCU, Oklahoma, and Kansas State will be tough matchups nearly every time out, the rest of the conference is about at the same level if not a bit worse than the Wildcats if Jedd Fisch continues to do what he has on the recruiting trail now, opening up the state of Texas for him to draw from with more regularity.

With our future now solidified, all the attention can now turn to our 2023-2024 Arizona Wildcats as they take on the Pac-12 one final time! As always Bear Down, Arizona!