Who could join Boise State in new Pac-12? Will it be Power Five conference? What we know
On Thursday morning, Boise State fans woke up to the (probably) exciting news that the school will join the Pac-12 Conference starting in the 2026-27 academic year.
The move, pending approval from the Idaho State Board of Education, would see Boise State join fellow Mountain West members Fresno State, San Diego State and Colorado State in making the switch.
Oregon State and Washington State are the only two schools remaining from the previous iteration of the Pac-12, which was potentially facing its end after 10 members left in the seemingly never-ending cycle of conference realignment.
If all goes to plan, Boise State will continue competing in the Mountain West through the 2025-26 school year before joining the Pac-12 on July 1, 2026.
While the agreement could open up a new, exciting future for Boise State, it also begs numerous questions — many of which are hard to answer at this point. Who else is good enough and big enough to join this new Pac-12? Will that be the name of the league going forward? What are the financial implications?
Here’s what we know so far and what questions remain.
What teams will make up the new Pac-12?
Boise State’s move comes amid a significant conference reshuffling in college athletics.
The Pac-12, which has existed in one form or another since 1916, suffered a major exodus in recent years and faced extinction. USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington all left for the Big Ten, while Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State and Utah headed to the Big 12. Cal and Stanford left for the ACC.
The two remaining teams, Washington State and Oregon State, were added to Mountain West teams’ football schedules this season. Now the duo will return to a redone Pac-12.
The new-look conference still has work to do, though, because adding four of the big Mountain West programs in a number of sports makes the total just six. NCAA and Football Bowl Subdivision rules require a minimum of eight teams before a conference is recognized.
Cal and Stanford, who fit into the ACC geographically about as well as Oregon State would fit in the SEC, could possibly be lured back to the Pac-12, but would either school want to test the legal waters of departing so soon after joining.
Other Mountain West schools might try to wedge their way into the Pac-12, including UNLV and New Mexico, but they arguably are not as attractive. UNLV poses the greatest upside for the Pac-12 because of the Las Vegas media market, and it’s highly unlikely that the Rebels would turn down an invite.
Air Force could be another possibility, as service academies have strong academic credentials for a conference, and Colorado Springs is a larger market than Fort Collins, home to Colorado State.
CBS’ Dennis Dodd reported that schools west of the Mississippi River are most likely to be in the running, and the rest of the Mountain West could break up and finds homes elsewhere. It’s possible schools such as Memphis and UTSA, members of the American Athletic Conference, could be Pac-12 targets.
Other than that, the pickings could be slim.
Will the Pac-12 become a Power Five conference again?
The Pac-12 lost its Power Five status, obviously, when it fell apart. It begged the question of whether a Group of Five conference would be elevated.
With the conference being reborn, the Pac-12 could regain its place, but it would take a lot of work. A Power Five conference is given more voting privileges within the NCAA landscape and receives more money from the College Football Playoff distribution model.
Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellinger reported that it’s unlikely the Pac-12 will earn such status again, but there is an option for increased revenue from the CFP from 2027 onward.
As it stands now, the College Football Playoff guarantees spots for the five highest-rated conference champions. That fifth spot could come from a future Pac-12 just as easily as it could come from the current Mountain West.
What money is involved and what would a TV deal look like?
Each departing Mountain West school must pay the conference at least $17 million, but it’s expected that the Pac-12 will offset that cost, according to a report from Action Network’s Brett McMurphy.
The Pac-12 is also expected to pay $43 million to the Mountain West as part of a scheduling agreement between the two conferences.
It’s unclear what the conference’s future TV deal might look like; media income was one of the reasons many Pac-12 teams left the conference in the first place. For example, a USA Today story reported that in the 2021 fiscal year, Big Ten schools earned approximately $48.9 million per year from media deals, while the Pac-12 could offer only $19.8 million annually.
The CW and Fox have picked up Washington State and Oregon State games for the 2024-25 academic year. National networks ESPN and NBC could be interested in striking a deal with the revitalized Pac-12.
The Pac-12 Network shut down in June, but a much smaller broadcast studio called Pac-12 Enterprises has continued to operate and could try to make a comeback once the league gets going.
Will it even still be called the Pac-12?
Conferences often undergo realignment without going through a name change. The Pac-12 has undergone numerous name changes through the years, often just to reflect the number of members.
Upon its creation in 1916, the conference was called the Pacific Coast Conference. The name stuck until 1959, before it went by the Big Five and Big Six for numerous seasons, before switching to the Pacific-8 Conference in 1968. As more teams were added, the name was updated to the Pac-10 and Pac-12.
The Big 12 recently added four former Pac-12 teams and lost Oklahoma and Texas to the SEC, bringing its team total to 14. It’s still called the Big 12.
The Big Ten has 18 teams after adding four former Pac-12 schools. Even when it was 14 teams, it was called the Big Ten. In college conference realignment, a name is about as important as geography.
