Yes, Big 12 fans throughout the conference’s central Plains footprint are enjoying the Pac-12’s moment of crisis, anguish and possible death.
If the Arizona schools follow Colorado out the door, that’s the worst-case scenario for the Pac-12. It’s hard to see the conference remaining intact if that happens. Utah would have little to no reason to stick around. The same goes for Washington … and Oregon … and Stanford … and Cal-Berkeley. Washington State and Oregon State don’t want anything more or less than being Pac-12 members, but the other schools have actual options to varying degrees. If the Arizona schools leave, that’s probably it for the Pac-12.
Big 12 fans recall that when their conference was on the ropes a few years ago, people wondered if the Pac-12 would poach the remnants and put the Big 12 out of its existence. The media fueled that line of thought (albeit more out of speculative interest and a desire to get clicks than pure anti-Big 12 animus — that point might be irrelevant to some), and Big 12 fans remembered.
Now that the Pac-12 is in peril, every Big 12 fan is smiling and munching on popcorn.
Of any Big 12 fan base, however, one is especially reveling in this Pac-12 death drama. We’ll walk through the backstory on this one:
CULTURE
Sept. 10, 2022; Provo, Utah; Brigham Young Cougars wide receiver Talmage Gunther is embraced by a fan after the Cougars beat the Baylor Bears at LaVell Edwards Stadium. Gabriel Mayberry-USA TODAY Sports
BYU is a religious school with a particular set of values. The Pac-12 is a collection of mostly West Coast schools. California and Pacific Northwest institutions never provided an easy cultural fit with Brigham Young University.
ELITISM
Sept. 10, 2022; Provo, Utah; Brigham Young Cougars fans storm the field after the Cougars beat the Baylor Bears at LaVell Edwards Stadium. Gabriel Mayberry-USA TODAY Sports
BYU won the 1984 national championship of college football. Ty Detmer won the 1990 Heisman Trophy. The school was highly competitive in the first decade of the 2000s under former coach Bronco Mendenhall. BYU wasn’t the big cheese in Western college football when the Pac-12 last expanded, but BYU wasn’t a weak brand, either. The Pac-12 wouldn’t give BYU the time of day in expansion discussions. The Pac-12 seemed to thumb its nose at BYU. Disdain might be a reasonable way of characterizing the Pac-12’s attitude toward BYU.
This is a core part of the story.
RETURN TO THE MOUNTAIN WEST
Brian Losness-USA TODAY Sports
“Return to the Mountain West!” people said to BYU fans when the school was independent. That line of thought might have been sincerely intended to help BYU fans, but that seemed like the coward’s way and an act of concession. Cougar fans wouldn’t have it. They wanted to hold out for something more: Power Five conference membership. If the Pac-12 wouldn’t give it, the Big 12 was the next frontier.
BRIGHAM YOUNG
Nov. 27, 2021; Los Angeles, California; BYU Cougars quarterback Jaren Hall (3) throws the ball against the Southern California Trojans in the first half at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
A school named after Brigham Young, rooted in a tradition that honors Joseph Smith, was not about to stop exploring and seeking a new home. This was the wrong school to put in a corner. BYU’s whole existence is connected to the journey and the pursuit of something more, something better. That’s powerful stuff, and it matters in this context.
AAC
Dickie’s Arena in Fort Worth, Texas where AAC officials officially cancelled their conference tournament basketball games following concerns of the COVID-19 pandemic on Thursday, March 12, 2020.
Going to the AAC would have been no better than returning to the Mountain West. BYU wanted Power Five membership, not Group of Five status. Even though being independent limited BYU’s access to the New Year’s Six bowl structure, maintaining independent status was worth it, because it left open the door to the Big 12.
BYU TO THE BIG 12
Sept. 11, 2021; Provo, Utah; Brigham Young Cougars head coach Kalani Sitake is dowsed in ice water as they celebrate during the final seconds of their game, beating the Utah Utes at LaVell Edwards Stadium. Jeffrey Swinger-USA TODAY Sports
In light of everything above, BYU going to the Big 12 was a triumph beyond merely graduating to the Power Five level. It was a victory over the naysayers who said BYU should return to the Mountain West, accept the AAC or try to get to the New Year’s Six by seeking Group of Five membership in general. It was an affirmation of the desire to shoot for the maximum.
Joining the Big 12 matters to Cincinnati, Houston and UCF, but it matters more to BYU.
PAC-12 AND SAN DIEGO STATE
Dec. 4, 2021; Carson, California; San Diego State Aztecs wide receiver Mekhi Shaw (83) celebrates with wide receiver BJ Busbee (5) his touchdown against the Utah State Aggies during the first half of the Mountain West Conference championship at Dignity Health Sports Park. Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
The fact BYU has a home in the Big 12 while the Pac-12 has failed to bring aboard San Diego State — and might suffer extinction because of that failure — is enormously satisfying to BYU fans. We’ll explain below:
BYU-SAN DIEGO STATE RIVALRY
Nov. 26, 2021; Carson, California; Boise State Broncos quarterback Hank Bachmeier (19) throws the ball against the San Diego State Aztecs in the second half at Dignity Health Sports Park. San Diego State defeated Boise State 27-16. Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
BYU and San Diego State played intense WAC football games in the 1980s. They dueled in the 2000s as Mountain West basketball rivals before BYU left the conference in 2011 (announcing the move in 2010). BYU and Wyoming had an intense rivalry. BYU-New Mexico was passionate. BYU-San Diego State had more of a cultural contrast and was therefore a matchup in which both sides took extra pleasure in seeing the other side lose.
SAN DIEGO STATE’S PREDICAMENT
April 3, 2023; Houston, Texas; San Diego State Aztecs guard Adam Seiko (2) looks on from the bench against the Connecticut Huskies during the second half in the national championship game of the 2023 NCAA Tournament at NRG Stadium. Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
Look at everything around you: BYU fans have to be laughing at San Diego State’s predicament. San Diego State wanted to leave the Mountain West. In other words, it wanted to do what BYU actually did in 2011. However, the Pac-12 didn’t on-board the Aztecs. Now, if the Pac-12 dies, San Diego State could be stuck in the Mountain West for the long haul.
The scenario could not be more delicious for BYU fans.
IF SAN DIEGO STATE JOINS A SMALLER PAC-12
March 24, 2023; Louisville, Kentucky; San Diego State Aztecs head coach Brian Dutcher reacts during the second half of the NCAA Tournament Round of 16 against the Alabama Crimson Tide at KFC YUM! Center. Jamie Rhodes-USA TODAY Sports
If Colorado goes to the Big 12 and San Diego State latches onto the Pac-12, the Pac-12 would carry on but in a diminished form. A Pac-12 with Colorado still around and San Diego State plus SMU (12 members, not 10) would be a decent conference. If it’s just a Pac-10 with SDSU replacing Colorado, and with SMU not joining, that’s not going to add up to a lot of revenue for the conference. It would slide toward the Group of Five status in terms of quality. It would easily be the worst of the Power Fives. BYU fans wouldn’t see the Pac-12 die, but they would see the Pac-12 shrink. That would still be a victory for them.
THE LONG GAME
Nov. 27, 2021; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans wide receiver Gary Bryant Jr. (1) battles for a pass against BYU Cougars defensive back Kaleb Hayes (18) in the second half at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
BYU appears to have won. San Diego State seems to have lost. The Pac-12 is suffering. Life could not be much better if you’re a BYU fan right now.
UTAH AND THE PAC-12
Oct. 31, 2020; Provo, Utah; LaVell Edwards Stadium is shown before the start of an NCAA college football game between BYU and Western Kentucky on Saturday, Oct. 31, 2020, in Provo, Utah. Rick Bowmer/Pool Photo-USA TODAY Sports
Rival Utah was good enough to be invited to and included in the Pac-12. BYU was left outside the gates. BYU being on the stronger side of the Big 12-Pac-12 battle is in many ways a victory over Utah. That part can’t be ignored.
BYU AND UTAH
Dec. 2, 2022; Las Vegas, Nevada; Utah Utes wide receiver Money Parks (10) runs the ball for a touchdown against the Southern California Trojans during the second half of the PAC-12 Football Championship at Allegiant Stadium. Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
BYU and Utah both left the Mountain West just over a decade ago. Both wanted Power Five status. Only Utah gained it. Now BYU has it, and Utah is in jeopardy of losing it.
BYU fans are watching every hoped-for scenario come to pass — so far.
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