Colorado leaves the PAC 12..... What does this mean for both sides?

The Colorado Buffaloes have become the third PAC 12 school to leave the conference. Are more teams in pursuit of leaving the conference? Is this a smart move on the Buffaloes part? What does this mean for the remaining schools?

Well, as we all expected, the Colorado Buffaloes have officially left the PAC 12 as of 2024. This will be the last season that we see the Buffaloes in the “Conference of Champions”. Colorado like most of the conference decided that they can no longer wait on the long awaited media rights deal. This whole mess is caused by the media deal taking forever. We are here at this mesh point because the conference decided to drag their feet. They wanted stability so they made the most logical move that they could think of.

Is it over for the PAC 12

With this latest move by the Buffaloes to leave the conference, it seems as though the conference is dwindling from the powerhouse that it was known as. Your two biggest schools, USC and UCLA, have bounced for the Big Ten. The only current logical decision, if you are to save the conference, is to bring up group of 5 schools to give them Power 5 status and add to the conference. Who is it likely to be though? Well, let’s look at our options.

Option 1: SMU Mustangs

The easiest and most likely route to currently take with the conference sitting at 9 teams is to bring in SMU. This will bring the conference back to its roots, becoming the PAC 10 once again. Well, what does SMU do for the conference you ask? It does a lot for the conference. First and foremost, they don’t have to be sitting at a crazy number like 9. Second, this will allow for the conference recruiting to open up more with SMU being in the stranglehold state of Texas. SMU will be able to see better competition on a regular basis and not just in the non-conference slate once a year to make a big paycheck.

Option #2: San Diego State Aztecs

San Diego State as another option here makes sense. SDSU being a member of the PAC 12 is there to save the recruiting in the southern California region. At least that is what is to be believed. San Diego State has historically been mediocre, all the way to having blips of good to great seasons. Whether or not this would be or is a boost to the conference is yet to be seen. One thing is for certain, this is definitely a boost in not only confidence but also competition for SDSU. It will be intertesting to see if the Aztecs can handle this jump up one level as well if not similar to way TCU has handled their jump up to the Big 12 twelve years ago.

Option #3: Boise State Broncos

Boise State……. This is LONG overdue my friends. Boise State has proven, at least on the field wise, that they deserve to be in a Power 5 conference. Boise State as an option for the PAC 12 is a great thing, because you are elevating a smaller school to the big time. In my opinion, they would also almost feel like a bring along with our option #2 in San Diego State. There is kind of a small rivalry there brewing, just waiting to ignite. I think from a pure sports perspective, not only is this the right move to make for the PAC but it is the best. This program is the most deserving.

Option #4: Wyoming Cowboys

The Wyoming Cowboys could be another option to replace teams in the PAC conference. They have seen recent success in football and the Basketball program seems to be having a decent past few years. The Cowboys would bring a top tier defense from the Mountain West. This would stretch the conference into the state of Wyoming, for the first time ever. Therefore, it would slightly open the recruiting reach for the conference, but not at the same impact as SMU.

Option #5: Fresno State Bulldogs

Fresno State offensive lineman Dontae Bull, #72, heads into the stadium on senior night as they take on Nevada during the first half of an NCAA college football game in Fresno, Calif., Saturday, Nov. 23, 2019. (AP Photo/Gary Kazanjian)

The last likely option to replace the teams the conference is losing are the Fresno State Bulldogs. Now, the Fresno State Bulldogs are coming off of winning the Mountain West conference in 2022. This is a program that will bring in a winning culture, a top tier offense, next to Boise State, in the MWC. This option will also stretch the reach of the PAC’s recruiting arms.

Ladies and Gentlemen, this is the realignment season, crazy things are happening every day. We have word coming on Arizona, Arizona State and Utah possibly moving to the Big 12. Stay tuned here on Shady Sports Network as I will be here to cover it all, as best and as much as I can.