The Pac-12 has a new member after searching across the country for another school. According to insider Brett McMurphy of The Action Network, the Pac-12 is adding Gonzaga to its list of schools.
Gonzaga is leaving the West Coast Conference and joining the Pac-12. Although Gonzaga does not have a football team, the team will still receive a full share of the conference’s revenue, according to McMurphy.
Source reports: Gonzaga leaves West Coast Conference and moves to Pac-12 @ActionNetworkHQPac-12 still needs at least two football members by 2026, but Gonzaga, even without a football team, will receive a full share of conference revenue in Pac-12, a source said
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) 23 September 2024
The signing of Gonzaga is a huge win for the Pac-12 Conference, especially in the world of college basketball. The Bulldogs have been one of the better and more consistent teams in college basketball over the past few decades.
Although they have yet to bring home a league title, the Bulldogs have reached the NCAA championship game twice in the last 10 seasons, losing narrowly to the University of North Carolina in 2017 and the University of Baylor in 2021.
This move to land Gonzaga came after news broke that the Pac-12 was considering other universities to add to the mix. McMurphy also mentioned that the conference was considering the University of Las Vegas, Nevada and Utah State over the weekend.
“UNLV and Utah State are the top expansion targets for the Pac-12 if the league decides to add schools to its geographic scope, sources told the Action Network.”
Photo by David Becker/Getty Images
After the Pac-12 lost several teams at the start of the 2024-25 sports season, the conference has worked hard to acquire more talent, with the USC Trojans, UCLA Bruins, Oregon Ducks and Washington Huskies all moving to the Big Ten.
The Utah Utes, Colorado Buffalos, Arizona Wildcats and Arizona State Sun Devils all moved to the Big 12. Finally, the University of California Golden Bears and Stanford University Cardinal moved to the ACC. That left only the Oregon State Beavers and Washington State Cougars in the Pac-12.
With the addition of Gonzaga, the Pac-12 has gained several teams in recent weeks. The conference just welcomed the Colorado State Rams, Fresno State Bulldogs, San Diego State Aztecs and Boise State Broncos.
Nicknamed the “Conference of Champions,” the Pac-12 prides itself on being competitive in all aspects of its athletic performance. The conference has won more NCAA titles in team sports than any other conference throughout its history.
This move will give them more relevance in the future and could just be the beginning of a new reality for the Pac-12.
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