CODE RED! CODE RED! We have more college football conference shakeups as it’s been announced that USC and UCLA plan to move to the Big Ten as early 2024. While nothing has been finalized yet, it looks like these two storied programs will be playing in the midwest six times a year.
How Does This Impact the Pac-12?
While this is still very murky and we don’t have any real details ironed out, a question looms–what does this mean for the Pac-12? While UCLA and USC aren’t the most successful programs, they are two of the most notable. Washington, Oregon, and Utah have been running the show the past few years, but the loss of these two Los Angeles-based universities could hurt the Pac-12 in many ways. Competitiveness drops off, which means recruiting drops off. The butterfly effect continues because worse recruiting means fewer guys in the NFL.
The Pac 12 will now look to bring more teams into their conference. BYU would have been a top choice, but they’re going to the Big 12. I’d say they’ll probably reach out to Boise State, Air Force, Nevada, UNLV, North Dakota State, and New Mexico State. At that point, they’ll have to gauge interest and see who is the best fit. They could then add either two or four teams and have a “revamped” Pac-12.
How Does This Alter the Big Ten?
Then, there is the other elephant in the room–how does this alter the Big Ten? The first thing I think of is the geographic wrench thrown into the conference. Will Rutgers or Maryland have to travel two thousand miles across the country to play UCLA or USC? How will the divisions work? I’d guess that UCLA and USC will be in the Big Ten West and two teams will shift to the East.
When I think of UCLA and USC having to play in Iowa or Minnesota in November, it makes me happy. Linebackers from California having to go head-on with a fullback from Michigan State in fifteen degree weather will be entertaining, to say the least. Another aspect that I mentioned earlier is recruiting. Michigan, Ohio State, Michigan State, and Iowa are all phenomenal programs with solid recruiting history. I just don’t see USC or UCLA competing with them to land recruits in the nation’s second-best conference. Today has certainly been one of the craziest days in recent memory in college sports.
