CU Buffs officially ditch sinking Pac-12, vote for Big 12 return

The University of Colorado Board of Regents unanimously approved a resolution allowing the school to re-join the Big 12 Conference effective for the 2024-25 academic year.

The news comes as a vote was held Thursday hours after news exploded that Colorado would be departing their decade stay in the Pac-12. The news had been rumored somewhat over the past year since UCLA and USC left for the Big Ten and the conference has begun to fall apart.

“After careful thought and consideration, it was determined that a switch in conference would give CU Boulder the stability, resources, and exposure necessary for long-term future success in a college athletics environment that is constantly evolving. The Big 12’s national reach across three time zones as well as our shared creative vision for the future we feel makes it an excellent fit for CU Boulder, our students, faculty, and alumni,” a joint news statement from chancellor Philip DiStefano and athletic director Rick George read. “These decisions are never easy and we’ve valued our 12 years as proud members of the Pac-12 Conference. We look forward to achieving new goals while embarking on this exciting next era as members of the Big 12 Conference.

A statement from the Commissioner. pic.twitter.com/UtGgY5WnTf

— Big 12 Conference (@Big12Conference) July 27, 2023

The exit would comes after this 2023-24 season, which is also the end of the current Pac-12 TV deal. Pac-12 leadership has failed to get a new deal done, meaning no exit fee for CU on their way out of the Pac-12.

Meanwhile, the Big 12 is in a lot healthier of a TV situation, but like the Pac-12 lost UCLA and USC, the Big 12 is losing Texas and Oklahoma.

The University of Colorado was in the Big 12 from 1996 to 2010 before departing for the Pac-12 and was traditionally in the precursor Big 8 before that.

The Buffaloes will be one of 13 teams in the conference, joining mainstays like Kansas, Kansas State, Iowa and Oklahoma State, as well as former SWC schools Texas Tech, Baylor, TCU and Houston. In the grouping too will be newcomers as of this year, BYU, UCF, Cincinnati and West Virginia.

The Buffaloes kicked off a lot of these conference shakeups more than a decade ago and go home to the plains. But the Buffs may not be alone in going to the Big 12 as others are rumored to make the grouping 14 or 16 large. Still, a lot can happen and change quick in college sports these days.

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