CU’s Pac-12 rival could soon join Buffs in Big 12

The Buffaloes are roaming back to their traditional plains but could a friend—or better yet a foe—Colorado made out on the west coast be joining them in America’s heartland?

We know the University of Colorado is headed home to the Big 12 following this season of athletics but that will leave their new conference at 13 next year and their old Pac-12 at 9. It seems as though their new conference would like to have 14 schools, if not 16, and the easiest way to get there with prestigious institutions might be taking more from the Buffs’ soon-to-be-old conference.

As another day goes by the Pac-12 is still failing to get a TV deal done for the future and schools are rightfully panicking. Rumors are swirling about which school might be taking the next lifeboat after the Buffs and they’re all now conjoining on the Arizona Wildcats.

On Tuesday, the Arizona Board of Regents—a group that governs both the University of Arizona and Arizona State University met virtually. The public meeting was immediately voted into a private session.

Those two along with the Utah Utes are supposedly joined at the hip. While other rumors have the Wildcats as first ones out the door.

If the U of A does leave that probably ties them to Colorado much the same way Utah has been tied to the Buffaloes during their times in the Pac-12, since they joined together. The Buffs and Utes were set up as rivals in football and for basketball this extended to the two being part of every “mountain” road trip other schools took.

If the conference was sensibly split into divisions, Colorado, BYU and Arizona would fit well enough together, while the next closest school to the three is Texas Tech. Maybe there’s a Southwest division ahead of us that includes the three, TCU and Baylor—or swap one out for Oklahoma State. Fact is there isn’t an easy solution unless the conference goes up to 16, meaning all three other four corners schools joined and even then BYU is in Utah and would maybe fit better with the Arizona schools, meaning Colorado is back with Kansas, Kansas State and Iowa State or something.

All of this is speculative, what is not is that Arizona and seemingly to a lesser extent ASU and Utah are serious about joining Colorado.

What’s interesting about Arizona possibly coming along is it has also struggled with football for a long time. But it’s a basketball power and the Big 12 has thrived recently at hoops. Putting the Jayhawks and Wildcats together would be fun for basketball heads.

Colorado and Arizona haven’t had much intriguing football against each other or in general since the Buffaloes joined. The two have had some great clashes on the hardwood, and for a time in the early 2010s had a budding rivalry that has cooled a bit recently.

Another thing to look for is if the four corners schools go or stay it will have a big impact on what Cal, Stanford, Oregon and Washington do next and if they maybe join the Big Ten.

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