Big 12 Looking Into Further Expansion With Gonzaga
After a year-long venture that saw the Pac-12 fail to secure a media rights deal and expand, the conference is now on track to no longer exist in just a few months' time.
As for Utah, they along with Colorado and the two Arizona Pac-12 programs will be making a jump to the Big 12 in 2024. A conference that will have eight new members across the span of two years, and may also be in the market for another member according to reports.
According to Action Network's Brett McMuprhy, the Big 12 is 'seriously considering' adding Gonzaga as a men’s basketball member in either 2024 or 2025. The decision to re-open talks with the Northwest powerhouse apparently was inspired by the fact that the Big 12 saw Stanford, Cal, and SMU join the ACC at a discounted rate in terms of how much money they'll be distributed from the conference's media rights deal.
As pointed out by McMurphy, the Big 12 had four programs in Kansas, Baylor, Houston and fellow future member Arizona all ranked in the top 11 of last year’s final AP Top 25 rankings. Adding Gonzaga would push the conference to 17 total teams, and would also mean that five of the best programs in the country will be a Big 12 member.
