College Football Expansion: 1 School Is Out of Pac-12 Contention

Rice will not become a member of the Pac-12, at least not now

College football expansion is in the air once again and now it's the Pac-12 looking to get involved, but the league's realignment will not include one school from the state of Texas.

The Pac-12 will not be adding Rice to the conference, according to college football insider Dennis Dodd.

"As of now" are the notable words of the report, indicating that the two sides have not necessarily shut the door on a move in the future.

It's not known who decided against the merger, whether it was the conference which declined the school, or the school which declined the conference.

The league is looking to sign a new media rights deal and is hoping to add members to increase its inventory and value to TV networks.

Meanwhile, most analysts in the field are of the opinion that networks aren't interested in writing a big check to the Pac-12 considering what the league will look like next season and into the future.

And the Pac-12 is also hoping to prevent some of its current members from jumping ship and potentially joining the Big 12, which is reportedly trying to convince four Pac-12 schools to do just that.

More: Big 12 targeting four Pac-12 schools for football expansion

San Diego State and SMU have emerged as the top two candidates to join the conference and officials have been in contact with the schools, per reports.

The Pac-12 is looking hard for options in the new marketplace after the bombshell announcement by USC and UCLA, the two premier programs in the league's biggest market, that they will join the Big Ten in 2024.

(Dodd)

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