Joel Klatt believes Brett Yormark got the stability he wanted for Big 12 by adding Colorado

The Colorado Buffaloes’ recent move to the Big 12 can feel like a sudden loss for the Pac-12 conference. But maybe the loss isn’t as sudden as it appears. According to Fox Sports college football insider Joe Klatt, the start of the Buffaloes’ migration could be dated back to October of 2022. 

“Alright, these two conferences had very different outlooks about this situation, this reality,” said Klatt. “The Pac-12 had this view…  they had this notion that the pie is actually much bigger than it is, and there’s bigger deals to be had because of streamers. And don’t worry, we’re going to be rescued, and our deal is going to be bigger because of streamers and technology. So they thought that the pie was actually bigger than it was. The Big 12 point was actually more, I would call it, rooted in reality; which was they needed to get to the table first and eat first. And so they did.”

Last October, the Big 12 agreed to terms on a new media rights deal with both ESPN and Fox Sports, the two leaders in college football coverage nationwide. Meanwhile, the Pac-12 has yet to agree to terms on a new media deal for their conference. 

The willingness of the Big 12 to get a deal done quickly for their members, coupled with the lack of one for the Pac-12, and how both conferences viewed the negotiation for their immediate deals, ultimately led to Colorado heading back to the conference they once called home. 

“Brett Yormark’s decision and the Big 12’s leadership’s decision to get to that deal first is why we are here. When he talked to me for big new conversations, he said as such: it was the most imperative thing that we had to do was go out there and solidify the deal with the traditional partners, ESPN and Fox. So that we had stability. And that stability was paramount and everything that happened with Colorado.” 

With the Big 12 having a media rights deal in place, their commissioner Brett Yormark had a bargaining chip in place that the Pac-12 did not: financial and media stability. His ability to survey the landscape and close in on a deal quickly for the conference ultimately put them in a position where additional expansion was more than feasible. And the Pac-12 betting on a more significant opportunity from streaming giants may have just doomed the conference, or at least caused a setback. 

“So he gets the stability that he wants, and then the Pac-12 has these visions of some saving grace from a streamer that really hasn’t materialized. And now, all of a sudden, the one deal to be had has been had by the Big 12.

“So they not only get the resources of that pie, the only resources left out there to spend on live sports, but they also get the exposure. And it’s the exposure that is the traditional exposure that most college football fans expect, which is the two biggest and most premier college football networks out there: ESPN obviously, which almost made college football and Fox Sports. And so there we are. All of a sudden, the Big 12 has this amazing amount of stability and exposure. Well, that’s going to be very valuable then as we move forward.”  

This is not the only blow in conference realignment the Pac-12 was dealt. After losing USC and UCLA last offseason, this offseason they had the opportunity to add a quality sports institution, San Diego State. Instead, the Aztecs stayed in the Mountain West Conference, a Group-of-5 conference, instead of joining the Power-5’s Pac-12.

The writing is not yet on the wall for the Pac-12. They still have yet to announce their new media rights deal, which is said to be coming soon. But for now, they must come to terms with losing their third conference affiliate in the last two offseasons.