Phil Knight could help keep the Pac-12 together in the short-term

The Pac-12 is as unsteady as any conference in college athletics at the moment. Conference realignment has pushed them to the potential brink of coming apart completely. However, to John Canzano, one man might be able to pull it all back together: Phil Knight.

Canzano talked about Knight’s potential role in working with the Pac-12 with On3’s Andy Staples. He said that Knight might just be the right kind of influence to come in and help George Kliavkoff do what needs to be done to save the future of the conference.

“I keep thinking about Phil Knight. He is a legacy guy. It matters to him,” Canzano said. “Does the Pac-12 matter to Phil Knight? I’m trying to get that answer. It could just be as simple as Phil Knight coming in and going, ‘Okay. How do we solve this problem?’ because they need that kind of thinking. They need a guy that has built a company in the room, they need a guy who’s a visionary in the room.”

“I think, if I’m George Kliavkoff, that’s a phone call that I’m making,” said Canzano. “Have a conversation with Phil Knight. And go, ‘What do you think here?’ because he may have a solution that nobody’s thinking about. Or he may be able to write a check that nobody expects.”

USC and UCLA started this whole thing with their move to the Big Ten. Colorado eventually became the next team to jump ship with their move to the Big 12. Now, the remaining schools in the Pac-12, like Knight’s Oregon Ducks along with the Washingtons, Stanfords, and Utahs of the world, don’t have a television deal and, therefore, don’t have much to look forward to as a conference at the moment.

That’s not even to mention that Arizona or Arizona State could really shake them up again as early as today or at some point this week.

Still, if Knight involved himself, Canzano isn’t sure that many of these issues wouldn’t go away. It may not provide an overall solution but, considering his influence, he isn’t sure how Knight’s touch wouldn’t be welcome at this point in the Pac-12’s war room.

Dan Lanning fires shot at Colorado for leaving Pac-12

Colorado’s departure from the Pac-12 back to the Big 12 once again shook up the college football space when it comes to conference realignment. However, it doesn’t sound as though Oregon’s Dan Lanning feels like their absence will be felt very much out west.

Lanning took a shot at Colorado to end his time talking at the Duck’s own media day earlier this afternoon. Per James Crepea of The Oregonian and Brenna Greene of KOIN News in Portland, he doesn’t think the loss of the Buffaloes will matter much to the Pac-12. That’s especially considering how often that they weren’t even in the league’s race.

Dan Lanning on Colorado leaving Pac-12: “Not a big reaction. I’m trying to remember what they won to affect this conference.”

— James Crepea (@JamesCrepea) July 31, 2023

Full quote from Dan Lanning on his reaction to Colorado leaving the conference:

"Not a big reaction. I'm trying to remember what they won to affect this conference and I don't remember. Do you remember them winning anything? I don't remember them winning anything." https://t.co/Kdtf9xgayo pic.twitter.com/XETU03B0Cj

— Brenna Greene (@BrennaGreene_) July 31, 2023

This is one heck of a shot fired by Oregon’s head coach in regard to the Buffaloes. That’s why, if you didn’t have it circled already, you should plan on catching Deion Sanders’ trip up to Eugene on September 23rd considering it just got a whole more interesting thanks to these comments.