Paul Finebaum recalls when Texas almost joined the Pac-12

The Big 12 is at the center of conference realignment at the moment, both with additions and subtractions. You could say the same over a decade ago, with four programs leaving in favor the Big Ten/SEC/Pac-12. TCU and West Virginia were eventually added as a replacement, forming the conference’s modern look.

History almost looked different though, with ESPN’s Paul Finebaum reflecting on the time the Texas Longhorns almost joined the Pac-12. Then-athletic director DeLoss Dodd was looking for different options for the program, wanting to get out of the Big 12.

Eventually, a few things got in the way, with Finebaum saying in-state rival Texas A&M being one of them — a common theme throughout that process. Of course, the Aggies wound up heading to the SEC and the rivalry ended on the football field.

“If you go back 13 years ago, the Pac-12 came within a whiskey of getting Texas,” Finebaum said. “That move was predicated more on academics because Texas felt like it was in with a bunch of ne’er-do-wells in the Big 12, and they wanted to roll with Cal Berkeley and Stanford and UCLA and USC and that almost happened, too. But, Texas A&M, politics got in the way.”

Texas would have opened up a whole new world to the Pac-12, being the furthest east program in the conference. They would have joined Colorado at the beginning of the 2012 season with a fresh start and maybe even fellow Big 12 members would have followed.

Instead, the Longhorns will be taking a different route ahead of the 2024 season. One Chris Del Conte is likely happier with than what could have been 13 years ago.

“Here we are 13 years later, Texas has moved east as opposed to west,” Finebaum said.

Just one more season in the Big 12 remains for Texas before they jump over to the SEC alongside Red River rival Oklahoma. Both are part of what should be the beginning of a new era in College Football, with the SEC, Big Ten, and College Football Playoff all expanding.

The Pac-12 will be taking a hit with USC and UCLA exiting for the Big Ten. Since then, new commissioner George Kliavkoff has struggled to strike a new TV deal or figure out how conference realignment will look for them moving forward.

A path nobody would have believed over a decade ago, the college football landscape is getting ready to change.