Report: Arizona State, Utah remain 'viable options' for Big 12 during expansion talks

It appears Arizona is nearing a move to the Big 12, according to a report from Yahoo! Sports’ Ross Dellenger. But the conference also has its sights set on other targets in the Pac-12.

Dellenger reported Arizona State and Utah remain viable options for the Big 12 during expansion talks. However, those conversations aren’t moving as fast as they did with Arizona, which conference executives approved Thursday. Dellenger added a resolution to the matter “is expected in a matter of days.”

By bringing in U of A — barring Board of Regents approval, of course — the Big 12 would get to 14 teams next year. The Arizona Board of Regents also oversees Arizona State and met Thursday night. The agenda called for an immediate move to executive session, and athletics was set to be part of the conversation.

Decisions from Big 12 expansion targets Arizona State and Utah have not progressed as quickly as Arizona, but they remain viable options for the league and a conclusion is expected in a matter of days, sources tell @YahooSports.

— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) August 4, 2023

The Big 12 is now closing in on a move to 14 teams after bringing back Colorado last week. Oklahoma and Texas are gearing up to leave for the SEC, and four teams — Cincinnati, BYU, Houston and UCF — are coming in this year. The two departures kicked off the latest round of realignment. USC and UCLA then announced they’d leave the Pac-12 for the Big Ten in late June 2022, taking the conference down to 10 teams.

By bringing in Colorado, the Big 12 would go to 13 teams after the two teams leave. With Arizona waiting in the wings for Board approval, all signs point to the league staying at 14 teams.

As for the Pac-12, the situation is growing even more dire with just eight teams now set to be part of the conference in 2024. The league’s ongoing media rights negotiations have been a major issue as the vultures swirled on the realignment front, and commissioner George Kliavkoff presented a “primary streaming deal” with Apple earlier this week. As part of the deal, there would be reported payouts of about $20 million — far less than the Big 12 and Big Ten’s deals.

Arizona president Robert Robbins remained steadfast he wanted to see what numbers the Pac-12 presented before talking about the university’s athletics future. He got those during Kliavkoff’s initial meeting Aug. 1 and saw two Board of Regents meetings follow. The board didn’t take any action regarding athletics in the first meeting, but it was on the agenda for the second one. However, the meeting immediately went into executive session.

The Pac-12’s offer from Apple will reportedly expire Friday, meaning the conference has to act quickly to get a deal done and possibly prevent further departures.