Colin Cowherd calls out Pac-12 in wake of USC, UCLA departure

Sports analyst and media personality Colin Cowherd is all in on the USC Trojans and UCLA Bruins, leaving the Pac-12 for the Big Ten. And for all the fans up in arms about the two Los Angeles team’s departure to the East Coast/Midwest-based conference, he has a message for them and puts the onus on the Pac-12.

“Listen so many people are tied to tradition; I get it. But what tradition are you giving up? Years ago I’m watching Vince Young and Texas beat Michigan in one of the great Rose Bowl’s I’ve ever watched,” said Cowherd. “At that point I gave up the Rose bowl as having to be a Big Ten team and a Pac-12 team. The Pac-12 simply hasn’t held up its end of the bargain. You can blame Larry Scott the commissioner.”

When it comes to college football, the PAC 12 conference has barely been able to keep its head above water since the early 2000s USC Trojans teams. Oregon and Washington, both respectively, have either played for a BCS national championship or represented their conference in the College Football Playoff. But ever since the after-mentioned Trojans team, the PAC 12 has failed to win a college football national championship.

According to Cowherd, not only is it the fault of the conference’s commissioner, Larry Scott, but of the West Coast lifestyle as well.

“The truth is we have more pro sports here. We got more things to do out West. The economy is great… we got pro teams everywhere. In the South, that college football program it’s everything in the community. It’s everything within 50 miles to 100 miles.”

For some states in the South and Midwest, their collegiate sports programs are at the center of their sports world. States like Alabama, Mississippi, and Arkansas do not have at least one sports franchise within the NFL, NBA, or Major League Baseball. And without any major professional sports within close proximity, that leaves their fans to only focus on their school’s athletic programs.

If the reasons above do not move the needle for you, that is okay. And that’s because both schools’ needles jumped when they saw their possible cut from the annual television income once they join the Big Ten.

“We’re gonna more than double their annual television income. They’re gonna fill their stadiums with amazing Wisconsin, Hawkeye, Nittany Lion, Nebraska, Buckeye, Wolverine, and Spartan fans. More TV games, more pack stadiums, more revenue, more guaranteed revenue. It’s a win across the board… When I first heard it yesterday, my takeaway is, I am more excited for the future of college football than ever before.”