Report: Pac-12 decision timeline for Memphis, Tulane, South Florida revealed
The Pac-12 has already added a myriad of schools to their conference, as they rebuild their brand, and a decision from three other programs — Memphis, Tulane and South Florida — could be coming by Monday evening.
According to columnist John Canzano, “Leaders at Memphis, Tulane, and South Florida are weighing an offer to join the Pac-12 Conference and will decide on Monday,” and, “Today is the day to make a decision,” a source told Canzano’s Bald Faced Truth publication.
Evidently, the Pac-12 could have nine programs within their conference by the end of Monday, but in the event the three programs in question decide not to join, Canzano added, “the Pac-12 is expected to pivot and look westward to form a more geographically aligned conference.”
With Oregon State and Washington State already in-hand, the Pac-12 added Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State and San Diego State. If they’re able to land Memphis, Tulane and South Florida, it would be a huge boon for the conference, but it’d be fascinating to see where they’d turn otherwise.
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Regardless, it’s easy to see that the chief goal now for the Pac-12 is to continue adding members, as they look to return to their roots after being ravaged by the Big Ten and Big 12 last year.
“The interest in the Pac-12 as a brand, and the interest in the future conference that we’re going to create and build is very, very high across a lot of different stakeholders,” Pac-12 commissioner Teresa Goul recently told On3, via Pete Nakos. “Whether it’s potential media partners, whether it’s other corporate partners, institutions from other conferences, there’s just a lot of buzz and a lot of energy and a lot of interest in what we’re doing moving forward.”
Moreover, something paramount to programs like Memphis, Tulane and USF in considering the Pac-12 over the AAC is the topic of TV distribution. Sources have told Nakos that it could range between $10 to $15 million annually.
Additionally, Yahoo! Sports also reported the Grant of Rights would last five years through 2030-31. Top AAC programs are currently making roughly $8 to 9 million annually all-in.
The other key point is the cost of an exit fee, Nakos reported. SMU reportedly paid $25 million to leave for the ACC. ESPN has reported the price tag could be nearly $27.5 million per school.
Of course, the elephant in the room for the Pac-12 is the fact that they need to add at least two more schools to reach the NCAA’s minimum to qualify as an FBS conference. The deadline to reach eight schools is July 2026. They might have to look elsewhere, if Memphis, Tulane and USF stay put.
On3’s Pete Nakos contributed to this article.