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Pac-12 insider reports momentum favoring Stanford, Cal joining the ACC

On3-Social-Profile_GRAYby:On3 Staff Report•08/17/23
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(Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports)

Conference realignment could be picking up steam yet again, as a Pac-12 insider expects there could be movement in the next 24 hours on that front.

Things have settled a bit since the Big Ten officially added Oregon and Washington and the Big 12 added Arizona, Arizona State and Utah.

But Pac-12 insider Jon Wilner notes that there could still be some developments surrounding California and Stanford potentially leaving for the ACC.

“My hunch is the next 24 hours will provide clarity on the ACC front — and that momentum is currently trending in favor of the Bears and Cardinal,” Wilner wrote on Twitter. “But we shall see.”

To date an ACC move by the two prestigious academic Pac-12 programs has been blocked by four schools in the conference voting against their inclusion: Clemson, Florida State, North Carolina and NC State. At least one of those schools would have to flip their vote to allow the two programs in for it to happen.

It certainly sounds like the ACC might potentially be working toward an agreement that could flip votes.

How Cal, Stanford fit in to the conference realignment picture

The Pac-12’s nearly 14-month long media rights negotiations are at the eye of the realignment hurricane. Talks of a deal fell through in early August after George Kliavkoff presented a streaming deal with Apple, and the Big Ten and Big 12 were waiting in the wings.

USC and UCLA were already on their way to the Big Ten in 2024 — they announced that last July. But Oregon and Washington announced their decisions to join them, making it an 18-team league after this year.

In late July, Colorado announced its return to the Big 12 as realignment picked up once again. Commissioner Brett Yormark acted quickly, immediately showing interest in Arizona, On3’s Eric Prisbell previously reported. He not only got the Wildcats, but he also got Arizona State and Utah to leave the Pac-12 and take the Big 12 to 16 teams.

The Big 12 has 14 teams in 2023, but will lose Oklahoma and Texas to the SEC in 2024. The league already added BYU, Cincinnati, Houston and UCF to help offset those losses, but will now add four more Power 5 schools, as well.

On3’s Nick Schultz also contributed to this report