Pac-12 hosts media day with open bar: 'If anyone has earned the right to drink, it's the Pac-12'

For the last two days in Las Vegas, Big 12 Media Days took place at Allegiant Stadium. With four new teams – and two departures – the conference bag its new era with a bang.

Across town, another media event was taking place with the league that used to play its title games in that building. The Pac-12 gathered for its annual media day, dubbed “After Hours with the Beavs and Cougs,” to debut a new look in more ways than one. Just two schools remain in the conference with Oregon State and Washington State left behind after a groundbreaking round of conference realignment.

The two teams and commissioner Teresa Gould were in attendance for Wednesday’s event. But the media in attendance also received a treat: an open bar.

Pac-12 is holding a scaled-down media event with an open bar here in Vegas.

Commissioner Teresa Gould opens the event by gesturing to the bar: “We are drinking tonight. If anyone has earned the right to drink, it is the Pac-12.” pic.twitter.com/1L2M0SLeAd

— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) July 11, 2024

“We are drinking tonight,” said Gould, pointing to the bar, according to Yahoo! Sports’ Ross Dellenger. “If anyone has earned the right to drink, it is the Pac-12.”

The last 365 days not only shook up the Pac-12 as we know it, but also the college sports landscape as a whole. All told, 10 teams left the league for the Big Ten, Big 12 and ACC as media rights negotiations fell through.

How we got here: Pac-12 down to 2 teams in 2024

The shift began in July 2022 when USC and UCLA announced their plans to leave for the Big Ten. They appeared to be the only two departures until last year when, in the middle of Big Ten Media Days, Colorado announced its intention to leave the Pac-12 and return to the Big 12.

Former commissioner George Kliavkoff then ramped up efforts to get a media deal together in an attempt to stabilize things. The Pac-12 found itself far behind the curve after Brett Yormark and the Big 12 came to an extension on its agreement a year early while the Big Ten entered the first season of its landmark contract with FOX, CBS and NBC.

But when the remaining Pac-12 teams didn’t go for the streaming proposal with Apple, the dam broke. It was off to the races from there.

The other three “Four Corners” schools – Arizona, Arizona State and Utah – joined Colorado in the Big 12. Oregon and Washington then announced they were heading to the Big Ten, meaning the conference was adding four of the notable Pac-12 brands. A few weeks later, Cal and Stanford were off to the ACC, leaving Oregon State and Washington State to figure out what was next.

The two schools vowed to rebuild the Pac-12, although that plan didn’t include Kliavkoff. He parted ways with the conference in February, opening the door for Gould to step into the big chair and take the league into its new era.