Report: Oregon and Washington to join Big Ten
After months of reports and speculations regarding the future of the Pac-12 and its member schools, Oregon and Washington are reportedly set to leave the conference.
Friday morning, Brett McMurphy of Action Network reported that UO and UW are joining the Big Ten. The report comes after a chaotic morning that featured too many twists and turns to count.
The Ducks and Huskies become the latest programs to depart the Pac-12 after Colorado, USC, and UCLA all opted to do so over the past 13 months. The Big Ten, meanwhile, will now feature 18 member schools.
According to McMurphy, the Big Ten is weighing whether it should expand further and it is also considering adding Cal and Stanford.
Shortly after McMurphy’s report, Ross Dellenger and Dan Wetzel of Yahoo reported that Oregon and Washington informed the Pac-12 presidents and chancellors on Friday that they plan to accept an invitation from the Big Ten, and that their departure could set off more moves within the Pac-12.
Pete Thamel of ESPN reported that the Big Ten vote is expected to vote unanimously to approve the addition of UO and UW.
The report of the Ducks’ and Huskies’ departures from the Pac-12 came after the conference’s presidents and chancellors met Friday morning with optimism that they could strike a new Grants of Rights deal to secure the Pac-12’s long-term future.
Oregon and Washington’s decision to leave the Pac-12 comes two weeks after conference commissioner George Kliavkoff conveyed optimism about the long-term future of the conference at its annual media day in Las Vegas.
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“In board meetings in the last year, we constantly update our board. I think they’re enthusiastic, like I am, about the media deal,” Kliavkoff said. “I will tell you what we’ve seen is the longer we wait for the media deal, the better our options get. I think our board realizes that. There’s an underlying shift in the media market that’s happening. We’re long-term taking advantage of that. Short-term it may have provided some hiccups.”
Oregon and Washington have each been members of the Pac-12 since it was originally founded as the Pacific Coast Conference in 1915.
During Oregon’s media day on Monday, head coach Dan Lanning was asked if he believed it would be a good decision for UO to remain with the Pac-12.
“My focus is on this team. You knew what I was going to say,” Lanning said. “I’m worried about our first practice. We get to play elite competition in this league. I’m excited as long as we get to play great teams. That’s what I’m excited for. And I think that’s really clear in this conference. The teams that we’re lined up against we get to go against great guys. It’s the year of the quarterback.
“We’re going to get the face great ones every single week, but my focus is no further than game one and really practice one.”
