ACC, Big Ten, and Pac-12 Set to Announce Alliance Today (Aug. 24), Pac-12 Driving Force
STILLWATER – You have to hand it to The Athletic and reporter Nicole Auerbach as the reporting on this alliance between the Atlantic Coast Conference, Big Ten, and Pac-12 has been spot on. It was first announced last Friday and then since then the stories written have been guessing and projecting what the three major conferences all with fairly new commissioners had in mind with this alliance they were discussing. A source did tell ESPN that the Pac-12 is the drving force in this alliance. "The Pac-12 is driving this,” said the source.
New Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff has said he wants to make the Pac-12 a better football conference and getting schools that really care about their football. He wants the Pac-12 to enhance it’s chances to make the College Football Playoff and enrich it’s league in the next television rights negotiations..
Hopefully, the impending announcement on Tuesday at 1 p.m. (central) will clear up some of that discussion, but the focus from our sources, which come from outside the three conferences, is that they are most worried about governance and the perceived interest in the Southeastern Conference and their commissioner Greg Sankey on becoming the first conference to go to super conference status with 16 teams by eventually adding Texas and Oklahoma.
We should find out more with the announcement. It could also include sharing of resources and playing opportunities, including scheduling, but all of that is conjecture so far. We do know it leaves the Big 12 as a whole, the remaining eight schools out.
The most important aspect of this is whether it impacts any expansion. My sources and some of those have been in contact with all three of the commissioners involved; Kevin Warren of the Big Ten, Jim Phillips of the ACC, and most recent and important George Kliavkoff of the Pac-12; say it will not effect expansion plans. The Pac-12 is set to announce it’s decision on whether to pursue expansion as early as this coming Friday (Aug. 27).
Pokes Report will keep you updated as we have since this began during SEC Media Days with the announcement of Texas and Oklahoma going to the SEC. We have averaged a story a day on realignment stressing that this will be a longterm solution for Oklahoma State.