The Pac-12 has expanded from two to six teams, bringing in some Mountain West teams starting in 2026.
The Pac-12 was nearly extinct after the 2023-24 sports season was finished. Oregon, USC, UCLA and Washington left for the Big Ten, Stanford and Cal left for the ACC and Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State and Utah left for the Big 12. Oregon State and Washington State were left out of the game of conference realignment musical chairs. They were the only two Pac-12 teams not to find a new home in a different conference, and their future was very uncertain.
For this current football season, they played a hybrid schedule against some former Pac-12 teams and current Mountain West teams, but they had no clear path to the College Football Playoff because they had no conference championship to play in.
Oregon State and Washington State had two options: find a conference that would adopt them or try to revive the Pac-12. The news broke this morning that the Pac-12 will return with four new schools starting in 2026. They have officially added Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State and San Diego State. These are four of the best programs in the Mountain West conference across multiple major sports, including football and men’s basketball.
It is still unclear whether or not the Pac-12 will look to add more teams or if the Mountain West will look elsewhere to replace those schools when they leave. However, this is great news for West Coast college sports fans because there will be high-level competition on the West Coast once again. Washington State and Oregon State will play another hybrid season in 2025-26, but starting in Fall 2026, these schools will become official members.
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