Pac-12 Conference

Pac-12 Conference
source
Name	Pac-12 Conference
Short name	Pac-12
Established	1915 (as PCC)
Association	NCAA
Division	Division I (FBS)
Members	2 (as of 2024)
Headquarters	San Ramon, California
Commissioner	Teresa Gould
Region	Western United States

Pac-12 Conference. The Pac-12 Conference was a collegiate athletic conference that operated in the Western United States and competed at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) level. It was one of the so-called "Power Five conferences" and was widely considered a premier league for both college football and college basketball, among other sports. Founded in 1915 as the Pacific Coast Conference (PCC), it underwent several name changes and membership realignments before its effective dissolution in 2024 following a period of major conference realignment.

History

The conference's origins trace to a December 1915 meeting in Portland, Oregon, forming the Pacific Coast Conference, with charter members including the University of California, the University of Washington, the University of Oregon, and Oregon State University. The PCC expanded and thrived for decades but was dissolved in 1959 following a major scandal involving illicit payments to athletes. It was immediately reconstituted as the Athletic Association of Western Universities (AAWU), which became known informally as the "Big Five" and later the "Big Six". The conference was renamed the Pacific-8 Conference in 1968 upon adding the University of Arizona and Arizona State University. With the admission of the University of Utah and the University of Colorado Boulder in 2011, it became the Pac-12, operating with North and South divisions in football. The league's stability was shattered in the 2020s by the seismic shifts of NCAA conference realignment, leading to the announced departures of ten members to the Big Ten Conference, Atlantic Coast Conference, and Big 12 Conference by 2024, leaving only Oregon State and Washington State University.

Member institutions

The conference's final full membership, prior to the 2024 departures, consisted of twelve institutions, divided into North and South divisions for football. The North Division included the University of Oregon, Oregon State University, the University of Washington, Washington State University, Stanford University, and the University of California, Berkeley. The South Division comprised the University of Southern California (USC), the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), the University of Arizona, Arizona State University, the University of Colorado Boulder, and the University of Utah. In a landmark move, UCLA and the USC announced in 2022 their intention to join the Big Ten Conference, triggering a cascade of further departures. As a result, for the 2024-25 season and beyond, only Oregon State University and Washington State University remain under the Pac-12 banner, operating a scheduling alliance with the Mountain West Conference.

Sports sponsored

The conference sponsored championship competition in 24 sports, 12 for men and 12 for women. Prominent men's sports included football, basketball, baseball, and track and field. Key women's sports were basketball, volleyball, softball, and gymnastics. The Pac-12 was particularly dominant in softball, with members like the University of Arizona and UCLA winning multiple Women's College World Series championships. It also had a strong tradition in men's basketball, with programs like UCLA under legendary coach John Wooden winning a record number of NCAA championships. The conference did not sponsor football.

Conference champions

Determining conference champions varied by sport, with football champions decided by divisional play and a championship game held at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas in its final years. In men's basketball, the regular-season champion was awarded the title, with a postseason Pac-12 men's basketball tournament determining an automatic qualifier for the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament. The University of Southern California and UCLA were frequent champions in beach volleyball, while Stanford University was a perennial power in women's tennis and men's golf. Historical baseball champions included programs like Arizona State University and the University of Southern California, with the College World Series often featuring Pac-12 teams.

Facilities

Member institutions were known for iconic, high-capacity venues. In football, these included the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (USC), the Rose Bowl (UCLA), Husky Stadium (Washington), and Autzen Stadium (Oregon). For basketball, historic arenas like Pauley Pavilion (UCLA) and McKale Center (Arizona) were renowned. The conference operated its own television network, the Pac-12 Network, with studios in San Francisco and broadcast centers in Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Seattle. The conference headquarters was located in San Ramon, California, and its football championship game was also held at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California prior to moving to Las Vegas.

Media coverage

The conference's media rights were historically tied to major broadcast partners, with its football and men's basketball games frequently airing on Fox and ESPN networks. The Pac-12 Network, launched in 2012, provided extensive coverage of Olympic sports but struggled with distribution and revenue generation compared to peers like the Big Ten Network and SEC Network. The conference's premier football game of the week was often part of the ESPN on ABC Saturday night package. The inability to secure a satisfactory new media rights deal in the 2020s was a primary catalyst for the membership exodus, as schools sought the lucrative contracts offered by the Big Ten Conference and Big 12 Conference.

Leadership and governance

The conference was governed by a board of directors composed of the presidents or chancellors of each member university. The chief executive officer was the commissioner, with notable past commissioners including Tom Hansen and Larry Scott. George Kliavkoff served as commissioner during the league's final tumultuous years of realignment. In 2024, following the departure of ten schools, Teresa Gould was appointed commissioner to lead the remaining two-school conference. The conference office managed championships, officiating, compliance, and its relationship with the NCAA. Member schools were also founding members of the Association of American Universities, highlighting the league's dual emphasis on academic and athletic achievement.

Category:NCAA conferences Category:Sports in the Western United States Category:Defunct athletic conferences in the United States