Football Friday: Conference Realignment Sucks and Is Ruining College Sports

Oh, won’t somebody think about the poor shareholders?

Well, the powers that be in college football seem to have the TV shareholders (and only the shareholders) in mind with yet another batch of conference realignment on the horizon, which will likely spell the end of the Pac-12 and, to some extent, the ACC. And sure, there will be more marquee matchups each season with college football superpowers like Ohio State and USC playing more often, but there is a growing corporate emptiness that’s beginning to take over a sport that thrives in its unique aesthetic.

At its core, college football has always been a regional sport, with conferences and rivalries emerging primarily from proximity to each other. It’s what makes the sport great, and why it’s the closest thing the United States has to European soccer atmospheres. But the suits at ESPN and FOX are stripping this regionality away from the sport for the sake of the almighty dollar, leaving historic rivalries —including the Civil War between Oregon and Oregon State and the Apple Cup between Washington and Washington State — and conferences in the dust.

At the time of writing, the Pac-12 (Pac-7?) is on life support, as recent reports indicate that Oregon and Washington will be joining their Los Angeles brethren in the Big Ten, which would sink the conference further toward its demise. Oregon and Washington aren’t the only expected departures from the conference, with Arizona already having one foot out the door and into the Big 12 and Utah and Arizona State potentially joining alongside them. Not to mention that Colorado has already affirmed a commitment to join the Big 12 after this season.

As a result of the decaying Pac-12, athletic departments from Washington State, Oregon State, California and Stanford could be heading toward the real possibility of playing in the Mountain West or another Group of 5 conference beyond this season.  

Just as a reminder, the Pac-12 is (was?) undoubtedly the best conference in Olympic sports, and the conference’s demise shows that all decisions were made solely with football in mind. And yes, football brings in the most money, so it’s understandable that the lines would be drawn by the sport, but it’s still disheartening to see the ease of competition for thousands of athletes being thrown by the wayside for one sport.

It truly sucks to see a once mighty conference heading toward its death, and while the Pac-12 isn’t blameless in its own demise (looking at you, Larry Scott), it’s still another glaring reminder of the road college athletics, as a whole, is heading down.

The ACC is also having a moment when it comes to its status as a power conference. Although there have been no departures yet, there have been several warning signs that Florida State, Miami (FL) and Clemson could be eyeing greener ($$$) pastures. Also, it was reported on Friday that Florida State has begun looking for an outside equity raise through JP Morgan amid its bickering with the ACC, which is…well…disheartening to say the least — but that’s for another time.

If things continue the way they’re trending, college football will consist of three mega conferences with the Big Ten and SEC emerging as the top dogs and the Big 12 just kind of being there.

It appears, as of now, that the true bastions of what makes the sport so special will only be found within the Group of 5. While the American Athletic Conference had to deal with some realignment recovery of its own, the G5 conferences remain largely based around regional divides and historical pretenses.

Briefly mentioned earlier was the strain that realignment is creating for non-football sports, especially in the Big Ten which could see student-athletes travel an excess of 2,000 miles for mid-week games. And let’s be clear, I’m still yet to hear a good reason as to how and why realignment benefits the student-athletes, but I have the answer right here: they don’t. The only people these moves appease are the TV executives at ESPN and FOX, who will swim in their pools of money like Scrooge McDuck while college sports lose the character that has made them endearing to their wide audience.

College sports, as we know them, have changed forever, and likely not for the better.