BOULDER — University of Colorado chancellor Phil DiStefano and athletic director Rick George went out of their way, on multiple occasions, to speak well of the Pac-12 early Thursday night.
But their actions earlier in the day — namely, the Buffs’ decision to leave the Pac-12 and rejoin the Big 12 Conference, a league they abandoned 13 years ago, via a unanimous vote by the CU Board of Regents — spoke far, far louder.
“Like Rick, I put as my top priority the experience that our student-athletes have and the visibility that our student-athletes have,” DiStefano said during a news conference at the Champions Center after an afternoon vote by the regents to leave the Pac-12.
“And, like Rick, I believe that moving to the Big 12 Conference is going to give our student-athletes much more exposure than what they were getting previously.”
Boulder is officially Big 12 country again because of two factors underscored by George and DiStefano: One, the Big 12 has a broadcast deal through 2030-31 with ESPN and Fox, major linear outlets, while, as of Thursday, the Pac-12 does not. And two, the Big 12’s recent expansion to markets such as Houston, Cincinnati and Orlando promises sporting events that take place at earlier times, at least on the road. George and DiStefano rationalized that the increased exposure via the aforementioned networks would more than offset any increases in travel costs.
“So the (Big12) is different (than in 2010), right?” George said. “And I think the fact that we can go to Orlando now … because if you think about the Big 12 in the past, it was all those middle states around us, (such as) Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas and all that. Now being able to go and play in a Cincinnati, which is a good market for us to go into, to play in Orlando, Fla., those factors were really important for us.”
Thursday’s Regents meeting was held remotely and attended virtually by CU president Todd Saliman, DiStefano and George. The three opened the meeting by each offering a short statement justifying why the Buffs should leave the Pac-12 and return to the Big 12.
All three cited stability, exposure, a presence across “three time zones,” economics and enhanced opportunities for CU student-athletes coming via a return to the Big 12, which will begin July 1, 2024.
“We think the time has come for us to change conferences,” Saliman told the regents. “We really see this as an opportunity to create more opportunities for the University of Colorado.”
About 14 minutes into a virtual meeting that lasted 15 minutes and 53 seconds, the motion to rejoin the Big 12 was approved after next to no debate — and only a little remorse.
“This decision wasn’t a slam dunk for me,” Regent Frank McNulty said on the group video call, which was live-streamed for the public. “I liked the idea of the old Pac-12 … unfortunately, it seems (as if) that idea is no longer going to be realized. I do think that’s unfortunate.”
CU’s new, and also old, conference also put out a two-word statement Thursday regarding the Buffs: “They’re back.”
The Buffs decided to leave the Big 12 for the Pac-12 in 2010 and began playing football with the latter schools starting in 2011. CU had played in the Big 12, and its Big Eight and Big Seven predecessors, for 63 seasons before joining an expanded Pac-10.
But the financial returns for CU have fallen well short of promises made more than a decade ago by former Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott, who left the league in June 2021. And the league’s inability to complete a broadcast media deal for the 2024-25 school year and beyond only hastened CU’s decision-making, George admitted.
“(The Pac-12’s) George Kliavkoff, great commissioner,” George said. “And it really came down to, as we’ve looked at this and looked at the stability that we could get in the Big 12 and the time slots and the partners that they have in the media area, that was a significant factor for us as we made this decision.”
According to USA Today’s Steve Berkowitz, the Pac-12 in the 2022 fiscal year paid out the lowest per-school media rights distribution of any Power 5 conference, at a reported $37 million per program. Multiple reports project that Big 12 schools are expected to receive at least $31.7 million annually in broadcast revenues through 2031 — a number the Pac-12 without USC and UCLA will struggle to exceed.
When asked by The Post, George said that new CU football coach Deion Sanders, who has strong recruiting ties in Texas and Florida, was consulted on a possible conference move.
“(He) had to be, on some level,” the CU administrator said. “Look, I tried to keep our coaches involved in this process … you know. I talked to (men’s basketball coach) Tad Boyle. I talked to (women’s basketball coach) JR (Payne). I’ve talked to Coach Prime. And certainly, I think all of them felt like, ‘Whatever you think is best for us, we’re going to play whomever you ask us to play.’”
