College conferences come and go in the pursuit of TV money.
The Pac 12 college sports conference is no longer recognizable and is probably headed off to the dustbin of history joining names such as the WAC, the Southwest Conference, the first Big East, the Pacific Coast Conference and the Big 8. The cause of the death of the Pac 12 will be simple. The conference was unable to land a big TV deal as it is television money that plays an important role in the professionalization of shamateurism or college sports. The school’s presidents, chancellors, board of trustees follow the money trail and money talks. College sports is a big business and many student-athletes across the board are merely cannon fodder there to be used up on the field with the offer of a college education dangled in front of them in exchange for using their bodies to make money for the dear alma mater.
The present incarnation of the Pac 12 could not get the interest of the money people, the TV executives, despite having schools in Los Angeles and San Francisco, two top 10 TV markets. USC and UCLA decided to bolt for greener pastures. Denver is a midsized TV market and its major football school is the University of Colorado. Denver is close to Boulder where the school is located. Colorado has left for the Big 12. Seattle is another midsized TV market, Washington is located in Seattle, and the school’s leadership has decided the Midwest Big 10 is a better fit because of TV money. The bosses at the University of Oregon also followed the TV money and are ankling to the Big 10. The poohbahs at the University of California, Stanford, Oregon State, and Washington State will soon make a decision on what conference they will call home. It’s just a business and college sports is a business.
Evan Weiner’s books are available at iTunes – https://books.apple.com/us/author/evan-weiner/id595575191
Evan can be reached at evan_weiner@hotmail.com
