Pac-12 realignment: What went wrong for the FBS powerhouse that's facing insurmountable hurdles in finalizing a media rights deal?

The Pac-12 is one of the Power Five conferences but could be on the verge of collapsing. There's been a long wait for news about a new media rights deal for the conference.

So, what has made the Pac-12 get to the point of potential collapse? Let's dive into some of the major factors that have led to the current state:

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Pac-12 conference realignment

College football realignment is tough for whichever conference loses one of its top programs.

However, Pac-12 is losing its two best programs historically, the USC Trojans and UCLA Bruins. That's a huge blow to whatever media rights contract they are looking at, as a prospective provider is going to offer a contract that's significantly lower.

That's exacerbated by the rumors that both the Arizona Wildcats and Colorado Buffaloes, two programs they could build around, are also potentially leaving to join new conferences.

The conference also made the decision not to expand to have any other program join before the July 1 deadline.

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Pac-12 is overvaluing its brand

The Pac-12 is dealing with a devalued brand that's potentially at the end of the road but still does not understand that it is in the worst shape out of all the Power Five conferences. They still believe they're in a better position than the Big 12 was during their media rights negotiation.

If Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff still believes that, it will be interesting. The Big 12 did announce that they extended their media rights deal through the 2030-31 academic year but did not disclose financial figures for the deal.

The conference has not even gotten to the point of rumors of talks, and it is to the point where the following tweet seems to be a possibility.

Whatever the case is, the conference needs to drastically lower its expectations, as they're the fifth conference in the Power Five. They lack star power and need to turn things around if they want to be successful in the future.

What will the conference's media rights deal look like when it is finally completed?