What will happen to the Pac-12? Exploring possible alternatives for George Kliavkoff's powerhouse in 2024

The Pac-12 has experienced significant upheavals over the last few months, leading to uncertainties about its future in college sports. The conference is left with just two teams following a mass exodus to other Power Five leagues during the offseason.

The future remains cloudy for the league ahead of the 2024 academic year, where it will have only Oregon State and Washington State as members. While many analysts have predicted a collapse of the conference, it appears the Pac-12 has a chance of surviving.

What will happen to the Pac-12?

While the future remains uncertain for the conference in college sports, the Pac-12 will remain in existence for at least the next two seasons because of the two-year grace period the NCAA is obliged to offer conferences to meet the membership requirements.

With Oregon State and Washington State determined to rebuild the Pac-12, the conference will remain in existence for that period. The two universities are exploring the possibility of running a two-member conference in 2024 before further steps are taken.

According to Matt Loveless, a journalism professor at Murrow College and a member of the WSU Athletic Advisory Committee, there are ongoing discussions about the concept of a two-team conference and how it will be adopted by the two teams ahead of 2024.

However, with conferences requiring more than two members to get championship access, the Pac-12 is exploring two options for next season. The first is to seek a waiver that will ensure access to championships from the NCAA, and the second is operating an affiliate membership with another conference.

What is the survival plan?

To ensure its survival, the Pac-12 must be stable before the two-year grace period expires in 2026. The only survival strategy is to initiate an expansion process, which involves adding teams from the Group of Five leagues over the next two seasons.

Given the length of the grace period, the Pac-12 is not under pressure to hastily conduct an expansion process. The conference has the time to evaluate a couple of potential candidates from the Group of Five leagues before sending an invitation.

Notably, there are a couple of candidates from the Mountain West Conference and American Athletic Conference looking to gain Power Five status with a move to the Pac-12. The expansion will trigger another transformation in the college sports landscape.