What will be the media deal for the remaining four Pac-12 teams if they merge with the MWC?

The Pac-12 media deal has been a topic of conversation in the last year or so as eight of the 12 programs found new conferences. Reports state that the conference could merge with the Mountain West Conference to continue the legacy of the Conference of Champions.

The Pac-12 only has four teams - Oregon State, Washington State, California, and Stanford - and merging with the Mountain West is likely the best for them. Conferences like the Mountain West or Atlantic Coast could just poach the teams they want and continue to kick the conference while they are on life support.

This will be the only chance for the conference to survive. But, what would the media rights deal look like if the Mountain West and Pac-12 merge?

What is the current Mountain West Conference media rights deal?

The Mountain West media rights deal is very strong as they are in the middle of a six-year deal made in 2020 with CBS Sports and FOX Sports. The deal is worth $270 million in totality, meaning the teams are making around four times more than their previous deal. This deal gives the two companies the ability to broadcast 47 football games in total.

How would that deal change if the four Pac-12 teams were to get involved?

The intellectual property of the Pac-12 is a lot more valuable than the four teams that would be joining in a merger. This would be an interesting case study as in a merger, the deal would likely stay the same and see to it that the 12 Mountain West teams potentially take less for the remaining few years of their current media rights deal.

However, in a merger of these conferences, things could change drastically as a separate entity could mean a whole new conference and television contract. All that depends on the language in Mountain West's current contract as a Pac-MWC merger is different than just the MWC.

In reality, there is not a lot of value for the Pac-12 as, throughout the last 18 months, they were expecting Big 12 media numbers but couldn't find a deal. Eight of the 12 teams in the conference have announced they are moving conferences in 2024 and leaving this as the most likely opportunity. It feels like they could get up to $350 million on a deal similar to that of the Mountain West but nothing crazy as the conference does not have much value at its current state.