Will Utah continue its Pac-12 commitment amid Big 12 poaching rumors? Utah AD spills the beans on Pac-12 membership

Utah has been involved in potential Big 12 realignment rumors in the last couple of weeks. The university has reportedly held preliminary talks with the Big 12 officials. However, Utah athletic director, Mark Harlan has reinstated the university's commitment to the Pac-12.

The Pac-12 faces an existential threat as it continues to struggle for a new media deal. The conference has been in Negotiations for months and has yet been unable to find a breakthrough. It has seen its long-term partner, ESPN, pull out of a potential deal in May.

Despite the level of uncertainties surrounding the future of the conference, Utah has counted itself out of the lots that are planning to jump ship. Mark Harlan revealed during the Pac-12 Media Days in Las Vegas on Friday that the Utes aims to see the conference succeed.

“I think our words and actions speak for themselves. We are a proud member of this conference and look forward to its future success.”

The Utah family shows support with their Pac-12 commitment

The Utah contingent at Resort World Las Vegas on Friday expressed their support to the Pac-12 commissioner, George Kliavkoff, at a pretty difficult time for the conference. Both the school's athletic director and head coach openly showcased their backing.

Harlan believes the conference had one of its strongest seasons in 2022, which was unexpected to many. He expressed his confidence in the Pac-12 players and coaches, stating that the noise around the media is meaningless.

“...the kind of season that we had where our coaches and student-athletes just tuned it all out, as George I thought explained extremely well, we had one of the strongest seasons we’ve seen in our league. I think that was a real sign that all the noise around doesn’t matter because of the coaches and student-athletes we have here."

Head coach, Kenny Dillingham also came out to show his support for the embattled Pac-12 commissioner. He believes he has managed the delays and uncertainties surrounding the media rights deal admirably, and they are all anticipating the outcome.

“The commissioner is a great leader. He is the right guy to be forging ahead in order for this conference to continue. Obviously, we are waiting for the TV deal to come out. I think it is going to be good. I don’t have any inside info, but just from what I hear I think we are going to be pleased with it.”

The commitment shown by Utah has pretty much brought some needed calm to the Pac-12 in the wake of its existential problems. It's shown there's still quite a lot of belief around the conference on its chances for competitiveness and success in college football and beyond.