In early August and September of 2023, seven universities announced that they would be departing the Pac-12 athletic conference for greener pastures.
These former members joined Power Five conferences like the Big Ten, Big 12 and Atlantic Coast Conference in search of more lucrative media deals and higher national exposure.
“The exposure and visibility as well as the resources from the (Big 12) will help us compete for championships,” said Ray Anderson, former Arizona State vice president for university athletics, to CNN following the announcement.
These moves left the world of collegiate athletics stunned. The Pac-12 had been stripped down to just two member institutions, Washington State and Oregon State, and its future as a conference was in jeopardy.
The uncertainty about the future of one of the most beloved conferences in college sports did not persist for long. Just over a year after the departure of many big name members, four universities announced Sept. 12, 2024, they had signed deals to leave the Mountain West conference and join the Pac-12 beginning in the 2026-27 school year. Colorado State was included in this list.
In the almost two years since that announcement, anticipation for CSU’s move to a more nationally respected conference grew.
The opportunity to join a nationally beloved conference was one that CSU’s administration jumped at and has continued to express excitement about following the official transition to the new conference.
CSU President Amy Parsons said in an interview with CSU SOURCE that she believes CSU has earned this opportunity and is eager to prove the viability of the university on a large scale.
“We deserve to be on a national stage,” Parsons said. “We deserve to be in a conference like the Pac-12. We deserve to be on national television and be able to tell our story to millions more people. And the Pac-12’s going to really allow us to do that.”
By transitioning to such a storied conference, CSU is able to increase national exposure and brand recognition, while also having the opportunity to do something special in building the conference from the ground up.
“This was really about CSU’s opportunity to build this new league almost from scratch,” Parsons said. “You almost never get an opportunity like this. It’s really a generational opportunity for those of us here at CSU.”
The Rams are joined in the Pac-12 by a number of strong athletics programs, with a Group of Five legend and fellow former MWC member Boise State headlining the new full-time members. Additionally, March Madness legend Gonzaga is making the transition as a partial member.
CSU has been trending upward in recent years when it comes to ticket sales, national recognition and on-field performance for its athletic programs, and CSU Director of Athletics John Weber said he foresees that this move to the Pac-12 will only help this trend.
“Since I joined Colorado State in May 2024, we have more than doubled donor activity and donations to the Athletics Department, which is absolutely outstanding, and it really shows that they’re motivated and excited about this move,” Weber said in the same interview with SOURCE.
Many fans of CSU athletics have been foaming at the mouth for the opportunity to compete in a more prestigious conference and become a nationally respected athletics program.
Over the years to come, CSU will have the opportunity to play in an extremely competitive conference for all sports, particularly basketball and football. The level of competition was one of the driving factors in the decision to make this move, as was the desire to win on a larger scale.
“We’re not just moving into the Pac-12 to be in the Pac-12,” Parsons said. “We want to compete; we want to win in the Pac-12.”
The desire for winning pushes the athletics programs at CSU well beyond conference titles, however.
Following his hiring as the head football coach at CSU, Jim Mora announced his desire to compete in the College Football Playoff, and win a national championship. While this success certainly won’t come immediately and will take a significant amount of time, effort and support from athletes, coaches, administrators and fans, the drive to win on the national scale is one of the main forces behind the move to the Pac-12.
CSU has a storied history but has not frequently won on the national level. The transition to the Pac-12 may allow for a better opportunity to do so, through increased exposure and higher levels of competition. Players, fans, coaches and administrators alike want to see the athletic programs at CSU win big, and this move to a new conference allows the university to pave a new legacy and etch its name in the history books.
Reach Jack Randels at sports@collegian.com or on social media @RMCollegian.
