Significant changes are on the horizon for the college sports landscape, specifically on July 1, which will impact 14 FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) schools. The Big 12 conference will welcome Central Florida, Houston, BYU, and Cincinnati into its ranks. Meanwhile, the American Athletic Conference will see the addition of Charlotte, FAU (Florida Atlantic University), North Texas, Rice, UAB (University of Alabama at Birmingham), and UTSA (University of Texas at San Antonio). Conference USA, on the other hand, will welcome Jacksonville State, Liberty, New Mexico State, and Sam Houston.
In a development from last summer, both USC and UCLA have announced their intentions to leave the Pac-12 conference and join the Big Ten conference starting in 2024. This move is driven by the Big Ten’s media rights deals, which are valued at an impressive $7 billion.
However, it seems that ESPN, a major media network, has shown limited interest in renewing its media rights agreement with the Pac-12 conference. This lack of enthusiasm from ESPN could potentially lead to more schools departing the conference if a lucrative media rights deal is not secured. Reports suggest that Colorado is contemplating a move to the Big 12 conference due to these circumstances.
