In a bombshell report late on Wednesday night, it looks like the Pac-12 (now the Pac-2) will soon become at least the Pac-6, as Boise State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Colorado State are set to depart the Mountain West Conference and join The Conference of Champions (RIP Bill Walton) at the start of the 2026-27 academic year.
There's one lingering problem here for the Pac-12, though: according to Action Network's Brett McMurphy, there is an 8-school minimum in order to qualify as an FBS conference, so that means between now and 2026, the Pac-12 needs to add at least two more schools before they're officially back in business.
Given the state of conference realignment, it's unlikely that the Pac-12 would settle on the 8-school minimum. And assuming those affiliated with the conference don't want to add just four more teams, re-create the Pac-10, and party like it's 1999 all over again, I've come up with six potential options for the new-look Pac-12 — two of which would be for basketball only.
And out of respect for geography, you won't catch me throwing any schools on the east coast into the new Pac-12. I still find it ridiculous that Stanford, a program which is situated about 30 miles from the Pacific Ocean, is now playing in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Don't fret. We're not straying into the Eastern Time Zone for any additions to the Pac-12.
UNLV Rebels / Nevada Wolf Pack
The Pac-12 Conference Championship Game has been played at Allegiant Stadium each of the last three years, making Las Vegas a de facto hub for the Conference of Champions. So wouldn't it make perfect sense that the only two Division 1 schools in the state of Nevada join the conference?
And maybe you didn't know this, but UNLV's “Rebel” mascot is actually based on the University's official split from the University of Nevada? That's right. UNLV was once just the southern campus of the University of Nevada (Reno), and in 1969, the school “rebelled” and formed it's own University.
Sure, these two schools didn't belong to the same conference until Nevada left the WAC in 2011 in order to join the Mountain West, but now that they've been battling in the MWC for the last decade, let's keep them together.
Gonzaga Bulldogs / Saint Mary's Gaels
These were the two basketball only additions I referenced above, and these two schools may not move the needle for the football crowd out there, it would be a massive coup if the rebirth of Pac-12 basketball included Gonzaga. The Zags have been the best and most consistent basketball program on the west coast of the United States for the last twenty years, and would walk into the new-look Pac-12 as the conference favorite.
Saint Mary's has become something of a natural foil for Gonzaga, becoming the only school in the WCC who has consistently managed to push the Zags. 26 of the last 30 WCC Conference Titles have been won by either Gonzaga or Saint Mary's, including the last sixteen.
North Dakota State Bison / South Dakota State Jackrabbits
This one may come as a surprise, but it's only a matter of time until North Dakota State and South Dakota State get the call up from the FCS to join the big boys. Both of these programs have made a habit of pushing their FBS opponents to the limit in annual opportunities to face a bump in competition, and they've established themselves as the two clear-cut best FCS football programs in the country. The Bison have won nine FCS Championships since 2011, and the Jackrabbits have won the last two.
These additions may not move the needle in terms of word of mouth buzz or immediate prestige, but the Pac-12 would undoubtedly be a better conference for football if these two programs were to join.
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