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Gonzaga basketball coach Mark Few is excited about his team's future. Gonzaga is headed to the Pac-12 Conference after years in the WCC. Few says the opportunity to change conferences was too good to pass up for the Bulldogs.
“This is rapidly becoming one of the top basketball conferences there is,” Few said about the new look Pac-12, per 750 the Game radio. Few is also interested in how the new league brings financial stability.
Gonzaga is joining a Pac-12 that includes Washington State, Oregon State, Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Utah State. The Bulldogs are a basketball-only member, as the school no longer hosts a football program.
Gonzaga basketball is one of the most prolific programs in the sport in recent years. While the Bulldogs don't have a national championship, the program has been to the Final Four twice in the last decade. In both cases, the Bulldogs lost in the national championship game.
The Bulldogs also had a love affair going with the Big 12 Conference, but the Big 12 schools didn't approve of adding Gonzaga as a basketball-only member.
The new look Pac-12 contains some strong basketball schools
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Gonzaga is one of six new schools to join the Pac-12, and more schools may be coming. According to NCAA rules, a conference must have eight members to be an FBS member. Since Gonzaga doesn't have a football program, the Pac-12 is still looking to add more programs. UNLV was an option, but it didn't work out. Memphis and USF are other schools that flirted with the league.
Gonzaga basketball is likely to walk into the Pac-12 as the best basketball member, but there are plenty of other strong programs. That includes San Diego State, who made the Final Four in 2023. The Aztecs made the Sweet 16 in the 2024 season, and also had success with Steve Fisher at the helm in years past.
Colorado State and Utah State both made NCAA Tournament appearances in the last few years with the Rams getting a win in the tournament over Virginia last season. Washington State and Oregon State also made appearances in the tournament the last few years. The Beavers went to the Elite Eight in the last five years.
Gonzaga basketball will certainly have some rivals in the new-look Pac-12. Few is about to enter his 26th season at the school with more than 700 total victories. Time will tell what the new Pac-12 looks like as the league evolves with these new members.
