BOULDER, CO — As if the University of Colorado had not been making enough headlines lately, the university dropped another bombshell on Thursday. The Buffs made the decision recently to return to the Big 12 Conference. Announced on Thursday, July 27, the University of Colorado Board of Regents unanimously adopted a resolution to move the Buffaloes out of the Pac-12 Conference back to the Big 12. This decision came after Big 12 university presidents voted unanimously on Wednesday night to approve membership for the University of Colorado if and when it decided to apply formally.
All that is left for the Buffs to do is submit two formal letters, one to the Pac-12 informing the conference of Colorado’s withdrawal and one to the Big 12 requesting official admission to the conference.
"After careful thought and consideration, it was determined that a switch in the conference would give CU Boulder the stability, resources, and exposure necessary for long-term future success in a college athletics environment that is constantly evolving," said Colorado Chancellor Philip DiStefano and athletic director Rick George in a joint statement.
University of Colorado Football
(Credit: kslsports.com)
"The Big 12's national reach across three time zones as well as our shared creative vision for the future we feel makes it an excellent fit for CU Boulder, our students, faculty, and alumni. These decisions are never easy and we've valued our 12 years as proud members of the Pac-12 Conference. We look forward to achieving new goals while embarking on this exciting next era as members of the Big 12 Conference."
Colorado had been in substantive talks with the Big 12 since earlier this offseason. The school had maintained that it desired to stay in the Pac-12 and would not make any decisions regarding conference movement until after the Pac-12 media rights deal could be reviewed by all the conference members.
The Buffaloes now play the waiting game and will not begin participation in the conference until the 2024-2025 athletic season. New head football coach and Dallas Cowboys legend Deion Sanders will now be back in the state of Texas for football.
One question remains, will the Big 12 expand further? At the Big 12 Media Days, Commissioner Brett Yormack commented that the Big 12 would like to remain at 14 teams. With the departure of the Texas Longhorns and Oklahoma Sooners and the conclusion of the ‘23-’24 athletic season, one team still remains until the Big 12 reaches its magic number.
Other schools that the Big 12 has been rumored to be interested in are UConn and Gonzaga (mainly for basketball) and other Pac-12 schools like Arizona, Arizona State, and Utah. No one is certain about how the future will unfold, but Colorado marks the first domino to fall as the collegiate conferences continue to shuffle around.
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