Colorado news shows how Pac-12's drawn-out media rights deal is backfiring

Pat Forde of Sports Illustrated reports Colorado is expected to leave the conference for the Big 12, where it was a member from 1996 to 2010.

With USC and UCLA leaving the conference in 2024, the Pac-12 is already in a precarious position. The media rights fiasco has made the conference look even worse.

ESPN, which has long held the rights to the Pac-12, is reportedly only interested in a small number of games, meaning the conference needs to find a network or streaming platform willing to spend big for the majority of its games.

Amazon and Apple were floated as potential streaming homes while on the network front, the ION and CW networks were rumored to be interested in airing games. That might be the best illustration of how dire the situation is for the Pac-12.

At Pac-12 media days earlier this month, conference executives suggested more suitors had presented themselves during the summer, although no specifics were given.

Without established brands such as UCLA and USC — and the crucial L.A. TV market — the conference is less attractive to potential buyers. With other schools threatening to leave if the TV deal isn't big enough, that potentially makes it even more difficult for the conference to find a partner who will give it what it wants.

Colorado's expected exit could be the block that causes the rest of the conference to tumble. Why would schools such as Oregon and Washington, which will arguably become the biggest Pac-12 college football brands once the Bruins and Trojans leave, want to share profits with schools beneath them in the hierarchy when it could move to the Big Ten and be in a conference with programs on their level?

A Colorado departure could also be the push the other "Four Corner" schools — Arizona, Arizona State and Utah — to join the Buffaloes in the Big 12.

In March, reports surfaced that the Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark was pursuing those four programs. 

For the Pac-12, Colorado's decision could signal the beginning of the end.