Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark says he's not targeting the Pac-12

The Pac-12 conference as a whole seems extremely weak and ripe for the picking. The Big 12 has to feel like it's in the same boat, though.

The Pac-12 is losing USC and UCLA to the Big Ten. Meanwhile, the Big 12 is losing Texas and Oklahoma to the SEC. Those are major losses for each conference, respectively, but at the very least the Pac-12 seems to have a stable plan moving forward. The conference is adding BYU, UCF, Cincinnati and Houston in 2023.

Could the Big 12 look to keep expanding in an effort to keep pace with the SEC and Big Ten? With the Pac-12 already reeling, could the Big 12 look at some of the remaining power players out west like Stanford, Washington or Oregon in an effort to solidify its ranks?

At least for now, Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark says no (kind of).

“I just want to kind of go on the record — no one is fighting. I have a great relationship with (Pac-12 commissioner) George (Kliavkoff). We have a collegial relationship. I’ve known George for years. I believe in this industry that you can partner with all your colleagues for all the right reasons but at the same time know that from time to time you’re going to compete," Yormark recently said on Canzano & Wilner: The Podcast. "And that’s the world we live in. That’s the world I came from… I look to partner with all of my colleagues in the Power Five as often as I can and when the opportunity exists but there is going to be those moments when we compete. That’s just life. We’re not going after the Pac-12. The Pac-12’s not going after us. George and I have a good relationship. The media has turned it into something different.”

That seems like a pretty clear line in the sand from Yormark. He's not going after the Pac-12. He said as much, right?

Of course, he did, but notice that he did leave the door open to some competition. He was also clear that he's looking to add a fourth-time zone to the Big 12 landscape.

“I’m not targeting anyone specifically. I’ve been saying it. I’ve been pretty transparent and intentional that we’d like that fourth time zone to create more value for our media partners," Yormark said. Would I like to be a national conference in all the different time zones and from a geography standpoint have our Big 12 flag all over the country? 100 percent… we’ll see where we end up.”

The phrase "we'll see where we end up" has to be somewhat concerning for the Pac-12. That, and the fact that Yormark is looking to complete his time zone map.

The Big 12 already has Eastern Standard Time, Central Standard Time and Mountain Standard Time. The conference still needs to add Pacific Standard Time, though, which is where the Pac-12 could eventually come into play.