Pac-12 Expansion Target Makes Major Realignment Announcement

The additions of Sac State, Cal Baptist, and Utah Valley gives the Big West 12 member schools and makes them the largest conference in the western United States. The trio will join returners Cal Poly, Bakersfield, Fullerton, Long Beach State, CSUN, Irvine, Riverside, UC San Diego, and Santa Barbara starting in 2026-27.

Sacramento State made a big push to try to get into the new look Pac-12, including raising large amounts of money for facility upgrades, and they even hired former Kings point guard Mike Bibby to coach the men's basketball program, with Shaquille O'Neal providing financial backing as the team's general manager.

However, the team's FCS status in football and lack of success in basketball made them an unappealing target for the conference, and the Mountain West backfilled with UC Davis and Hawaii rather than pursuing the Hornets.

The Pac-12 still needs at least one more full member by July 1 in order to be compliant as an FBS conference, with reports widely expecting an announcement next week. Texas State is considered the favorite to get the final spot as of this writing, while UNLV, Memphis, Tulane, UTSA, New Mexico State, and others have been rumored at various points during this process as well.

Gonzaga and five former Mountain West programs - Utah State, Colorado State, Fresno State, Boise State, and San Diego State - will join Oregon State and Washington State in the new league starting July 1, 2026.