Air Force running back Aiden Calvert stiff-arms Baylor linebacker Keaton Thomas while running toward the sidelines during the first half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024, in Waco, Texas. (Rod Aydelotte/Waco Tribune-Herald via AP)
- Oregon State AD Scott Barnes says the Pac-12 wants to quickly add two more schools.
- Meanwhile, the AAC reportedly reaches out to Air Force, which could be on the Pac-12's wish list.
- Barnes says "bunches" of schools have inquired about joining the Pac-12, which added Fresno State and three other Mountain West programs last week.
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The Pac-12’s rebuilding efforts already are producing seismic reactions across college football.
On Saturday, Oregon State athletic director Scott Barnes — a former Fresno State basketball standout — said the Pac-12 wants to add at least two more schools for 2026 as quickly as possible.
“I think John Wooden said it, `Let’s be quick but don’t hurry,’ ” Barnes said on Saturday. “Get it right, but it’s in our best interest to move as quickly as we can.”
Asked if any schools expressed interest in joining the conference in the 48 hours after its latest realignment announcement, Barnes replied, “Bunches.”
The logic behind that is two-fold: the Pac-12 needs two more schools to be an NCAA and College Football Playoff-recognized conference in 2026. And, after Fresno State, Boise State, San Diego State, and Colorado State announced they were leaving the Mountain West for the Pac-12 last week, the competition for attractive football programs heated up.
Related Story: Why Join the PAC-12? What Schools Could Be Targeted Next? What’s Next for ...
AAC Reaches Out to Air Force
Meanwhile, the American Athletic Conference has ramped up interest in adding Air Force as a member, the Associated Press reported on Monday, citing a source with knowledge of the conference’s discussions.
If the Falcons were to join the AAC, three service academies — Army, Navy, and Air Force —would be in the same conference for the first time.
With speculation that the Pac-12 could target schools in the American such as Memphis and Tulane, as well as Air Force and UNLV in the Mountain West, the AAC isn’t standing still under new Commissioner Tim Pernetti.
The conference added Army as a football-only member this year to go along with Navy, which is also a football-only member. Army-Navy remains a nonconference game, with a separate television contract with CBS that runs through 2028.
Related Story: What Fresno State and Others Say About Move to Pac-12
Air Force football has traditionally been the most consistent winner among the academies, with five double-digit victory seasons since 2014 and only three losing regular seasons since 2007.
Pac-12 Grace Period
With just two active schools, the Pac-12 is taking advantage of NCAA rules that allow for a two-year grace period. Oregon State and Washington State, the two holdovers after the Pac-12 collapsed, have a football scheduling agreement in place for this season with the Mountain West, giving them six opponents each from the league to fill out their schedules.
The agreement does not extend beyond this season.
Part of that deal included millions of dollars in additional fees for the Pac-12 if it poached Mountain West schools. All told, the Mountain West conference could reap $110 million because of the shakeup.
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