Arizona State AD: USC, UCLA move 'shocked' Pac-12 leaders
Ray Anderson said talk of uniting with the Big 12 was overblown and that he only spoke with one ADGETTY IMAGES
Arizona State AD Ray Anderson said that the news of USC and UCLA leaving for the Big Ten was "shocking to the other athletic directors and university presidents throughout" the Pac-12, according to Michelle Gardner of the ARIZONA REPUBLIC. Anderson said there was "no heads up, not even a hint that those schools were considering that." He said, "We were all completely shocked by it. It was certainly done underground, complete secrecy, deception, whatever." Gardner writes the possibility of as many as six Pac-12 schools moving to the Big 12 "surfaced quickly" since the Big 12 was "reeling with the defection of its two main brands" -- Texas and Oklahoma -- to the SEC by 2025. However, Anderson said that that was "not seriously discussed." He said that he had "one discussion with one Big 12 athletic director," whom he did not name, and that there "definitely was not the rumored meeting that involved representatives of all schools." Anderson went as far as saying that it was the Big 12 "floating the possibility of the Pac-12 schools defecting to their side." Anderson: "We were offended at the way the Big 12 passed that off as if they were walking away. It was not the case and it was disrespectful and inappropriate for them to say they walked away because we couldn't add anything."
More from Anderson:
On the Pac-12's next media rights deal: "There is a sense of urgency from our media partners and our conference leadership to get this done to show clarity show stability to give us a path forward and to define our next steps, whatever those might be."
On potential Pac-12 expansion: "Nothing is off the table and shouldn't be because things are constantly changing. We're still looking for schools that are an academic, cultural fit. ... We have high academic standards and if we get to that point (expansion) we're going to look for schools that have that same belief, that same mission. We're not going to lower our standards for the sake of adding a team or two" (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 7/22).
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https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Daily/Issues/2022/07/22/Colleges/Arizona-State.aspx