The Pac-12 made massive waves on Tuesday as the conference announced the addition of the Gonzaga Bulldogs. The gutting of traditional conferences has changed the landscape of college sports, leaving a once powerful conference scrambling to stay alive. Obviously, the move to bring Gonzaga to the conference wasn’t football-related, as the school doesn’t have a football program. But that’s what makes the move unique.
The death of traditional conferences in college football has all been about the cash flow of college football. Programs are running to wherever they see the largest dollar signs. So, bringing Gonzaga in for that purpose doesn’t apply. Instead, this is the Pac-12 attempting to save a historic conference while also giving Gonzaga the chance to be on a bigger college basketball stage.
Of course, it is not the Pac-12 of old, but this conference is putting together quite a nice basketball conference. With the Bulldogs joining San Diego State, Utah State, and Colorado State, Gonzaga will actually face real competition in conference play. That’s no disrespect to St. Mary’s, which was the only competition for the Zags in the WCC. But getting no challenge from the likes of Pacific or Santa Clara wasn’t helping the program