The Pac-12 has failed in its attempt to poach schools from the American Athletic Conference.
UTSA, South Florida, Tulane, and Memphis made a statement Monday—along with the AAC conference office—committing to staying put.
“While we acknowledge receiving interest in our institutions from other conferences, we firmly believe that it is in our individual and collective best interests to uphold our commitment to each other,” the five entities said in a joint statement posted to social media. The statement also suggested the schools were behind the AAC and new commissioner Tim Pernetti’s plan for “innovative economic resources.” (Pernetti has previously said he’s willing to explore options like private equity.)
The news comes just two weeks after the Pac-12 agreed to add schools from the Mountain West in 2026 and said it was looking for at least two more to maintain FBS status. Reports have previously suggested the Pac-12 was having discussions with the AAC schools to fill that gap.
Now, the Pac-12 will have to consider other options—and specifically whether to lure more Mountain West schools to the conference. If it chooses that path for schools like UNLV and Utah State, which have also been rumored to be of interest to the Pac-12, it will be costly: The Mountain West–Pac-12 football scheduling agreement requires the Pac-12 to pay about $10 million in damage fees for every school it poaches. The Pac-12 already owes the Mountain West $43 million taking Boise State, San Diego State, Fresno State, and Colorado State, according to a copy of the agreement previously obtained by Front Office Sports.
The AAC, meanwhile, could go on the offensive. The conference has reportedly been engaged in discussions with Air Force, and AAC would not be bound to paying damage fees to the Mountain West in this scenario, though Air Force would have to pay around $17 million in exit fees to the conference.
The Mountain West has been working on plans for both retaining current members and enticing new ones. Between exit fees from departing schools and the Pac-12 damage fees, the conference has $111 million coming its way, which it could use to convince existing members to stay put.
“Several” schools have expressed interest in joining the conference to fill the gaps, a source confirmed to FOS last week, including New Mexico State and Sacramento State. It’s unclear whether the interest is mutual.
