Colorado AD Denies Vote Is Happening To Leave The PAC-12
Colorado athletic director Rick George denied a vote will happen in the coming days to leave the PAC-12.
There's been reporting and speculation the Buffaloes could be getting ready to cut ties with the PAC-12 and split for the Big 12 amid the lack of a new media deal for George Kliavkoff's conference. Colorado was previously in the Big 12 before joining the west coast conference.
If Colorado does leave for the PAC-12, it could kick off a massive exodus. One of the PAC-12's biggest fears is the first domino falling.
Could it be Colorado in the coming days? It doesn't sound likely.
Will Colorado leave the PAC-12? (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
Colorado AD shoots down exit rumors.
Buffaloes AD Rick George responded to a report an exit vote could happen "as early as Monday," and responded that "There is absolutely no truth to this tweet."
Does that mean a vote is never coming? No, but George is just saying it's not happening soon. Notice how he didn't tweet Colorado is definitely staying in the PAC-12.
He just said the report about the vote isn't true. Read into that as much as you'd like.
What will happen with Colorado and the PAC-12?
The fate of the PAC-12 remains one of the biggest stories in all of sports. The conference has been attempting to land a new media deal as it enters the final football season of its current deal.
So far, no deal has been reached. That's not great for George Kliavkoff. The longer the PAC-12 goes without a deal, the more likely it becomes teams run for security elsewhere.
The Big 12 has a new deal that will pay conference members roughly $31.7 million annually. It's not known if the PAC-12 will be able to match that number even if it does reach a new deal. There's also concern Washington and Oregon could be waiting for Big Ten invites.
If that happens, Colorado and several other PAC-12 teams might be out the door before people even realize what happened. Specifically, Arizona State, Arizona and Utah would all be targeted by Brett Yormark.
Will the PAC-12 survive? (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)
Will the conference survive?
The situation remains incredibly fluid, and the amount of conflicting information is incredible. University of Arizona president Robert Robbins at one point expressed a lot of optimism. Then, he kind of dialed it back and claimed there was nothing to suggest a deal would get done soon.
I have heard nothing to suggest imminent. There’s all these things about, well, ‘We want to wait until the Final Four.’ That has nothing to do with it. It has to do with assessing who is the right fit, who assesses us. I hope gets something done sooner rather than later so that the whole thing stops, so we don’t have focus on it. I am perfectly willing to sit here and wait,” Robbins recently told CBS Sports.
The clock is ticking on something getting done. That's just a fact, and with every day that goes by without a deal, the worse it gets for the PAC-12. Will Colorado stay or go? That remains to be seen, but it definitely appears any report of a vote happening soon just isn't true.