What we will and won't miss with the end of the Pac-12
We're nearing the end of the Pac-12 as we know it.
A seismic shift comes with the 2024-25 school year. UCLA, USC, Oregon and Washington are headed to the Big Ten; Arizona State, Arizona, Colorado and Utah are on to the Big 12. California and Stanford go to the ACC.
It ends quite a run for the Pac-12, which was founded in 1915 and was then known as the Pacific Coast Conference. From 1968 to 1978, it was the Pac-8, and from 1978 to 2011, it was the Pac-10. The addition of Utah and Colorado after that made it the Pac-12.
Both ASU and Arizona joined the conference in 1978 and have storied tenures in the conference. Here are some things I'm going to miss, and maybe not miss.
What I will miss about the Pac-12
Football games at the Rose Bowl: Is there a more scenic venue than the Rose Bowl with its spectacular views of the San Gabriel mountains in the background? I think not. Games there were also special to me since I lived in Pasadena for seven years and would often walk around the garden and adjacent areas.
The venues: Probably too many to name but there are historic ones like Pauley Pavilion — aka the house that John Wooden built — and Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. And some downright cool ones like Husky Stadium in Seattle, probably my favorite football setting. Oregon's Autzen Stadium is a close second. It "never rains at Autzen Stadium" right?
Bill Walton on Pac-12 basketball broadcasts: Yes, he can go off the rails at times — but does so in an endearing way. No one loves the "Conference of Champions" more than he. When he says eight men's basketball teams deserve to make the NCAA Tournament, you just have to let that go in one ear and out the other, but the man is a national treasure.
Yogi Roth and Ashley Adamson: Very talented on-air personalities and faces of the Pac-12 Network. Always well-informed and insightful. Both are true professionals who, no doubt, deserve and will find gigs with a higher profile.
Convenient road trips: Pullman is the exception. It was easy to get in and out of the Bay Area and Los Angeles. There are a lot of direct flights to Seattle, Portland, Salt Lake City and Denver and we were dealing with all major airports.
Hiron's in Eugene: It's a pharmacy across the street from Matthew Knight Arena, but it's also a loaded gift/novelty store with some pretty unique offerings. I never visited Eugene without going there and never came away disappointed. The last visit got me some Oregon Ducks Christmas ornaments. (I collect them from every place I visit).
Pac-12 men's basketball tournament in Las Vegas: T-Mobile Arena is a perfect venue. The fact it's adjacent to New York, New York, the host hotel for the media, makes it even better. Great hotel with a good variety of restaurant options and entertainment. What do ASU fans have to look forward to in the Big 12? A conference basketball tournament in Kansas City, with this the first of a three-year contract.
Competition in Olympic sports: This was one of the strengths of the Pac-12. Think gymnastics, water polo, swimming, track and field. So many famed Olympic athletes competed in the Pac-12. In the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Pac-12 athletes won a total of 108 medals.
Rivalries: Yes, some will remain. But there are others that we may have seen for the last time. How about UCLA and Arizona in men's basketball? Certainly, USC and Utah in football have become one. In many cases, there won't be much scheduling flexibility to play in a nonconference game. Even if they do, it's not the same as if conference title implications were on the line.
... and the things I will not miss about the Pac-12
Football games at the Rose Bowl: Yes, it's perfect sitting and a historic venue, but it is a logistics nightmare. There is dealing with the Southern California traffic coming and going. For the media, there is no easy path from the press box to the locker room for postgame interviews.
Pac-12 football football officials: Enough said.
The Pac-12 Network: A lot of great games were relegated to the Pac-12 Network when they warranted coverage on a larger scale. It was an ill-conceived product of the Larry Scott tenure.
November football games in Corvallis: The Sun Devils have had their share of games at Oregon State in adverse conditions. That was bad enough, but the drive from Corvallis back to the Portland Airport in the wee hours of the morning after a game was a challenge, to say the least.
The ugly forest court at Matthew Knight Arena: I am all for things that make any athletic venue unique but the court floor at Oregon's Matthew Knight Arena is hard on the eyes. It's downright horrific.
Press row at Pauley Pavilion: It is very high up there, so much so that it's the only place where I bring the binoculars I usually reserve for football games. Players look like ants. You really have to watch the television monitor.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Pac-12 remembered fondly, but not everything was roses
