Sources: Arizona amid last steps to sign up with Big 12

• Pete Thamel, ESPNAug 3, 2023, 10:21 PM ET

Arizona is in deep conversations about signing up with the Huge 12, sources told ESPN, with an offer expected to be settled in the near future.The school is amid the last actions, sources stated, consisting of detailing the relocation in an Arizona board of regents meeting Thursday night. Huge 12 presidents and CEOs satisfied Thursday to vote on authorizing the move, sources verified to ESPN, another indication of the possibility of it happening.Barring an unforeseen turn in the board of regents conference, Arizona’s decision is anticipated be formalized soon, sources said.Editor’s Picks 2 Associated Arizona would be the 2nd Pac-12

school to reveal its departure for the

Huge 12 in a week, as Colorado announced last Thursday that it was heading to the league.The expected relocation would reduce the Pac-12 to simply 8 schools, and it emerges on the very same day

that the Big 10 presidents and chancellors licensed commissioner Tony Petitti to officially check out adding Pac-12 members Oregon and Washington.The anticipated move by Arizona has been viewed as an essential fulcrum for the future of the Pac-12, which presented a mostly streaming-based deal with Apple to its membership Tuesday. That does not appear to have rallied the league together, as Arizona’s objectives to settle the handle the Huge 12 have actually emerged considering that the Pac-12 presentation. It’s unidentified how the relocation would affect that deal.The spotlight will rapidly shift to Pac-12 members Arizona State and Utah, which could take a couple of days to determine their future. The Huge 12 has actually also courted them, the final 2

of the so-called “Corner Schools.”But they constantly have actually been on a different timeline from Colorado and Arizona, which both had meetings with the Big 12 in recent months prior to jumping aboard.Arizona State and Utah have been more conservative in their method, however sources said the tenor on that has actually altered recently with the flurry of events.Arizona State president Michael Crow has actually been a staunch advocate of the Pac-12 and had been a longtime supporter of former commissioner Larry Scott, even after the league’s trajectory went wayward. However the seriousness of the league likely being lowered to 8 schools has actually started to push Crow past his deep loyalty.Utah has been conservative in its realignment discussions, but the two-time defending Pac-12 football champion appears to likewise be more open towards Big 12 discussions. More conversations would be essential for either Arizona State or Utah to move.Arizona State’s instructions could crystalize in the wake of the Arizona board of regents conference.

The conference rapidly moved to executive session, with no public discussion anticipated. The tenor from the board, which manages both Arizona and Arizona State, is that there’s a choice that they stay together.The backdrop of the expected Arizona move comes with the Big 10 exploring adding Oregon and Washington as members. That likelihood increases with each Pac-12 defection. While there exists some resistance from the Big Ten and uncertainty over potential financing, there remains an appeal for the Big Ten to add two members at listed below a complete share.Yahoo Sports initially reported on the Big 12 vote.