It’s no secret Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff’s visit to Dallas wasn’t just to see the sights. The conference is hoping to mitigate the major losses of UCLA and USC – who are jumping to the Big Ten in 2024 – by bringing two more programs into the fray, and Dallas resident SMU is high on the list.
SMU may not have household athletic programs, but what they do offer is a chance for the Pac-12 to have a footprint in the fifth largest media market in the United States, as well as an opportunity for Pac-12 schools to play closer to the recruiting hotbed that is the state of Texas.
SMU’s rumored addition to the Pac-12 goes hand-in-hand with the longstanding rumor that Mountain West powerhouse San Diego State is also joining the conference, keeping the Pac-12 name an honest one.
San Diego’s media presence isn’t as big as Dallas, but it is an obvious replacement for the loss of USC and UCLA, and their football and basketball programs have been very good as of late.
Basketball in particular is a welcome addition, as the loss of UCLA in particular is devastating for the image of the Pac-12 in men’s basketball. UCLA is an absolutely iconic brand for college basketball, and they are not just a historical program they are one of the best teams in the game right now.
USC doesn’t quite have the history or the recent success of UCLA, but they are inside the Field of 68 as of now and have been to the tournament in four of the last seven years, including a trip to the Elite 8 in 2021.
The Aztecs would provide an immediate boost, as they boast a 19-5 record on the season and are in first place in an excellent Mountain West conference. However, the picture looks bleaker when considering SMU, who is currently 9-16 and in eighth place in the AAC.
Of course, conference realignment is driven by many things before basketball is a consideration, but after football men’s basketball is the biggest moneymaker for Division 1 institutions.
Here is a look, using KenPom’s program history rankings – which date from 1997-2022 – at how the Pac-12 would stack up with this potential transition: