Tag: Pac-12 Conference

Colorado State among four schools set to join Pac-12 Conference

Colorado State and three other Mountain West schools are set to join the Pac-12

As announced Thursday morning, Colorado State is among four Mountain West schools set to join the Pac-12 Conference in 2026.

Others moving with the Rams include Fresno State, San Diego State and Boise State. The Pac-12, which currently holds only Washington State and Oregon State, was thought to be nearing extinction, but this latest round of conference realignment should keep the 109-year-old league alive.

With six teams on board for 2026, the Pac-12 still needs to reach eight members to be recognized as a conference by the NCAA. I’d expect the Pac-12 to target two other Mountain West schools or possibly Gonzaga.

“These six institutions are committed to rebuilding the Pac-12 into an innovative, nimble, conference with sports programs which put student-athletes first, strive to compete at the highest level and deliver amazing fan experiences and compelling content,” CSU athletic director John Weber said in a press release. “This is a historic, transformative moment for CSU and a massive opportunity for our student-athletes. Joining the Pac-12 is an important step forward as we seek to deliver on an ambitious vision for the future of Ram Athletics.”

Colorado State has resided in the Mountain West since 1999. It was previously in the Western Athletic Conference from 1968-1998.

This news comes two days before Colorado State will host rival Colorado in the 93rd Rocky Mountain Showdown.

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Former Bruin Josh Rosen inducted into SoCal Jewish Sports Hall of Fame

Sweet honor for Josh Rosen.

One of UCLA’s best quarterback prospects earned some recognition for his athletic feats.

Josh Rosen, the Bruins’ quarterback from 2015 to 2017, was inducted into the SoCal Jewish Sports Hall of Fame for their 2023-2024 athletic class. Rosen, a California native from Bellflower, was a USA TODAY All-American in high school before being recruited to play for the Bruins.

In his career at UCLA, Rosen played 30 games, tallying 59 touchdown passes while earning Freshman All-American honors and the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year award.

Rosen was selected 10th overall by the Arizona Cardinals in 2018 in the loaded quarterback draft.

Though Rosen’s professional career in the NFL was not as successful as his career in high school and college, his efforts were still enough for him to earn a spot on the ballot for the SoCal Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.

Rosen last played for the Minnesota Vikings back in 2022, one of the seven teams he played for during his career.

Former UCLA rival Chase Budinger heading to Paris Olympics

Chase Budinger is playing what at the Olympics?

Chase Budinger spent three seasons playing College Basketball at Arizona and played 100 games in his career. He was a consistent force for the Wildcats and scored 17 points per game in his career. The UCLA Bruins saw him many times, and he was consistently a thorn in the side of the Bruins. Budinger was the 44th overall pick in the NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons.

Now the former Wildcat, at the age of 36, will be partaking in the Paris Olympics this summer. Earlier this week, he clinched a spot with the US Olympic Beach Volleyball team.

The Paris Olympics 2024 is slated to start on July 24th, 2024, and run through August 11th, 2024. The Beach Volleyball is expected to start on July 27th and wrap up on August 10th. The complete schedule for the US team has yet to be announced.

Budinger’s partner is Miles Evans. They are ranked 13th in the world, and second in the United States.

Bill Walton’s passing comes right after the end of the Pac-12 Conference

You can’t make this stuff up.

On Memorial Day, the tragic news came of UCLA legend Bill Walton passing away after a battle with cancer. The community mourned the loss of a legend, both on the court as a player and behind the headset as a broadcaster.

On Memorial Day Weekend, the Pac-12 Conference officially wrote its final chapter as Arizona defeated USC in the Pac-12 baseball tournament.

Roxy Bernstein ended the Pac-12 era with a final signoff, and it turned out to be a tribute to the great Bill Walton.

The mere fact that the Pac-12 ended just days before Walton’s passing is quite eerie, as Matt Zemek of Trojans Wire detailed:

His death, by preceding the first USC, UCLA, Washington, or Oregon game in the Big Ten (and the first Arizona or Arizona State game in the Big 12), is eerie and remarkable in that regard.

It certainly makes us all reflect on how connected we are to the passions that drive our lives. Rest in peace, Bill Walton. You were a foremost champion in the Conference of Champions.

But, nonetheless, Walton will be remembered forever.

Pac-12 Conference comes to an end with walkoff Arizona baseball win

The Pac-12 is officially over.

The UCLA Bruins have been members of the Pac-12 Conference since 1928. Nearly 100 years have come to an end, as the Pac-12 officially played their final game.

It was a wild one, in the Pac-12 Conference title game. The Arizona Wildcats beat USC 4-3. The game was held in Scottsdale. The game ended with Tommy Spaline hitting a walk-off single.

Arizona did not have a hit until the 7th inning and trailed 3-0 heading into the 8th inning. The win for the Wildcats pushed them to 36-21-0 overall. They won the conference title with their 20-10 mark in the regular season. USC dropped to 31-28 on the season.

Head coach Chip Hale of Arizona talked earlier this week about losing the conference and his feelings about it:

“That’s the sad thing about it: You start talking about those awards, you start thinking, boy, that’s the last time this conference is going to be able to do that.”

Hale was the first person to earn Pac-12 Baseball Player of the Year in 1987 and coach of the year – 2024 honors.

Hale also praised his team and had a sigh of relief for how great the game ended:

“What a great way for it to end, not only for the baseball season but the sports’ history for this conference.”

Roxy Bernstein was on the call as the game ended:

 

Three things that went wrong from UCLA Baseball in 2024

A disappointing baseball campaign.

A lot went wrong for the UCLA Bruins baseball team in 2024. Finishing their season at 19-33 and a dead-last 9-21 in the Pac-12, the Bruins were always chasing throughout the season.

However, pinpointing exactly what went wrong for UCLA can hopefully lead to future success down the road.

To start, the Bruins struggled mightly in Pac-12 play. Their aforementioned 9-21 record in conference tied with Washington State and lagged behind the competition. To have a chance at the NCAA Baseball post-season, the Bruins must be able to compete in their division.

Second, the Bruins’ starting pitching was not terrible but lacked consistency. In 11 games in 2024, the Bruins allowed more than ten runs, hardly a recipe for success. If UCLA can improve their rotation going forward, they will give their offense a chance to compete.

Lastly, the Bruins had a nasty habit of losing streaks. Good teams can shake off a loss or two. UCLA let the losses pour in. The Bruins had a whopping six losing streaks of three games and two of seven or more. To compete, the Bruins need to find a way to stop the bleeding and reset.

UCLA ranks last in 247 Sports BIG 10 recruiting list

The Bruins are last in these rankings.

UCLA has enjoyed a lot of excitement and buzz since hiring new head coach, DeShaun Foster. But one ranking may bring the Bruins back down to Earth.

In a recent 247 Sports composite ranking, the Bruins rank as the worst recruiting school in the BIG 10. With only ten recruits, two four-star, and eight three-star, the Bruins lag behind all other teams in the BIG 10. 

Though the recruiting process is still far from over, the Bruins significantly fall behind other powerhouse schools. With Oregon rated at the top, the Bruins are looking up at them as well as fellow former Pac-12 teams, USC and Washington. 

The problem is fixable for the Bruins but is an indication that there is plenty of work to be done. Following a mass exodus of players to the NFL on the defensive side of the ball this off-season, there are several holes and positions of need. 

But if the Bruins can harness their new-found momentum and steal some recruits from fellow BIG 10 teams, they could find themselves back in the mix and closer to a conference title.  

UCLA Bruins offensive tackle Bruno Fina enters transfer portal

UCLA sees Fina head for the transfer portal.

With a bevy of players leaving UCLA for the NFL, there are still movements along the Bruins roster. This week, UCLA lost another offensive lineman to the transfer portal.

According to Pete Nakos of On3, Bruno Fina has entered the transfer portal after playing left tackle in all 13 games for the Bruins. Leading the way for the Bruins’ Pac-12-leading rushing offense and protecting Ethan Garbers blindside, the loss is a massive hit to the UCLA offensive line. 

The Bruins are likely to continue to lean into their run-first identity in 2024 under new head coach DeShaun Foster and Eric Bienemy. Losing Fina may complicate things. 

Entering their first season in the BIG 10, the Bruins’ defensive opponents will undoubtedly become more challenging to scheme against. Losing both a blindside protector and a solid run-blocked leaves a significant hole that the Bruins will face. 

But if Foster, Bieniemy, and Co. can find a way to prepare their reserve tackles for the season and get the best out of their tackles, UCLA should continue to see success in the running game. 

Pac-12 Conference named biggest winner in 2024 NFL Draft

Let’s pour one out for the Pac-12 Conference, who finished on a high note with 8 players selected in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft.

The last couple of years have been about as tumultuous as could be for the Pac-12 Conference, starting with the defection of USC and UCLA and followed by the slow leaking of oil that ultimately ended in the death of the conference with teams leaving for the Big Ten, Big 12, and ACC.

It feels nice to celebrate the conference one last time before the plug is ultimately pulled on July 1st, doesn’t it?

That’s what happened on Thursday night, with the Pac-12 being named one of the biggest winners of the 2024 NFL Draft after eight of the 32 first-round players came from Pac-12 teams, including six of the first 15 picks. After this showing, USA TODAY named the conference one of their biggest winners of the night.

The once-vaunted conference is effectively dead, cannibalized by the expansion of other FBS football leagues. But it went out with a nice bang, eight players – with Williams at the top – tabbed Thursday. It didn’t beat out the SEC, but a nice homage to the once-great West Coast football forum.

Of course, Oregon Ducks quarterback Bo Nix was one of those top-15 picks, going to the Denver Broncos with the No. 12 overall selection in the draft. Fellow Pac-12 quarterbacks Caleb Williams (USC), and Michael Penix Jr. (Washington) were also taken in the first round as well.

From now on, we will have to start celebrating different conferences for the draft success that was once owned by the Pac-12, which will take some getting used to. For now, though, we can celebrate the Conference of Champions one final time.

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Arizona sweeps UCLA baseball team in weekend series

The Bruins baseball team is not having a strong start to the year.

UCLA’s up-and-down season continues. After starting the season ranked 24th in the nation, the Bruins have fallen out of the USA TODAY Baseball Coaches Poll and dropped three straight to Arizona. 

Over the weekend, the Bruins lost all three of their games to their Pac-12 rival Wildcats, and on Sunday, by way of a walk-off. Falling to 10-15 overall on the season and 4-8 in the Pac-12, the Bruins continue to struggle to get their footing in 2024. Embarrassingly winless on the road, 0-10 thus far, the Bruins cannot win away from Westwood, especially when they need to. 

Not even at the halfway point in the season, barring an unlikely turnaround, 2024 could be a lost season for the Bruins. 

Next to last in the Pac-12 standings, the Bruins have work to do if they want to have an impact in the conference tournament and try to keep their season alive.

This weekend, the Bruins could gain much-needed momentum when they take on Oregon, who currently leads the Pac-12 standings.