The Pac-12 Conference has been absolute madness all year long, and it likely won’t be getting any less wild as 2021 heads toward its conclusion.
To put it simply, nobody could have ever predicted the unlimited madness that has gone down in the last several months in the Pac-12. Commissioner George Kliavkoff took over on July 1 in his new role, and just since then — which is not even five full months — way too much stuff has happened.
Jon Wilner of The San Jose Mercury News summed up the absurd events that have gone down since July 1. The “minus days” refer to the days before July 1, Kliavkoff’s first day as commissioner. So, when you read this list below, “Day -21” refers to June 10, which is 21 days before July 1.
Day Zero is July 1.
“Day +21” is 21 days after July 1. In other words: July 22.
Day -21: CFP 12-team expansion model made public
Day -15: Arizona State recruiting scandal breaks
Day -10: Supreme Court rules on NCAA v. Alston
Day 0 (July 1): NIL becomes law of the land
Day +21: Texas, Oklahoma to the SEC
Day +29: NCAA agrees to overhaul its constitution
Day +54: Alliance with Big Ten and ACC unveiled
Day +56: Pac-12 announces it won’t expand
Day +74: USC fires Clay Helton
Day +83: CFP tables expansion vote
Day +87: Utah player Aaron Lowe dies
Day +109: WSU fires Nick Rolovich
Day +130: Washington suspends Jimmy Lake
Day +131: Cal-USC game rescheduled
That is a ton to take in. The SEC added two teams and then other schools sought to move elsewhere in a fresh round of conference realignment.
In September, the Trojans fired Clay Helton, much to the delight of USC fans everywhere.
Then, both Washington coaches were under the spotlight. Washington State coach Nick Rolovich was fired for his refusal to get vaccinated, and Washington head coach Jimmy Lake was recently suspended for shoving a player.
It has been a nightmare for Kliavkoff, who has a job in a conference that has undergone so much turmoil in such a short amount of time.
Who knows what happens next in the Pac-12 news cycle? The way everything has gone down, something is surely bound to happen sooner rather than later. Hopefully the news will be better than it has been in recent weeks.