The response on the West Coast to the ongoing demise of the Pac-12 Conference in 2024 has ranged from dismaying and disheartening to dispiriting and distressing for universities, alumni, students and fans of conference members, who are left to suffer the consequences of moving ahead into the new environment or risk being left behind in a situation ruled by an indifferent sports world focused on bottom lines.
Who's to blame? ESPN, Fox Sports and their controlling interests, certainly. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) which for years has functioned as a shill for Big Sports, bears some responsibility. Yet the Pac-12 Conference leadership itself is primarily responsible for the collapse of the conference. Meanwhile, universities, state legislatures, alumni and fans must weather the loss of history and tradition.
Pac-12 fans are saddened by losing of longtime traditions and rivalries. "It is indeed a dark day in the Pac-12," said one. "A sad and pathetic state of affairs," said another. Yet, I'm reminded of the line from a character in Deconstructing Harry: "Tradition is the illusion of permanence." Needless to say, I'll be rooting for the Washington Huskies to win it all, just to thumb our collective noses at the blue bloods of college football.
(Editor's Note: This is the first of series of posts addressing the ongoing seismic shift in the fabric of college athletics.)
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