(Logo courtesy NCAA)
“We are very excited that Colorado will be joining the conference in 2011,” said Pac-10 Commissioner Larry Scott on Tuesday. “Our plans all along were for them to join the conference in 2012 so this puts the Pac-12 ahead of schedule, which is great news. With Colorado and Utah coming on board next year we are tremendously excited about the future of the conference.”
CU will officially leave the Big 12 behind at the end of June 2011. The conference will retain $6.83 million that would have been paid to the school as a share of the Big 12’s revenue pie.
The move comes at somewhat of a surprise, considering Scott said there was less than a “50-50” chance CU would transition to the conference before 2012.
For now, Colorado will finish up the school year in the conference they’ve called home ever since it was first born as the “Big 8.”
“Even as we leave for an exciting future in the Pac-10 Conference, we value the great friendships and memorable rivalries we have been a part of,” CU Chancellor Phil DiStefano said. “And we appreciate the good faith [Big 12] Commissioner Dan Beebe has shown in working with us on our exit from the conference,”
CU will join the Pac-10 with the Mountain West Conference departing Utah Utes, and the conference will fittingly change its name to the Pac-12.
Contact Staff Writer Michael Krumholtz at Michael.krumholtz@colorado.edu.
