USC And UCLA Bolting Pac-12 For Big Ten In Historic College Sports Shake-Up

Topline

The University of Southern California and the University of California at Los Angeles will move their storied athletic programs from the Pac-12 to the Big Ten conference in 2024, in a shift that further consolidates college sports’ most powerful programs and compromises the tradition of geography determining a university’s conference.

Wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr., No. 6 of the USC Trojans, drops a pass as defensive back Quentin … [+] Lake, No. 37 of the UCLA Bruins, follows, during the second half of a game at the Rose Bowl on November 17, 2018, in Pasadena, California.

Katharine Lotze/Getty Images

Key Facts

USC and UCLA will join the Big Ten on August 2, 2024, just ahead of the start of the 2024 football season, according to a statement from USC President Carol Folt.

The Los Angeles-based universities had been members of the Pac-12 and the conference’s various older iterations since the 1920s and have some of the most renowned athletic programs on the West Coast.

The moves were finalized just hours after news surfaced that the universities were exploring a move, which reportedly blindsided Pac-12 leaders.

The Big Ten is historically a Midwestern conference, but the addition of USC and UCLA essentially makes it a coast-to-coast league—East Coast programs Maryland and Rutgers joined the Big Ten in 2014.

Crucial Quote

“For us, this move offers greater certainty in rapidly changing times and ensures that we remain a leader in college athletics for generations to come,” UCLA Chancellor Gene Block said in a statement.

What To Watch For

Several other Pac-12 universities have contacted the Big Ten to ask about joining the conference, according to Sports Illustrated.

What We Don’t Know

The future of the Rose Bowl Game, which has traditionally pitted the champions of the Big Ten and Pac-12 against one another.

Surprising Fact

The University of Nebraska is the nearest Big Ten member to USC and UCLA. The university’s home of Lincoln, Nebraska, is more than 1,200 miles from Los Angeles.

Big Number

$93 million. That’s how much USC generates in an average year from its football program alone, according to Forbes‘ most recent “College Football’s Most Valuable Teams” list.

Key Background

USC and UCLA’s move to the Big Ten concentrates 20 of the 25 most valuable college football programs into just two conferences—the Big Ten and the Southeastern Conference, according to Forbes’ valuations. The two conferences have greatly expanded over the past decade, adding numerous high-power programs that played in smaller leagues. One of the most significant shifts in college sports history was announced last summer, when the University of Texas and the University of Oklahoma accepted bids to join the SEC. Forbes estimates that Texas and Oklahoma have the second and sixth most valuable college football programs, respectively.