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Christopher Boan is the lead writer at BetArizona.com after covering sports and sports betting in Arizona for more than seven years, including stops at ArizonaSports.com, the Tucson Weekly and the Green Valley News.
Pac 12 Expansion Candidates: Odds For Next Colleges To Join Conference
Reports of the Pac-12 Conference’s demise was indeed greatly exaggerated, as the left-for-dead collegiate athletics conference shocked the sporting world last week, adding Mountain West members Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Utah State for the 2026 league year.
The five schools are set to join Oregon State and Washington State in the conference on July 1, 2026, leaving the rebuilt Pac-12 one school shy of the FBS minimum of eight with just under two years to make whatever deals are needed.
All five are tasked with filling the void left by the 10 Pac-12 members that departed the conference this summer, with Oregon, UCLA, USC and Washington defecting to the Big Ten, while Arizona, ASU, Colorado and Utah went to the Big 12 and Cal and Stanford left for the ACC.
Given that the newly configured Pac-12 will need at least one more school to join to reach the FBS standard, BetArizona.com - home to all news around Arizona sports betting - broke down the odds on which university might join the Conference of Champions in 2026.
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Pac 12 Expansion Candidates: Odds For Next College To Join Conference
College | Odds | Percentage Chance |
Boise State | -10000 | 99.9% |
San Diego State | -10000 | 99.9% |
Colorado State | -10000 | 99.9% |
Fresno State | -10000 | 99.9% |
Utah State | -10000 | 99.9% |
UNLV | +200 | 33.3% |
Air Force | +350 | 22.2% |
Gonzaga | +450 | 18.2% |
The Field | +300 | 25.0% |
Odds provided by BetArizona and not available on Arizona betting apps.
While the five MWC teams have already confirmed their departure for the Pac-12, we can never be 100% sure about such things in today’s college sports environment, which is why we leave a miniscule chance that the five end up elsewhere prior to the 2026 entry date.
Outside of those five schools, the best program for the Pac-12 to poach this go-round are the UNLV Rebels at +200.
Regardless of who joins next, we know that the Pac-12 needs at least one more member to get back to full strength, as the wheels of realignment churn onward into the future.
Pac 12 Expansion News
June 30, 2022: UCLA and USC announce they are leaving the Pac-12 for the Big Ten, setting in motion the instability that ultimately tore apart the original Pac-12 Conference
June 30, 2023: Then-Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff’s attempts to add SMU and San Diego State to the Pac-12 to replace the two L.A. schools come and go without happening, leading many to wonder if the conference’s days are numbered
July 27, 2023: Colorado announces it is leaving the conference for the Big 12, leading many to begin writing the Pac-12’s epitaph
Aug. 4, 2023: Oregon and Washington announce they are leaving to join the Big Ten, while Arizona, ASU and Utah all announce exit plans for the Big 12 that same day, leaving Cal, Stanford, Oregon State and Washington State as the lone members of the Pac-12
Sept. 1, 2023: Cal and Stanford announce they are leaving the Pac-12 for the ACC, leaving the two remaining members of the Pac-12
Aug. 2, 2024: All 10 of the departing schools officially exit the Pac-12, leaving Oregon State and Washington State to rebuild the conference from the ground up
Sept. 12, 2024: Four Mountain West Conference members (Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State and San Diego State) announce they are leaving the conference to join the Pac-12 in 2026.
Sept. 23, 2024: Utah State also announces it is leaving the Mountain West to join the Pac-12 in 2026.
Stick with BetArizona for all college football developments, including Arizona Bowl Projections.
USA Toady photo by Mark J. Rebilas.
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Pac 12 Expansion News FAQ
After numerous teams left the Pac-12 Conference to join a new conference for this current Division I FBS season, the only remaining teams in the conference are Oregon State University and Washington State University.
The Pac-12 Conference underwent significant changes in recent years. Prominent schools, starting with UCLA and USC, departed and that led to other remaining schools following suit via conference realignment. The future of the Pac-12 was left in limbo with just Oregon State and Washington State remaining.
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