$30 million Big Ten media deal payout for 2 incoming Pac-12 schools as conference realignment changes the landscape of college football

The Pac-12 has been one of the bigger stories to come out of college athletics. One of the biggest benefactors throughout the collapse of the Pac-12 has been the Big Ten, as it added the USC Trojans, UCLA Bruins, Oregon Ducks and Washington Huskies ahead of the 2024 college football season.

The Big Ten getting four outstanding programs from the Pac-12 and the addition of Oregon and Washington were a bit different than UCLA and USC's inclusion.

According to Front Office Sports, the deal to get the Oregon Ducks and the Washington Huskies to the Big Ten was financed by Fox. The deal promised at least $30-40 million in media rights for each school. This swiftly ended the Power Five era — now it is just the Atlantic Coast Conference, Big 12, Big Ten and the SEC.

Which Power Four conference is most likely to suffer a similar fate to the Pac-12?

The answer here is simple, as the ACC is the weakest college conference right now. It is getting the least media rights dollars, and it is now costing the conference the ability to stay as a powerhouse in college athletics.

To add to the situation, the Atlantic Coast Conference is in litigation with the Clemson Tigers and the Florida State Seminoles. ACC commissioner Jim Phillips has his hands full as he tries to navigate things and keep the grant of rights deal intact. However, once the grant of rights expires, things could change and see the collapse either way.

The other three power conferences will be picking at the remains of the ACC and poaching programs that they want to add in conference realignment, similar to the situation with the Pac-12. With the conference realignment issues that are going on and the media rights contract allowed to be renegotiated if the ACC falls below a specific number of members, things could get interesting. The other three power conferences are firing on all cylinders right now.

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