Pac-12 returns to the football field with 8 teams following years of uncertainty

The Pac-12 is back with a new look and a host of schools that might seem unfamiliar to longtime fans of the Conference of Champions.

Oregon State and Washington State are the lone holdovers after a max exodus in 2023 that threatened the existence of a conference founded more than a century ago and with a long and storied history across multiple sports.

The league has patiently reloaded with six new football programs, adding Boise State, Colorado State, San Diego State, Utah State, Texas State and Fresno State.

The rebirth of Pac-12 football will include a seven-game round-robin schedule followed by a “flex” game designed to enhance its College Football Playoff and bowl game chances. There is a new television deal that ensures every game will be on linear TV, so the entire country will get a chance to watch “Pac-12 After Dark” instead of searching channels and platforms to find its games.

All the uncertainty is over and now it's finally time for the Pac-12 to get back on track.

Boise State enters its first season in the Pac-12 as the favorite to win the title after winning three straight Mountain West Conference championships.

The Broncos played in the College Football Playoff their first season under coach Spencer Danielson in 2024 and won nine games last season. Boise State has physical lines on both sides of the ball and returns quarterback Maddux Madsen, who threw for 2,334 and 18 touchdowns last season.

Dylan Riley also is back after rushing for 1,125 yards and 10 TDs a year ago and edge rusher Jayden Virgin-Morgan, who has 31 tackles for loss the past three seasons, will anchor the defense.

San Diego State could give Boise State a run for the title with a stout defense and the return of running back Lucky Sutton.

The Aztecs were one of the Mountain West's best defensive teams the past several seasons and were 12th nationally in total defense a year ago. San Diego State lost some key defensive players, but have several others who played significant snaps last season returning and received help from the transfer portal.

Fresno State coach Matt Entz won two FCS national titles at North Dakota State and had an immediate impact on the Bulldogs, leading them to nine wins and victory in the Arizona Bowl in his first season a year ago. Fresno State had one of the nation's best pass defenses last season and has a grinding running game that has most of its components returning.

Utah State could be in position to end a run of five straight losing seasons behind lines that return key players on both sides of the ball.

Texas State had one of the nation's best offenses while in the Sun Belt Conference — fifth nationally last season at 472 yards per game — and gets to see if it can continue the trend in its new conference.

Now that the Pac-12 is in the Group of Six, it no longer receives an automatic bid into the College Football Playoff.

To strengthen its CFP chances, the Pac-12 will have “flex” games the final week of the regular season, creating a rematch that will count as a non-conference game. The flex matchups will be determined the weekend before the games and come a week prior to the Pac-12 title game on Dec. 4.

Utah State, Colorado State, Fresno State and Washington State will host the flex games to ensure every Pac-12 team has four conference home games.

The new version of the Pac-12 will have three new coaches.

Kirby Moore returns to his home state to become Washington State's third coach in as many seasons. Moore, who grew up in Prosser, spent the past three seasons as Missouri's offensive coordinator and brought in a talented group of transfers, led by former UC Davis quarterback Caden Pinnick.

Jim Mora takes over at Colorado State after a pair of nine-win seasons at UConn and will try to turn around a team that went 2-10 in Jay Norvell's final season.

Oregon State has turned to JaMarcus Shephard, an assistant on Kalen DeBoer’s staff at Alabama the last two years. The Beavers have yet to regain traction since Jonathan Smith left for Michigan State, going 7-17 the past two seasons.

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