Pac-12 lives on — for now — with Las Vegas Bowl deal
The Las Vegas Bowl is maintaining its ties to the Pac-12 with the conference’s future up in the air.
The bowl announced Friday that it will feature a current or former member of the Pac-12 for the next two seasons. The team will face a Southeastern Conference school this season, then a Big Ten representative in 2025.
This year’s Las Vegas Bowl will be played at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 27 at Allegiant Stadium and will be televised by ESPN.
The Pac-12 is down to two members, Oregon State and Washington State, after another spate of conference realignment scattered former Pac-12 schools across the country. Oregon, Southern California, UCLA and Washington left for the Big Ten; Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado and Utah departed for the Big 12; and California and Stanford found a home in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Oregon State and Washington State have an agreement with the Mountain West to help fill their schedules this season, but it is unclear whether they will leave for another league or try to bring the Pac-12 back to full membership in 2025 and beyond.
The Pac-12 said similar bowl agreements will remain in place with the Holiday Bowl, Independence Bowl, LA Bowl, Sun Bowl and Alamo Bowl and that the conference’s bowl partners will continue their “agreed upon selection process among current and former Pac-12 football teams.”
Northwestern of the Big Ten defeated Utah of the Pac-12 14-7 in last year’s Las Vegas Bowl at Allegiant Stadium.
“We are pleased that our scheduled matchups over the next two years officially will continue while everyone works through the changing landscape of college football conferences,” Las Vegas Bowl executive director John Saccenti said in a release. “We look forward to hosting the SEC this year and the Big Ten next year to face either current or former Pac-12 Conference opponents.”
Contact Jim Barnes at jbarnes@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0277. Follow @JimBarnesLV on Twitter.