Big 12 Football: 5 PAC-12 teams best for conference expansion

4. Utah Utes

Each of the final four programs out of the PAC-12 listed here have fun pairings that would make a lot of sense if the Big 12 were to bring them into the fold.

We’ll start off here with one of the two programs featured in the Rumble of the Rockies annual rivalry game in the PAC-12. The Utah Utes found a good amount of success in the PAC-12 since joining the conference from the Mountain West. Utah has six seasons under the direction of head coach Kyle Whittingham where they mounted at least eight wins. They also have two double-digit win seasons since joining the PAC-12.

Utah and the TCU Horned Frogs used to be two of the best Group of Five programs in the entire country. Reigniting that former G5 rivalry would add interesting appeal to an already solid program that could join the Big 12. Utah and Texas also met in the Alamo Bowl, although it was a bit of a blowout in favor of the Longhorns.

Moreover, in each of the last six seasons, the Utes have found themselves at least getting one week in the AP Poll in the top 20. Among the non-blue bloods in the Power Five, they are definitely one of the more potent programs over the course of the last six or eight years.

Utah would also bring a decent athletic program to the table and it is somewhat regional to the rest of the Big 12. It would not make the rest of the Big 12 teams travel all the way to the west coast for a few games each season. Get the next team on this list together with Utah in the Big 12, and this is a good move for the conference.