Recently, there have been “discussions” and rumors that Utah plans to potentially do another conference realignment and join the ACC, but the school's new membership in the Big 12 has buried that speculation.
“We are proud to join the Big 12 Conference in the coming months and are excited to join our new colleagues and member schools,” the University of Utah said, via college football writer Brett McMurphy.
“Reports over the weekend suggesting otherwise are completely fabricated and irresponsible,” Utah added.
“Utah recently joined the Big 12, but there has been discussion about possibly moving to the ACC, with some saying the ACC might be a better fit given its network deal with ESPN and the potential for increased television ratings,” college basketball writer Dick Weiss wrote this week.
“There is some skepticism about the stability and appeal of the ACC compared to the Big 12,” Weiss added.
Read more: College football realignment planned for 2024
College football restructuring has been one of the big stories over the past two offseasons, with the historic arrivals and departures of the nation's biggest leagues and the departure of the Pac-12 this summer, which effectively dissolved the conference.
Utah was a big part of that realignment, joining Colorado, Arizona and Arizona State in the newly formed Big 12, which welcomed new members after losing Texas and Oklahoma to the SEC in another shocking expansion move made last offseason.
Two other major realignments are planned, with USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington set to join the Big Ten and SMU, Stanford and UC joining the ACC.
Currently, Utah State is tied with Kansas State for the top spot in the Big 12 Conference championship odds at +350, according to BetMGM, so a move by Utah State looks promising.
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