Pac-12 Parts Ways With Commissioner Who Oversaw Conference Collapse

The Pac-12 Conference is effectively dead, with just two schools retaining control of decision-making. 

And Oregon State and Washington State have, unsurprisingly, decided they'd like new leadership directing their very uncertain future. The two schools have parted ways with commissioner George Kliavkoff, whose tenure will conclude at the end of February.

Kliavkoff was hired in July 2021 with a mandate to secure the Pac-12 a new media rights deal, ensuring the conference's survival into the future. He did not secure a new media rights deal for the Pac-12 Conference.

The conference Board of Directors said that it will have further information about the upcoming leadership direction coming soon. "More details about new leadership of the Pac-12 will be announced next week," the conference said in a press release. 

Kliavkoff's removal was a foregone conclusion once the conference officially collapsed in late-2023. But was the end of the Pac-12 really his fault?

LAS VEGAS - Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff speaks at a press conference before the PAC-12 Football Championship football game between the Oregon Ducks and the Utah Utes at Allegiant Stadium on December 3, 2021. (Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images)

George Kliavkoff The Scapegoat For Pac-12 Incompetence

The demise of one of the Power 5 conferences has been well documented, but it bears repeating that the overwhelming majority of the blame lies on the member institutions themselves.

Pac-12 university presidents and athletic directors had opportunities to save the existing structure, partner with existing television distribution to expand their media footprint. Former commissioner Larry Scott also shoulders much of the blame, turning down both Texas and Oklahoma when the two schools wanted to leave the Big-12. 

Though again, part of the blame rests on the Pac-12 institutions, which laughably were concerned about the "academic" reputation of the conference. 

There were dozens of times over the past decade where the Pac-12 could have made better choices, more forward-thinking decisions, or been aggressive with expansion. Instead, the conference sat on its laurels, engaged in unlimited hubris and was slow to adapt to the rapidly changing college football landscape. 

Kliavkoff could have done better, unquestionably. But the media landscape changed dramatically during his time as commissioner, with distribution partners much more conservative with less attractive rights packages. As well as schools becoming more ruthless about chasing every available dollar in the new, NIL, transfer portal landscape.

It may not have been his fault, but he also couldn't stay. The zombie Pac-12 lives on, but with new leadership.