Nothing is surprising about Grand Canyon’s departure from the WAC. It’s the natural progression for a brand that belongs on a bigger stage. However, I’ll be surprised if the Lopes are still in the West Coast Conference within a few years. All of the college focus is on football and the CFP, but the rumbling of change in college basketball continues to grow louder. Last week I sat in on a panel discussion where Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark spoke about his conference, the college football playoff and more. The Big 12 is behind the Big 10 and SEC in football but not basketball. Adding Arizona, Arizona State, Utah, and Colorado to go with Kansas, Baylor, etc, will help the Yormark hoop brand, but Gonzaga has wandering eyes regarding conference jumping. The same goes for UConn(Big 12?). What happens if the ACC falls apart and North Carolina + NC State go to the SEC along with Florida State? Is Duke looking for a basketball home? If you’re not buying into this, you probably believe the Pac-12 will play games this September. Change is coming much bigger than we see here in 2024, and Grand Canyon University will be in the middle of it. They are a desired national brand…
Brad Cesmat
