5 worst conference realignment moves in modern college football history

Colorado looked at the pitch put forth by the Pac-10 in 2011 and decided that looking westward for conference membership was more desirable than remaining with their brethren in the Great Plains. Perhaps seduced by the idea the league might go to a 16-team superconference, the Buffaloes jumped the Big 12 ship at a time when traditional rival Nebraska was bolting the other direction for the Big Ten.

The Buffaloes were never the biggest name in the Big 12 nor its predecessor Big Eight. When the Big Eight absorbed part of the dying Southwest Conference, Colorado was never able to maintain its position as a national contender as they were in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

But they still won about half their games in league play, with a .492 conference winning percentage over 15 years. They did have a resurgence in the early 2000s, winning the league in 2001 under Gary Barnett and playing for the title three of the next four years. Things tapered off before their realignment, but similar heights have yet to be reached in their new league.

While Colorado has played for the Pac-12 crown on one occasion since their move to the new league, the Buffaloes have struggled to perform on a consistent level. As they approach the conclusion of their first decade in the conference, the Buffaloes win fewer than one-quarter of their Pac-12 matchups.