College Football has undergone a massive geographic change as team's have moved from Conference to Conference as the sport has dealt with Conference realignment. After the Pac 12 was left for dead by most of it's member organizations during the first wave of Conference realignment this second wave has been defined by the Pac 12's moves to rebuild itself into a Conference once again.
The first additions by the Pac 12 came as the Conference poached five schools from the Mountain West while adding Gonzaga for Basketball putting it just one school away from being recognized as an 8-team conference. Over the past few weeks, the school that became the clear target for the Pac 12 was the Texas State Bobcats.
Once the rumors started to fly, the Bobcats moved quickly as their buyout from the Sun Belt doubled from $5 million to $10 million on July 1st. On Monday, the Texas State board met to approve the $5 Million exit fee officially making the jump to the Pac 12.
Texas State's board has approved the $5 million exit fee to leave the Sun Belt and join the Pac-12.
— Chris Vannini (@ChrisVannini) June 30, 2025
It's official. Texas State to the Pac.https://t.co/3vVm7h8J5I
After the Conference was put on the brink of extinction, the Pac 12 has rallied back and now has it's 8th member program to officially continue as an NCAA Conference. Oregon State and Washington State deserve the most credit after being left behind as they stuck with the Pac 12 and helped keep a historic conference as a part of College Football.
Landing Texas State gives the Pac-12 and it's media partner CBS a key market as they add Texas which is one of the premier College Football markets. Last season, Texas State went 8-5 with a 5-3 record in the Sun Belt which means they aren't on the same level as Oregon State and Washington State but, they're a respected team.
The revolving door will now likely continue as the Sun Belt has reportedly eyed Louisiana Tech as the program they'd like to add after losing Texas State. The expectation is that if Louisiana Tech leaves Conference USA that the conference won't make any instant additions which should end the game of musical chairs for the offseason.