Big Ten, Pac-12 Suspend Scheduling Agreement
(AP) The Big Ten and Pac-12 have scrapped plans to schedule games against each other in all sports, with Pac-12 officials saying there were too many complications with football schedules to pull it off.
The leagues announced Friday that they've suspended the scheduling plan that both agreed to in December, well before a four-team playoff set to begin in 2014 was approved by a committee of university presidents last month.
Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany said the league recently learned from Pac-12 Commissioner Larry Scott that coordinating a non-conference football schedule for 24 teams across two leagues proved to be too difficult.
Delany said those complications included the Pac-12's nine-game conference schedule and previous non-conference commitments. The Big Ten will move from an eight-game league slate to a nine-game schedule in 2017.
"A great effort was made by both conference staffs to create football schedules that would address the variety of complexities, but in the end, we were just not able to do so," Delany said. "While everyone at the Big Ten is disappointed by the news, we look forward to continuing the historic partnership that we have with the Pac-12 and to working together on other matters in the future."
Scott said the Pac-12 wants to keep playing nine league games while maintaining as much flexibility in out-of-conference scheduling as possible.
Scott says the two leagues will continue a close relationship, which includes their long-standing partnership with the Rose Bowl.
"After extensive deliberation and consultation with member institutions, television partners and others, the Pac-12 and Big Ten have decided not to pursue the previously announced plans for enhanced scheduling collaboration across all sports," Scott said.
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