By Andy Katz
FOX Sports College Basketball Analyst
SAN FRANCISCO – Mick Cronin and Andy Enfield happened to have breakfast together when Pac-12 Head coaches settled into their seats in a conference room at Pac-12 network headquarters ahead of Wednesday’s media day.
The UCLA and USC coaches get two more seasons in Pac-12 – this season and the next – before their schools move in. Big Ten.
But while pending departures are naturally a thorny topic in the league, neither the coaches nor their programs have been boycotted.
The intimacy of Pac-12 media day – arguably the most well-executed media day of any Power 5 conference – creates casual conversations, outings, and general sociability among customers. Dozens of head coaches.
Not a single coach was affected, nor the remaining 10, by the departures of two of the four biggest brands in the conference (the remaining two in the men’s arms were Arizona and Oregon) seems to have any malice towards Cronin or Enfield.
The fans on the road may be a different story, but you won’t find any difference between the peers.
And that’s what should happen. UCLA is clearly the favorite to win the Pac-12. USC, selected fourth, has a team that is likely to be bound for the NCAA again. Sandwiched in between are the Wildcats and Ducks, rivals of both schools over the past few seasons as they all vie for control of the league.
The Pac-12 needs UCLA and USC to be themselves and, more recently, conference title contenders. The Bruins have two of the most recognizable players in Jaime Jaquez Jr.and Tyger Campbell, both of which are contenders for Pac-12 Player of the Year. Both have played in the Finals four seasons ago, and if Jaquez hadn’t hurt his ankle last season, then in the second round. Saint Mary’sthen UCLA could have removed it North Carolina and finally Saint Peter’s on the way to the back-to-back Finals. Campbell is one of the most reliable pitchers in the league, as well as a defensive player who can start a game in transition.
USC is not too far behind in terms of experience, with the return of Drew Peterson and Boogie Ellis, and having both LA schools as keys to Quad 1 games for each Pac-12 opponent would help any other NCAA Tournament case. Assuming Oregon reverts to Oregon and Arizona doesn’t drop much, then head-to-head games between the four teams will be scheduled to watch this season.
There is a quiet confidence that the Ducks will return and once again make their way to the top of the tournament. There’s also a not-so-subtle bragging from Arizona Kerr Kriisa. He’s bullish on the Wildcats and doesn’t hesitate to call me for not getting the Wildcats into the top 25 before my season.
Open fifth place with Stanford, Colorado and State of Arizona all of them legitimately claimed that they had teams of the caliber of the NCAA Tournament. This doesn’t mean they can’t finish higher, but there’s still questions between all three. Yes, this is a pre-season media day, but every coach and many players don’t hesitate to mention their post-season potential once prompted.
Washington state, Washington, Utah, Cal and Oregon State are still in reshuffle mode and entering an NCAA tournament will definitely put them ahead of schedule with their current roster.
What we do know is that UCLA and USC will launch in 2024-25. The league will be leaving the Pac-12 Network offices after this season and moving to a remote workforce, and a new studio home will still be announced. But what won’t change is that the Bruins and the Trojans are in a title chase.
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Andy Katz is a longtime college basketball writer, analyst, and host. He can be seen on the Big Ten Network, as well as March Madness and NCAA.com, and he hosts the podcast “March Madness 365.” Katz has worked at ESPN for nearly two decades and before that, journalism for nine years.
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