Editing Pac-12 Conference (section)

===Pacific-10===
[[File:Pacific-10 Conference logo.png|thumb|Final Pac-10 Conference logo]]

In [[1978 NCAA Division I-A football season|1978]], the conference added [[University of Arizona|Arizona]] and [[Arizona State]] from the [[Western Athletic Conference]], becoming the '''Pacific-10 Conference''' or '''Pac-10'''. The invitations to the schools were extended in December 1976,<ref name=p8citwonew>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=MW00AAAAIBAJ&sjid=754EAAAAIBAJ&pg=5472%2C2802732 |newspaper=Tuscaloosa News |agency=Associated Press |title=Pacific 8 Conference invites two new tenants |date=December 14, 1976 |page=12 }}</ref> and the expansion formally announced in May 1977.<ref name=p10scp8>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=NlZOAAAAIBAJ&sjid=9PgDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5195%2C805369 |newspaper=Spokane Daily Chronicle |agency=Associated Press |title=Pacific-10 succeeds Pacific-8 |date=May 18, 1977 |page=39 }}</ref>

In the mid-1980s, three of the northwest schools (Oregon, Oregon State, Washington State) were having financial difficulties in athletics, primarily with revenue from football, and their long-term membership in the conference was in question.<ref name=hanscda>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ANpVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=MOEDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6864%2C5086078<!-- https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=GllWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Ue8DAAAAIBAJ&pg=2054%2C2062764 -->|work=Eugene Register-Guard |agency=Associated Press<!-- |last=Wilson |first=Bernie-->|title=Hansen says economics won't tear Pac-10 apart |date=June 20, 1986 |page=3C}}</ref>

The Pac-10 began sponsoring women's athletics in the fall of 1986.<ref>[https://news.asu.edu/20201228-pac-10-celebrates-25-years-womens-sports Pac-10 celebrates 25 years in women's sports.] ASU News, Arizona State University December 20, 2010</ref><ref>Lewis, Michael C. - [https://archive.sltrib.com/article.php?id=52101465&itype=CMSID Pac-12 has been a trailblazer for women in sports.] Salt Lake Tribune, July 18, 2011</ref> Women's teams previously competed with other large universities on the [[West Coast of the United States|Pacific coast]] in either the [[Northern Pacific Conference (women's)|Northern Pacific Conference]] or the [[Western Collegiate Athletic Association]].<ref>Voepel, Michael - [https://www.espn.com/womens-college-basketball/story/_/id/39663885/womens-ncaa-basketball-pac-12-ranking-best-players-all Who are the top 50 players in Pac-12 women's basketball history?] ESPN, March 6, 2024</ref>

In the mid-1990s, the conference expressed interest in admitting the University of Colorado and the [[University of Texas at Austin|University of Texas]] after the collapse of the [[Southwest Conference]]. Texas expressed an interest in joining a strong academic conference, but joined three fellow Southwest Conference schools ([[Texas A&M University|Texas A&M]], [[Texas Tech University|Texas Tech]], and [[Baylor University|Baylor]]) to merge with the [[Big Eight Conference]] to form the [[Big 12 Conference]] in [[1996 NCAA Division I-A football season|1996]]. Colorado elected to remain in the newly formed Big 12.<ref>Mark Wangrin – [http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/stories/MYSA081405.3N.SWCbaylor.tech.1ca3e1c.html "Power brokers: How tagalong Baylor, Tech crashed the revolt"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080223200439/http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/stories/MYSA081405.3N.SWCbaylor.tech.1ca3e1c.html |date=February 23, 2008 }}. San Antonio Express, August 14, 2005</ref>

Before the addition of Colorado and Utah in 2011, only the [[Ivy League]] had maintained its membership for a longer time than the Pac-10 among Division I conferences. Commissioner Larry Scott said on February 9, 2010, that the window for expansion was open for the next year as the conference began negotiations for a new television deal. Speaking on a conference call to introduce former Big 12 commissioner Kevin Weiberg as his new deputy, Scott talked about possibly adding new teams to the conference and launching a new television network.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/02/09/SPTB1BUVCC.DTL|title=Pac-10 considers becoming Pac-12|last=Ratto|first=Ray|date=August 13, 2010|work=The San Francisco Chronicle}}</ref> Scott, the former head of the Women's Tennis Association, took over the conference in July 2009. In his first eight months on the job, he saw growing interest from the membership over the possibility of adding teams for the first time since Arizona and Arizona State joined the conference in 1978.